Hello! I’m Mayuko Shinada, a member of the Student Public Relations Committee at the Faculty of International Studies. I would like to report on the special Wednesday colloquium lecture that I attended.

On May 29, 2024, Dr. Guiseppe Aliperti, who is a Professor at the Faculty of Social and Human Sciences at the University of Deusto, Spain gave an invited lecture. About 40 students and faculty members attended the lecture, which was held in English.

After completing his Ph.D. at La Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna in Italy, Dr. Aliperti served as a JSPS (Japan Society for the Promotion of Science ) Research Fellow, a Researcher at Kyoto University’s Disaster Prevention Research Institute, a Visiting Researcher at the United Nations University, and a visiting Researcher at Wakayama University’s International Tourism Research Center. His research focuses on risk communication, as well as crisis and disaster management in the tourism industry.

His lecture, which was on the theme of “Collaborative governance to preserve natural and cultural heritage,” focused on the case study of tourism in the Euskadi area, located in the northern part of Spain.

Dr. Aliperti began by introducing the famous food, athletes, and tourist attractions of the city of San Sebastian (Donostia in Basque) in the Basque Country, and then talked about various regional characteristics and tourism industry initiatives, using videos and images. The atmosphere at the venue was calm throughout.

He said that the recent increase of Japanese tourists to the Basque Country is due to its ethical views on tourism aligning with Japanese characteristics. The Basque Country has a Tourism Code of Ethics, which consists of eight principles. The principles include maintaining an attitude of understanding and respect for tourists, cultivating sustainability, culture, and tradition, as well as preserving cultural heritage. These principles will have a positive impact on the social and economic sectors that practice collaborative governance and manage disasters or crises.

The principles of the Tourism Ethics Code not only have an economic impact on the country, but also have the effect of raising awareness about diversity and equality, as well as promoting environmental protection and reinforcement.

During the Q&A session, there were many questions such as the languages used in schools and public facilities, as well as the choice of language to learn and speak.

One of the most impressive questions he answered is that Dr. Guiseppe’s university’s faculty of tourism is required to complete in English in the final grade.

In addition to the fact that the tourism industry has an impact on the economy, it was said that languages acquisition, including English, is required to communicate with tourists not only domestically also overseas.

During the Q&A session, there were many questions about issues like the languages used in schools and public facilities, as well as the choice of which language to learn or speak. One of the most impressive answers that Dr. Aliperti gave was that his university’s Faculty of Tourism requires its students to complete their final year in English. He said that, in addition to the tourism industry’s impact on the economy, language acquisition, including that of English, is needed in order to communicate with tourists not only domestically, but also overseas.

From this lecture, I thought that we should boost the conservation of natural and cultural heritage, which is a principle of tourism ethics, because such heritage symbolizes the country’s culture and history, and helps us understand and respect other cultures through tourism.

Also, I’m a member of the GSE course of the Faculty of International Studies and take most of my classes in English. After attending the lecture, I reaffirmed the importance of learning multiple languages and understanding different cultures. It was a very valuable experience, which gave me the motivation for my own studies in university.

 

Mayuko Shinada, 3^rd year student, Student Public Relations Committee, Faculty of International Studies.

 

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