{"id":531,"date":"2021-08-16T04:12:26","date_gmt":"2021-08-16T04:12:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/?p=531"},"modified":"2021-09-29T00:03:11","modified_gmt":"2021-09-29T00:03:11","slug":"kunihiro-tokumaru","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/kunihiro-tokumaru\/","title":{"rendered":"[Living Histories] Mr. Kunihiro Tokumaru"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Interviewers\/Authors: Ayane Maekawa, Hina Yamanaka, Ryo Nakatsuji<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Kunihiro Tokumaru, the representative director of the non-profit Frontier Association, is considered a pioneer of regional planning for Ukyo Ward and, at one time, served as a member on several committees in the ward focused on development of the area.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 Where are you from and how long have you lived in Ukyo Ward?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: I am from Sakyo Ward, and I moved to Ukyo Ward when I was in the second year of junior high school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 What were you doing before you founded the Frontier Association?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: I was self-employed and engaged in motor sports as a hobby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 What is the origin of the name Frontier Association?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru:  It has the meaning of pioneering the future. It can also mean contributing to people who have given us support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 Why did you choose Ukyo Ward to establish the Frontier Association?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: Before we established the association, I built a facility for people in Ukyo Ward to hold sports events. Then, I wanted to do more besides enjoying sports events and decided to get involved with environmental conservation activities. So, I asked my friends to join me, and we decided to establish the current Frontier Association. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 What kind of activities have you been involved in at the Frontier Association?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr.\u00a0Tokumaru: We are engaged in a variety of community-based activities which can only be done by us. We helped establish a place called MACHIKO in the Ukyo Ward Office to provide a place for local people to come together and contribute to community building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 What is the most important thing for the Frontier Association?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: It has been more than 20 years since the association was established, so the purpose of its activities has changed little by little. We are now focusing on building a society centered on children and how to pass on various things to those who will be shouldering the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 Are you only doing activities with the children in Ukyo Ward?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: For now, we are only active in Ukyo Ward. By doing so, we can give dedicated support to children in this area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 Then, what kind of specific activities does Frontier Association offer?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: There is an activity in which about 50 children can experience Japanese drumming at a local shrine. This activity is a valuable experience as it helps them learn more about Japanese culture. Also, along with the child, the whole family usually comes, so it is a good opportunity to bring many people to one place and have fun together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 What is most rewarding regarding your work at the Frontier Association?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: It is to hear the children cheering and laughing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 I heard that you have been abroad several times. In your travels, have you experienced similar activities to those you are doing at Frontier Association?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: I first travelled abroad more than 20 years ago, and I felt there was a significant difference in the degree of poverty in many countries. It was completely different from Japan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 What are the goals of the Frontier Association?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: It is to convey to everyone the importance of continuing onwards toward the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 What do you like about Ukyo Ward?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: Ukyo Ward is a place where culture and art are nearby and within walking distance. I like that aspect of the area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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 \u2015 Do you have a favorite place in Ukyo Ward?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: Arashiyama in winter. It is not crowded and is beautiful even when it snows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 How do think Ukyo Ward is special and different from other wards in Kyoto?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: Frontier Association is based in Uzumasa, and I feel that the level of contact with residents is extremely high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 What should Ukyo Ward do to improve the area?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: There are many east and west roads, but few that run north and south, so I think the city should add more north and south roads. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2015 Please describe Ukyo Ward in one word.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mr. Tokumaru: History. There are a few World Heritage Sites nearby that offer a lot of historical culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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 \u2015 <\/strong>Finally, do you have a message for KUFS students, please?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Tokumaru: Don’t just end your student life inside the school. Talk to people in your community and make a lot of good connections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Interviewers\/Authors: Ayane Maekawa, Hina Yamanaka, Ryo Nakatsuji Mr. Kunihiro Tokumaru, the representative di […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":630,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,7,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english","category-ukyo-voices","category-ukyo-interview"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=531"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2340,"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531\/revisions\/2340"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kyotogaidai.org\/ukyoxkufs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}