September 20th, 2023

For the renewal of the Takarazuka Bridge over the Mukogawa River, seven graduate students from the Department of Landscape Architecture presented a garden design for the pedestrian walkway space, and made an announcement of their design proposal to Takarazuka City Hall on 20th of January.

 Based on a comprehensive cooperation agreement between Takarazuka City and Mukogawa Women's University, Takarazuka City, which will be in charge of the flowerbeds after maintenance, asked the Department of Landscape Architecture at the University to propose a gardening design. Seven second-year master's students worked on this project as part of their 'Internship in Architecture Practice II' class.

The Takarazuka Bridge with a new pedestrian walkway space is scheduled for completion in 2023. To come up with a design proposal, the students first carried out fieldwork around the Takarazuka Bridge. Taking into account the characteristics of the area, such as the strong exposure to the sun and the heavy traffic of cars and bicycles, both local residents and tourists, the students adopted the colors of the five groups of the Takarazuka Revue in the flowers and leaves to express the 'glamour of Takarazuka as a gateway to the city and close to the Takarazuka Grand Theatre'.

The presentation showed several design proposals in plan, elevation, model and CG animation. Plants with different flowering seasons were planted so that the colors of the flowers could be enjoyed throughout the year, while consideration was also given to ease of maintenance, such as watering and trimming. The plan also includes lavender, rosemary and other flowers whose fragrance can be enjoyed by all five senses, not just by looking at them.

Mayor Yamazaki commented: “It is wonderful that the recollection of crossing this bridge will remain with the scent of flowers. I am happy that the proposal was made with care and maintenance in mind. I hope the bridge will be loved as a garden bridge for many years to come.”

Kyoka Kataoka, a second-year master's student, said: “It was the first time for me to make a presentation in front of so many people, including the mayor, and I was nervous, but I'm glad it was received favorably. I am looking forward to crossing the completed bridge".

September 19th, 2023

On 16th of September, World Clean-Up Day, when litter is picked up collectively around the world, the Inoue Seminar (Associate Professor Shigenobu Inoue) of the Department of Social Informatics at the Faculty of Social Informatics picked up litter around the Central Campus and LaLaport Koshien.

World Clean-Up Day was initiated by young people in Estonia in 2008 and has now spread to 190 countries and regions around the world. This year, litter pick-ups were also held in Japan on the same day at about 500 locations.

At Mukogawa Women's University, students from the Inoue Seminar, volunteers from the department, members of the Gakuyu-kai (alumni association) and faculty members took part in this activity for the first time.

In the morning, a total of 40 people, including Inoue seminar students, 16 volunteers from the department and 24 local residents, went jogging around Lalaport Koshien to pick up litter, a new environmental clean-up sport originating in Sweden. Some of the participants were elementary and junior high school students, who worked hard to find and pick up litter.

 In the afternoon, 11 members of the Gakuyu-kai and volunteers from the Faculty of Social Informatics walked along Route 43 from Chuo Campus to Naruo and Mukogawa Women's University Station, collecting empty cans and plastic bottles discarded in the plantings, candy wrappers that had fallen by the roadside, etc.

The amount of rubbish collected that day amounted to 12.5 kg of combustible rubbish and 4.2 kg of non-combustible rubbish.

The students said, "I don't think the empty beer cans and cigarette butts were thrown away by the students, but I was surprised to find quite a lot of rubbish in places I couldn't see", as they raked leaves and branches from the plants and picked up rubbish with serious expressions. Seminar student Akiko Nuno, a third-year student of the Department of Information and Media Studies, said, "I was not able to go outside as much as I would have liked during the pandemic, so I am glad to have been able to take part in such a meaningful activity.”

September 15th, 2023

The Department of Food and Nutrition, College of Food and Nutrition Sciences, held a summer study abroad program, "International Nutrition Exercise," from August 5th to August 29th at the Mukogawa U.S Campus (MUSC), where 18 students participated in the program.

The International Nutrition Seminar started in the 2009 academic year in order to cultivate a global perspective by closely observing the activities of American dietitians, who are highly regarded around the world. Study abroad programs are held during the summer vacation while applicants stay at the school. The program was suspended for three years due to pandemic, but resumed this year for the first time in four years.

 Students live in a dormitory on campus and attend an English program for two weeks, followed by the International Nutrition Seminar, a program unique to the department. This year, the students visited a nearby university, elementary school, hospital, and food bank to learn about each facility's relationship with food.

At the completion ceremony held on August 25th, each student received a certificate of completion from Vice President Akihiro Nakahara, and a student representative gave a speech in English.

September 5th, 2023

The Japanese women's volleyball team, coached by Ms. Sakashita of our university's volleyball team, won second place at the FISU World University Games Summer.

The Japanese national women's volleyball team, coached by Maiko Sakashita of the University's volleyball team, won second place at the FISU World University Games Summer (hosted by the International University Sports Federation, formerly Universiade).

The team faced the host country, China, in the final match on August 6. The first and second sets were very close, with the match going to deuce, but the team came out on top with a 0-3 result. It was the first time in two tournaments that a silver medal was won.

Coach Sakashita is an alumna of Mukogawa Women's University's volleyball club and joined JT Marvelous in 2007, becoming the university's first professional volleyball player. She retired from volleyball in 2016, and has been working as a volleyball coach since 2022.

Coach Sakashita commented on this year's tournament, "We had a tough time in the final match due to the level of support the opposing team was getting, but I think we fought with perseverance in a way that is typical of Japan. I learned a lot from the competition, including the pre-match training camp. Many of them are active in the business world, and I felt that their attitude toward training and practice, as well as their high level of communication skills during the games, were representative of the national class. It was also wonderful to be able to cheer on the other competitors during the competition. I would like to make use of this experience in coaching the Mukogawa Women's University volleyball team."

August 31st, 2023

On 30th of August, two videos of Mukogawa Women's University were released on the YouTube channel "Tosa Brothers' Daigaku Dokoiku," in which the comedy duo "Tosa Brothers" visit universities across Japan. In "Daigaku Dokoiku," the Tosa Brothers go undercover to each university and interview students in order to convey the characteristics of the university in an easy-to-understand manner to high school students who are not sure about their future career path. The program is a variety show that conveys the university campus environment in a fun way while talking to students.

The recording took place in June at the central campus. The theme of the discussion was "peeking into a girls talk," and three students from the Department of Informatics and Mediology (currently School of Social Informatics), Faculty of Business Administration, and Faculty of Architecture gathered to talk with the Tosa brothers in a cafe on the first floor of the Koe Memorial Building.

The themes ranged from the characteristics of each department, reasons for entering Mukogawa Women's University, and other topics related to their studies, to "what I'm into these days."

August 22nd, 2023

The Department of English and Global Studies held an airline industry seminar for students, 'Looking through the ANA Group - Airline Industry Post Pandemic ' organized by the Department of English and Global Studies, Division 3 (Business and Communication), at the Central Campus on 6th of July.

 The lecturer was Ms. Eriko Muramatsu, Chief Researcher at the ANA Research Institute. 156 students from the Department of English and Global Studies attended the event and listened attentively to her lecture on the special characteristics of the airline industry, the ANA Group's initiatives post pandemic and career plans for women. After the 70-minute lecture, a Q&A session was held and Ms Muramatsu gave each student advice on employment. Ms. Muramatsu gave detailed advice to each student on finding a job.

After the lecture, students commented that they had learnt the importance of the Japanese spirit as expressed in ANA's 'Inspiration of JAPAN' and that they would think about what they could do to become assets who can pay attention to changes in their surroundings, respect themselves and others, and turn the good qualities of diversity into strength.