“My First International Exchange Program” was an event that invited people who were interested in other countries. They shared his or her opinions and experiences. The presenter introduced what he or she is doing now. Then, we had time for some questions and debates. “The Doshisha Student,”an English Newspaper club, invited Kimura Manami who is in the international group, “We Are One Japan,” to our 1st “My international interchange” that took place in Tanabe on Dec 12th. About 15 Korean, Chinese, and Japanese students took part in this meeting and shared their views.

  Before mentioning about We Are One Japan, let me sum up what we've talked about in our meeting. We've discussed about the result of the national census in Kyoto. It is said that there are 5,000 foreign students in Kyoto City. In fact, many international social groups exist in Kyoto and each group has their own organization. All participants in this 1st meeting joined together with the foreign groups. We talked about the similarities and the differences of the social groups which were the most popular topics. It was more important for the foreign group to share the same goal than talking about friendship. Each team had a leader responsible for their group members. After this meeting was over, I felt I should have made the groups just like how “We Are One Japan” always does.

  Now, let me introduce to you about We Are One Japan.

   We are one Japan was first established in 2008. It is a voluntary, event organizing group that bringing together exchange students living in the Kansai area through various events and activities. The objective of We Are One Japan is to create a place for people to connect to and exchange cultures with others regardless of their race, language or religion. There are various events but Tour de Kyoto, Traveler's Night and Kansai international Student Party (KISP) becomes the typical activities. We Are One Tour de Kyoto cycling event allows people with different backgrounds to come together to enjoy regular bicycle day-trips to somewhere yet to be discovered. They choose the different bicycle roads each time. At each Traveler's night, they invite a foreign guest speaker of the theme country to present and share with the members. He or she will be able to tell the members what to see, what to eat and where to go that are only known to the locals. The KISP is a subgroup under We Are One Japan that organizes different international events for students, by students all over Kansai areas. The objective is to enhance interaction and exchange between students not only within their schools, nor within Kyoto or Osaka, but in bigger Kansai area for both Japanese and international students.

  Likewise, We Are One Japan does not suggest you to just hang around but also do something valuable and meaningful. If you are interested in working with We Are One, Please contact we.are.one.japna＠gmail.com. Thank You!