Hirosaki City to Revitalize Local Community through Internship Program

Hirosaki, a city in Aomori Prefecture located at almost the northern end of the main island of Japan, is planning a program tentatively named "Hirosaki City Field Internship Academy" that will provide practical and experience-based training for creating new businesses. Set to start in April 2014, the program will identify attractive, unique features of the city, such as the Shirakami Mountain Range, a World Heritage site, and, based on the concept of Creating Shared Value (CSV), seek ways to revitalize the local community through business.

The CSV is a new concept that takes Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) a step further by looking to solve social problems through the creation of new businesses. Focusing on this concept, the City will address the challenges facing Aomori Prefecture in the form of an internship program. To catalyze the process, it will gather urban and rural businesses and students to discuss and share ideas from their own points of view, aiming to put new ideas into practice.

The City has been taking a new, active approach to economic revitalization by pursuing partnerships with industry and academia that make the most of local resources.