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《　今回のworkshop　》
○workshop参加人数：５２名（うち新人の方：８名）
○【前半】：Let’s build a school!
○【後半】：How to deal with the plastic waste problem
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≪FIRST HALF≫
＜Agenda＞
Let’s build a school!

Have you ever seen this TV commercial?

Yes, it is a problem.
Education is a basic human right.
Yet those who need education the most – children living in poverty – are the least likely to attend and complete school.
This commercial also reminds me children I saw in developing countries.
I have encountered many young children working on streets, selling flowers, candies and begging.
Everytime I see them I wonder if they are happy about their lives, if they have dream and have any clue how to make it happen.
I don’t think so.
As it is well known that education is the key to get out of poverty, and it helps to fulfill their dreams and have a productive life. However, they don’t have much opportunities to get decent education.

So let’s build a school for them!
You and your group members are co-founder of the school.

Let’s say you are building a free secondary school in Myanmar.

■About Myanmar’s education and industry (for the reference of future job opportunity)

According to UNICEF data for 2008-12, approximately 90 percent of children ages 6 to 10 in Myanmar attend primary school. But attendance plummets in secondary school, where just 58 percent of boys and girls still go to school.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Myanmar

Agriculture and energy resource development industry are still major industries.
More and more foreign corporations are expanding their business in Myanmar, and manufacturing industry, service industry are promising sectors.

■JICA’s activity in Education field
https://www.jica.go.jp/english/our_work/thematic_issues/education/c8h0vm0000am7dbv-att/everyone_01.pdf

＜Questions＞
Q1. Have you ever seen working young children? What do you think of possible problems cased from lack of education?
Q2. What do you expect from your students in the future?
Ex: Be a leader of the community and teach others / Work overseas
Q3. What will you teach to achieve Q2? Why?
Q4. Who are the teachers? What materials will you use?
Q5. What can you do for their community?
Poverty and shortage of workforce are preventing them from going to school. So improving their community situation will be a big help.
Q6. Let’s name your school and make up a slogan for your school. What’s the message of it?
Ex: E’s school / To be free (Message: Let’s learn to obtain freedom!)

≪LATTER HALF≫
＜Agenda＞
How to deal with the plastic waste problem

Japan is the third largest exporting nation of plastic waste. (Hong Kong is a stopping point of export to China, so Japan is the second largest nation in effect.)
More than half of it was exported to China until August of 2017, but China restricted imports of industrial plastic waste in late December 2017.
Not only China, Southeast Asian nations have also started to impose a restriction of import.
Then, Japan have to take some action to reduce its generation of plastic waste.

In this workshop, we’ll discuss the plastic waste problem.
At the last 5 minutes of the latter half, I’ll choose some groups at random.
Please present your group’s ideas on Reduce, Reuse and Recycle of plastic waste.

＜Questions＞
Q1. Please give your impressions of Japan’s shipments of plastic waste overseas freely.
Q2. Please give some examples of actions some companies already take to deal with the plastic waste except for those written in the article.
Q3. If Japan can’t take any effective measure to reduce its generation of plastic waste and become full of it, what kind of environmental problem would occur?
Q4. Imagine that a refuse dump of plastic waste will be constructed near your house. How much can you accept of that?
Totally refused it? Totally accept it? Or how much subsidy do you require to accept it?
Q5. Invent new ideas to deal with the plastic waste problem.
Organize your group’s ideas from the viewpoint of 3R. (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle)

＜Article＞
Japan’s plastic waste shipments fall 30% after China import ban; experts urge action to curb usage
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/02/21/national/japans-plastic-waste-shipments-fall-30-china-import-ban-experts-urge-action-curb-usage/#.XG65p38UmUk

Japan’s shipments of plastic waste overseas in 2018 decreased 30 percent, figures from a research institute showed Thursday, due to restrictions China imposed on receiving such waste in late 2017.

The nation exported about 1.01 million tons of plastic waste in 2018, down from 1.43 million tons the previous year, according to the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies, with shipments to China plunging to 100,000 tons last year from 1.02 million tons.

China, a major importer of plastic and other waste, imposed an import ban on nonindustrial plastic waste and restricted imports of industrial plastic waste in late December 2017 amid growing concerns over pollution and health problems.

Japan’s plastic waste shipments to Southeast Asian nations such as Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam increased last year after China imposed the restrictions.

But the country’s shipments to Southeast Asia are unlikely to grow further as some countries in the region have also started to impose their own limits.

Experts are urging Japan to take action to reduce its generation of plastic waste.

Yoshinori Morita, a visiting researcher at IGES, said the government should oblige manufacturers of plastic products to use recycled materials in Japan.

Morita also called for introducing international rules to better recycle plastic waste in Asia.

“Japan needs to take the initiative in creating common rules throughout the Asian region so that plastic waste can be recycled properly,” Morita said.

Hideshige Takada, a professor at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, said companies should use alternative materials for food containers and other products.

Some companies are already taking steps. Skylark Holdings Co. stopped distributing plastic straws at its Gusto restaurant chain from late last year. Starbucks Coffee Japan Ltd. and Royal Holdings Co., which operates the Royal Host restaurant chain, will also stop offering plastic straws by 2020.

Hamburger chain operator Mos Foods Services Inc. will switch from plastic to paper cutlery for takeout food.

But such actions by individual firms have their limit.

Japan produces the largest amount of plastic waste per capita after the United States and has lagged behind other countries in curbing the use of plastics despite growing fears over environmental pollution.

In an effort to catch up with the global trend, the Environment Ministry has drafted a strategy to cut disposable plastic waste by 25 percent by 2030 and to oblige shops to charge for plastic bags.

The strategy is expected to be officially endorsed by the end of March.

Earlier this month, the government decided to ban in principle the use of plastic straws and cutlery in its cafeterias and to stop passing out plastic bottles to attendees at conferences.

The policy will be applied to all central government institutions, including ministries, courts and regional bureaus, when they start signing new procurement agreements from April.

Under the revised Basic Policy on Promoting Green Procurement, shops in government buildings will only be permitted to give customers bags made with a certain amount of natural materials. Plastic cutlery will only be given to customers if requested.

Shop operators will also be asked to offer economic incentives to encourage customers not to use plastic bags.

＜References (in Japanese)＞
３Ｒについて(リデュース・リユース・リサイクル推進協議会)

３Ｒについて

プラスチックを取り巻く国内外の状況 – 環境省
www.env.go.jp/council/03recycle/y0312-01/y031201-2x.pdf

「世界最大のごみ捨て場」中国の終焉ー日本のプラスチックごみはどこへいく
https://news.yahoo.co.jp/byline/mutsujishoji/20180716-00089455/

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