[Oku-Aizu] Recruiting for Talent Development: 'Oku-Aizu Co-Creation College - 2nd Season' Program Begins

The Tadami River Power Basin Promotion Council (Oku-Aizu Promotion Center), comprised of seven towns and villages in the Oku-Aizu region of Fukushima Prefecture (Yanaizu, Mishima, Kaneyama, Showa, Tadami, Minamiaizu, and Hinoemata), is launching the 'Oku-Aizu Co-Creation College - 2nd Season' (commonly known as 'Oku-Kare'). This course aims to cultivate and secure local talent and create a foundation for sustainable community development where residents take the lead. Applications will be accepted from Friday, May 29, 2026, to Friday, July 17, 2026.

The program focuses on deep learning from advanced examples of regional support and co-creation across Japan, with the goal of collectively creating and implementing practical action plans ('My-plans') feasible within the Oku-Aizu region.

During the 1st season last year, the program fostered flat dialogue across diverse roles, including government officials, regional revitalization cooperators, and private business operators. It successfully generated a 'chain of implementation,' with conceived plans being adopted for Fukushima Prefecture's support projects. This year, the 2nd season will continue the hybrid in-person and online format while strengthening support for linking funds and resources to help participants turn their ideas into reality.

■ Three Key Features of 'Oku-Aizu Co-Creation College - 2nd Season'

1. Massive Input from Leading Guest Lecturers: Japan's top regional co-creation innovators will speak at each session, connecting interesting initiatives from other regions to the context of Oku-Aizu.
2. Flexible 'In-person + Online' Format with Comprehensive Support: Designed to be accessible for busy participants, the course combines dynamic in-person workshops and a 1-night/2-day field trip with weekday evening online sessions. A robust support system is in place, allowing participants to consult with the secretariat at any time.
3. Linking Resources and Funds to Transform 'Vision' into 'Business': To ensure plans are more than just ideals, the program provides concrete advice for applying to Fukushima Prefecture's support projects and helps identify and match business partners, offering full support to help participants overcome obstacles they cannot manage alone.

■ Achievements and Participant Feedback from Last Year's 1st Season

Last year's inaugural season attracted diverse players with shared aspirations from within the Oku-Aizu region and received very high praise.

- 100% Program Satisfaction Rate: In the post-program survey, 100% of participants expressed satisfaction ('Satisfied': 57.9%, 'Somewhat Satisfied': 42.1%).
- Creation of 'Mixed Teams' Bridging the Public-Private Gap: The participant breakdown was 48% government officials and 52% private business owners, regional revitalization cooperators, and local residents. A unique community has formed where participants transcend organizational and regional boundaries to discuss the future of the region and support each other's challenges.
- 14 'My-plans' Created and Moving Toward Implementation: Each participant developed a project (My-plan) they wanted to challenge in Oku-Aizu, leading to the presentation of 14 distinct plans.