[Event Report] Diversity Week (AY 2022)
Event Date
Event Venue
April 6, 2023
The Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion held an awareness-raising event titled "Diversity Week 2022" from Friday, February 24 to Monday, March 13, 2023. The event was co-hosted by the Keio University FD Committee and held in cooperation with the Waseda University Diversity Promotion Office.
Related to the three main themes of the Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion—"work-life balance," "barrier-free access," and "diversity"—we held a variety of six events, including talk events, a film screening and talk session, and seminars. We welcomed speakers active in various fields, and many people, including all Keio students, faculty, and staff from Keio University and its affiliated schools, participated both online and in person. The events featured lively exchanges of opinions and Q&A sessions, making it a valuable time that contributed to the improvement of Keio University's inclusive environment.
Furthermore, as part of our efforts to ensure information accessibility, we provided real-time text captioning for all events and sign language interpretation for some.
Here we introduce some feedback from participants of each event, along with photos.
Friday, February 24
How to Survive Graduate School Life: A Talk Session with Alumni
○ It was informative to hear from graduate school alumni about their various career paths. The moderator's questions were exactly what I was curious about, which was great.
○ I was able to get a concrete image of graduate school life. I think the content was very helpful not only for current graduate students but also for undergraduate students and students from affiliated schools who are thinking about their future, as it allowed them to learn about "the next stage of learning."
Friday, February 24
Thinking about Sustainability from the Campus
○ I had some knowledge about the SDGs, but I hadn't thought deeply about how to translate that into action, so this was a very good opportunity.
○ I had been going about my days without a real sense of how SDGs activities would affect our lives or the meaning behind them. However, the lecture provided concrete figures and evidence, such as future predictions for global warming, which gave me a true sense of urgency. I also learned about specific activities at the SFC campus and felt the need to start making changes one by one, beginning with our own campus.
Wednesday, March 1
Health Seminar: "Facing Cancer, Living with Cancer"
○ My perspective on cancer, which I had only thought of as something scary, has changed because it was explained in an easy-to-understand way using data and recent information. Thank you very much.
○ The topic was highly specialized, but it was explained in a very easy-to-understand way, and I had many realizations and learned a great deal. I used to feel that cancer was a distant issue, but hearing that nearly 50% of both men and women will develop it made me see it as a personal matter and reflect on the need to get regular check-ups.
○ I thought it was a wonderful seminar that allowed for a very good understanding of cancer from both general and specific perspectives. I'm very glad I attended.
Thursday, March 2
The Secret to Balancing Work and Caregiving: Get Through Caregiving While Working by Knowing the Basics
○ I was able to learn the basics of the long-term care system and what steps to take before using it. The explanation was concrete, incorporating know-how based on experience, which deepened my understanding.
○ The speaker explained everything one by one using familiar examples, which I found very approachable. Since caregiving is something anyone might face, I thought this aspect was very important.
Monday, March 6
Film "I'm Done with Being Your Friend." (Limited one-week screening) + Talk Session (with sign language interpretation)
○ I thought it was wonderful how the facilitator, Professor Nakajima, asked universal questions that able-bodied people might usually have in an easy-to-understand way.
○ I realized that being aware of one's own characteristics and exploring ways to communicate is important for everyone.
[Impressions of the film (excerpts)]
○ I was shocked to realize that sign language can be used in that way. I hope that many people, including the younger generation about to enter society, will watch this film and experience the same shock that I did.
Monday, March 13
Creating a New Kyosei (Inclusive) Society through "Experiential Dialogue"
○ It gave me a chance to think about what is important for different people to live together. Ms. Shimura's talk was particularly warm and wonderful.
○ I thought the content, the way students were involved, and the activities and steps toward understanding the core of @ease were all very good.
○ I feel it was a time when I could acquire knowledge I didn't have before. I was especially surprised to hear at the end that wearing an eye mask or a face mask can interfere with a visually impaired person's sense of walking. I had never thought about that at all, and it was a great learning experience. Thank you.
Please note that an archive of this event will be posted at a later date. It will be uploaded to the news section of the Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion website, and we hope that those who are interested will watch it.
(The archive for AY 2021 can be viewed here ⇒ Diversity Week 2021 )
We would like to once again express our deepest gratitude to all who participated and to everyone who cooperated in making this event possible.