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作者 Administrator
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2006/11/23 木曜日 12:19:17 JST |
1. Japan has become aging society. Japan is the most rapidly aging country in the world. Currently one person out of five is over 65 years old and it is expected that one out of four people will be over 65 by 2015. If you compare those figures with Thailand where the population over 65 years was 6% of the total, or one out of 16 people in 2000, you can better understand Japan’s situation. The Japanese also have one of the top longevity nationalities in the world. In 2004, the life expectancy for men was 78 years and 85 years for women. It compares to Thailand’s 65 years for men and 72 years for women in 2000. This means the average Japanese live 18 to 25 years after their retirement age of 60. Here, we also should emphasize that the so-called “Seniors”, that is the people over 60 in Japan are both physically and mentally healthier compared with most other countries in the world. 2. Wishing for a Cultural Exchange program for the seniors. The interest in foreign travel remains quite strong in Japan. The number of Japanese who travel outside Japan has increased tremendously in the last three decades. Now almost 17 million Japanese make trips overseas every year, however, there are a growing number of seniors who are not satisfied with just sightseeing. They want more of a human touch in their travel plans and also want to interact with local people, face-to-face, by exchanging cultures. Although there are a huge number of overseas travel products available in Japan, most of those tours are planned for only sightseeing. In addition, many existing cultural exchange programs that are sponsored by the governmental or private sectors are mainly targeted only at young students. Ironically, seniors are better suited for these cultural exchange programs for the following reasons: Senior Japanese know more about Japanese customs and traditions than the younger generation. Senior people have more experience in their life and occupation. Senior people do not require a hasty travel plan(3days-2nights) because they have more free time. Senior people are more likely to contribute to society’s interests rather than to their own interests while they are still physically and mentally healthy. Senior people are more likely to make new friends because they can spend more time for it. Many seniors wish to keep learning new ideas and also wish to experience new things they may have missed during the “family raising” period of their lives. Due to the above we have come to think that there is a growing demand for an organization that could offer and support cultural exchange programs for seniors so that they can participate and contribute to society easily and safely.
The Association of Ageless Culture Exchange(ACEA) was established in September 2002 under the Osaka Prefecture Government’s approval as a NPO(Non-Profit Organization). . ACEA assists and supports those seniors who wish to engage in cultural exchange activities by offering opportunities and facilities. ACEA believes senior’s active participation in cultural exchange activities will enrich the participants’ retirement life and also contribute to peaceful international relations on a grassroots basis. ACEA hopes its activities will lead better understanding of different cultures by both Japanese and non-Japanese people.
The list of activities in the past - Long Stay Cultural Exchange Travel: Hawaii Australia, NewZealand, Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and Okinawa.
- Foreign Language Classes: English, Chinese and Thai
- Cultural Classes and Lectures: Sketching, Wine and Cuisine.
- Assistance in compiling and publishing of personal histories.
- Sending Osaka’s “Puppet Drama” team to Mongolia to give a traditional Japanese performance in 2004 as part of a Japanese Mongolia cultural exchange.
New Horizon 2004 December’s news of “The Tsunami” which hit and damaged a vast area of South Asia shocked us very much. Although we could not do anything physically to help the injured people immediately, we kept on thinking what we could do for the people of Phuket. Now we have come to think that encouraging the children of the “Tsunami Suffered Area” is a good idea. To visit the children and tell them that Japanese school children care for them and, at the same time, show them some Japanese culture might be a good idea for the Phuket children and Japanese children, as well.
In September, 2005, we organized the “Healing Caravan of the Tsunami” to Phuket and Khaolak, Thailand. We plan to continue this project in Thailand and in other countries in the future.
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最終更新日 ( 2007/04/06 金曜日 14:37:19 JST )
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