[in Japanese]

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[in Japanese]

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[in Japanese]

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[in Japanese]

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[in Japanese]

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The pro-democracy movement of Myanmar residents in Japan is fluid in nature, characterized by the frequent establishment of new organizations and mobility of membership. This makes it difficult to create a unified and centralized movement. This study aims to shed light on the characteristics of the democratic movement and the factors sustaining it by investigating how Myanmar residents in Japan build human networks, participate in the movement, and form organizations. Myanmar residents in Japan participate in the movement based on personal ties such as loyalty to their leaders and their trust in other members. It can be argued that this fluidity is a strength rather than a vulnerability of the movement , as it reflects the rational organization formed by the Myanmar residents, who build networks centered on dyadic relationships, such as “self and others.” Owing to the commonplace nature of divisions and the formation of new groups, the roles of individual participants within the movement of Myanmar residents in Japan are subject to flexible changes. Given that each participant has the potential to assume a leadership position, there is a strong tendency towards active engagement, thereby enhancing the sustainability of the movement.

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This study analyzes the impact of Community-Based Learning (CBL) on a community through interactions among actors using key competencies and the “net-base” of the community. The results confirm that CBL promotes attitude and value changes in the actors, changes the relationships among them, and improves their key competencies. These changes are induced by each actor’s openness to accepting others, readiness to learn and change, as well as attitude toward the closeness, equity, integrity, and functioning educational program of CBL. The connections created by CBL are perceived as a “net-base.” Additionally, two observations are made regarding the “net-based” functionality of the CBL. First, the host organization staff’s previous experiences in interacting with heterogeneous groups within the region is leveraged in fostering relationships with students undergoing CBL, thus increasing the multilayerness of “net-bases.” Second, the key competencies of the actors increases the connectivity of other “net-bases” in the community. This suggests that CBL can serve as a catalyst for the functioning of other “net-bases” within the community under certain conditions, such as the interaction of the existing “net-base,” the continuity of CBL, and changes in the social situation.

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　The author investigates the impact on the characteristics and perceived growth of overseas short-term program participants during the pandemic period. This investigation involves conducting a comparative verification by administering identical surveys within the same program context to participants of the “International Work Camp” in 2017 and 2023. The results of the investigation reveal that, for the 2023 cohort, while the pandemic delayed their plans, not only did it exhibit minimal influence on their determination to study abroad, but also reported a stronger subjective sense of intrinsic motivation and perceived growth resulting from their participation, compared to the 2017 cohort. Furthermore, regarding activities contributing to growth on-site, the study not only highlights the traditional pre- and post-program components, travel, and volunteer work inherent in work camps but also emphasizes the significant influence of social interactions during meals and leisure time. This underscores a presumed yearning for face-to-face communication, which was hindered by lockdown measures. In contrast, the analysis of free-response comments indicated that the 2017 cohort showed a heightened motivation for concrete activities such as acquiring qualifications or skills, the 2023 cohort engaged more in abstract activities. This suggests the possibility that the experiences and reflections during the pandemic required a critical period of “learning” and “growth,” it is essential that society understands and supports these differences.

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　Housing Complex A, located in an urban area of Japan, has 7,000 houses. Recently, many families from different countries, such as China, the Philippines, Peru, and Brazil, have resided there. Since 2017, university students have worked with volunteer program, which is volunteer learning support for children with foreign roots. This study aimed to identify the students’ motivations for participating in volunteer activities, their reasons for continuing, the difficulties they experienced, and what they hoped the program would achieve in the future. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with nine students, analyzed qualitatively, and subjected to descriptive analysis. The motivations for participating in volunteer activities were [the opportunity to give back to society], [the opportunity for personal growth], and [being introduced to the program by their teacher]. The reasons for students to continue volunteering were [contribution to children and parents], [opportunity for growth], [good relationships with children], and [cooperation among volunteers]. The most common difficulties were related to [relationships with the children], [volunteer management], and [online lectures]. As for their desires for the future of the volunteer program, the respondents answered “creating a place for children to stay” and “expanding the scale of participation.” We will continue our research so that the residents of the complex can interact with each other through various events.

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Following the global trend, Bangladesh is also adopting a community-based management system as the Operation and Maintenance （O&M） system of water supply facilities. However, like other countries, Bangladesh is in a transition period in which O&M methods need to be discussed. Although the Bangladesh government has considered the introduction of a new O&M system under this situation, it is identified that the current situation is far different from the new O&M system. The author’s previous research has clarified the possibility of co-management O&M activities between caretakers and other water users. In order to promote the co-management O&M system, it was pointed that clear regulations regarding ownership and management of water supply facilities, exchanging documents and information for building consensus and providing technical support for the O&M activities of the water supply facilities from governmental institution are needed. In this study, the necessity considerations to increase the feasibility of the co-management system of water supply facilities were identified. In the target area, it is quite difficult to show the strong leadership for the implementation of O&M activities. Under this situation, the following three （3） considerations could be effective for adaptation of co-management O&M system in the target areas; 1） to conduct campaigns and provide guidance based on religious views and 2） to make some political linkages such as involvement of the political leaders to O&M activities and to enforcement from a political power in administrative documentation for handing-over of water supply facilities and 3） to secure fairness of economic value for O&M activity loads among water users.

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