On July 30, a symposium on thinking about regional revitalization with sports was held at 50th Anniversary Hall, Okayama University.

The opening speech, titled “International Academic City Okayama as an Innovation City Based on SDGs,” was delivered by President Hirofumi Makino of Okayama University. After a lecture given by Shunsuke Kajitani, Representative of the Okayama Sports Promotion Study Group (SPOC); Satoshi Mimura, an advisor to the Okayama Seagulls and Director of the Academic and General Okayama University Regional Research Association (AGORA), delivered a lecture on the potential of regional revitalization through sports, in which he emphasized that club teams supported by citizens can serve as a powerful engine that drives local economic circulation.

A panel discussion was also held attended by five panelists—Takamasa Koshimune, Chairman of the Okayama Sports Association; Eiji Takashita, Expert Officer of the Japan Sports Agency; Masao Omori, Mayor of Okayama City; Akiyoshi Kawamoto, a coach of the Okayama Seagulls; and Kayo Takahashi, Executive Vice President for Planning and General Affairs at Okayama University. These panelists actively exchanged views about the effects of sports on community development and their concrete methods in the discussion that was facilitated by coordinator Atsushi Takaoka, Deputy Representative of SPOC and Senior Assistant Professor for Graduate School of Education at Okayama University. About 250 people including many from business, government, and academia participated in the event.