This June, some of the over 3,000 student members of 42 Habitat Japan university campus chapters joined student-run regional training camps in east and west Japan.
Starting June 22nd, a two-day one-night camp was held in in Takashima City, Shiga Prefecture, where over 100 student volunteers from 16 universities gathered from throughout western Japan. There students split into 18 groups to participate in activities like a boardgame where players progressed by deepening their knowledge of Habitat and a workshop based on Habitat’s Global Village (GV) program. Campus chapter members commented “This was my first time attending camp, but I feel like I was able to grow closer to my peers as we went through the workshops together.” and “I want to use the connections I was able to make with members of other campus chapters to improve future projects.”
Then on June 29th, another two-day one-night camp was held in Tokyo, where over 60 students from all around east Japan gathered. There students learned about the GV program through a game-like format and joined teambuilding exercises. After the camp, some members who had never experienced GV expressed their desire to join. Participants commented “I was anxious about spending two days with people I’d never met, but I was able to make a lot of friends from other universities. I’m glad I had the courage to participate.” and “Hearing about GV from my upperclassmen made me want to participate even more.”
These two events were planned by the student presidents of campus chapters in each respective region. Morisaki-san and Taniwaki-san, who played key roles in planning the camps, said “Even though we didn’t have much planning time, everyone was proactive and worked hard to make this two-day event a fulfilling experience for our underclassmen.” and “Personally, I’ve joined GV three times. I feel like this camp was a great opportunity to help communicate the appeal of GV, of which I think we had a great success. I would be happy if this camp becomes the impetus for new members to participate in the program.”
Each of the east and west events provided opportunities for student volunteers to go beyond their own universities and create new connections and cooperate with students from other universities around the country. In doing so, participants were able to feel a sense of solidarity and become motivated. Habitat Japan plans to hold the annual Japan campus chapter (JCC) festival this October, where hundreds of student volunteers from around the country will gather in one place and participate in workshops planned by fourth year campus chapter members. Please click here to support our youth program that strives to foster the development of young leaders.