A seminar on the ILC was held on July 6th for 500 people in Oshu City’s cultural hall in Sakurakawa, Mizusawa (organized by the ILC Accelerator Science Promotion Council et al). Atsuto Suzuki, president of Iwate Prefectural University and director of the Tohoku ILC Planning Office (also, former director general of KEK), gave the seminar, where he tried to get people pumped for the ILC as we approach the do-or-die point for the project.

Pres. Suzuki talked about what the area has done to realize the ILC, as well as how we should develop the region to host the project. “The countdown has started,” he explained as he talked about how the national government was headed towards the final stage of making a decision. He also said that “we will make the fullest use of the region’s existing resources, facilities, and living environment” to host foreign researchers visiting the ILC.

He suggested that one of the keys to making this a more multicultural society was to go out of our way to use Japanese to communicate with foreign residents.

Fujio Chida, president of Chida Precision Products in Maesawa, Oshu City, said, “The presentation gave everyone dreams for the future. I got a better idea of what the region would look like, which has got me excited.” After the presentation ended, participants vowed to become “ILC Supporters” in hopes of the speedy realization of the ILC.