< Vol.4 >
Virtual community was recognized by the people.
Electric network used to belong to the people called "otaku".
COARA was awarded a joyful prize.
People tended to say that the electric network belongs to "otaku" or
special person or technicians. But these days the Internet spread
explosively, and we can say that the electric network started to be
recognized by people. Suntory Foundation awarded us the "Suntory
Local Culture Prize" in this July, just as people were starting to think
so. It was pleasure for us. Needless to say, it was the first time for
the Suntory Foundation that they awarded a prize to " electric culture".
On the day of an awarding ceremony, the member of COARA in the
Kansai area assembled in the meeting place. Enjoying themselves positively
without hesitation is their feature.
Mr. And Mrs. Takeuchi in Shiga prefecture come from Hita city. They
explained lively the COARA to people who were interested in it. And
They presented their handmade card, shook hand, and took pictures
with the member of " Nagoya Musume Kabuki " who also won the
prize. The couple enjoyed very much. Mr. Kirou Harada has graduated
graduate school of Tokyo University and has gotten employment in
Kobe. He has been a member of COARA since he was junior high
school student. He made a homepage which objected to the nuclear
test in Mururoa of France while he is at school, and got tens of
thousands of remail from all over the world. He told of the experience
according to question.
We can exchange each other over the border.
There also were elder successive prize winner with us. We newcomer
- one of the public suddenly mixed with them. But everyone have a
thing in common which they positively live in their local and enjoy
the local life. They practice " Live in local, and be hero or heroine"
naturally.
...But, just wait. What is the local?
Electric network can go over the border, such as the town, city, and
prefecture. We can exchange each other with the network. So the idea
of local is a little bit different from the former idea. Nearly half of the
members of the COARA actually did not live in Oita prefecture.
Mr. and Mrs. Takeuchi and Mr. Harada did not live in Oita
Prefecture, either.
In other words, the local where we say is the community of the people
who is glad of the communication each other on the electric network
which based on the keyword of the "Oita" without resistance.
Was the "Local culture prize" awarded to the "Virtual local" ?
Common life style
When I looked up "Culture" in the CD-ROM of the Koujien, it said
that both physical and spiritual fruits of human being who touched up
the nature and built up the fruits. And the fruits have the life
formation and contents ,such as technique, learning, art, morality,
religion, and politics, including food, clothing and shelter.
Electric network actually were made by people, butcoh, yes, their
common "life formation" is the regularly connection to COARA,
isn't it. Almost all the members connect to it once a day. As people go
home in the evening in their real life, it seems that the members take
some mental topics to electric community, and hold the topics in
common with them. After that, they get new knowledge or common
experiences with company, and they can fly away to tomorrow.
If you can continue like this way for 10 years, the action or the idea
which isn't particular about any existing limit are born. And besides,
the virtual idea bear the real things, and we can feel that there is a
"Electric Prefecture Land". Is this the "Electric Local Culture"?
A million yen turn into two million yen.
However, if you see president Saji, you can blow off such a logic. At the
party hall, he showed up joyfully. He sang the " Low Hide" or "In the
violet season" with all people in the hall to the accompaniment of the
"Kobe Jazz Street" band which also got the prize. And he also parade
the hall putting up his umbrella to the accompaniment of the music
of "A saint came to the town".
Finally, we were surprised by the proposal of president Saji again.
In the last of the social meeting, Mr. Kumagaya the ex-president
of the Osaka university gave a last speech. "A million yen of the
supplementary prize used to be a large amount when it started. But
the value of this prize is not the amount. Nothing can take the place of
this prize", he said.
President Saji immediately said, "O.K. I change the supplementary
prize to two million yen from this year." The proposal caused great
excitement, we exclaimed in delight. It is just like a book that the
ending was the opposite.
written by Tooru Ono, the chief of the NEW COARA secretariat
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