On November 13, at Hirosaki University (Bunkyo-cho, Hirosaki City), a presentation contest was held by students who proposed a new story for the animated video "Polypoli Village Minshushugi".

"Polipoli Village Minshushugi" is an animated animation produced by Jun Makita, a full-time instructor at the University's Faculty of Education, to explain the politics and election system for children. Makita-san has been conducting a delivery class using the anime from June this year at an elementary school in the city. Currently, there are requests from outside the prefecture.

The on-site lecture is to let children watch the anime and then to vote for the election of the village chief who is divided into two opinions, and prepares two stories according to the voting results. “At the same time as learning the importance of voting, we want you to experience a healthy forum where you can respect the opinions of others and make constructive counterarguments,” Makita says.

At this presentation competition, the students thought about something different from the story that Makita made. Mr. Makita says, "I cannot tell about diversifying social problems by myself. I wanted to deepen the content of the lectures by incorporating different perspectives by having students think."

5 students gave presentations. About 20 people participated in the examination, including elementary school teachers and university personnel. Mr. Makita says that the students' presentations have various themes, such as LGBT, refugee issues, and poverty alleviation.

In some cases, the judges received strict questions, but in the end, the participants voted to select a presentation by Minami Kudo, a third-year undergraduate student with a theme of "intercultural understanding."

Makita says, "In Japan, where the number of inbound tourists is increasing, there is an increasing number of customs that accept and respect the cultures of other countries. I want to brush up with students and animate them."