Greetings from Nami Takenaka

We appreciate your generous understanding and great support on activities of Prop Station (Prop), a nonprofit social welfare corporation supporting people with disabilities. .

Prop has been active since 1991 to provide IT based trainings to people with disabilities(Challenged) for wider employment opportunity and independent living, on the slogan "Reforming Japan where the challenged may become taxpayers." With continued support of business people around the country and lawmakers of the Diet as well as local and central government agencies, Prop’s advocacy of making proud taxpayers out of the challenged as members of society has received wide publicity in the media, and accelerating disability related legislations.

Our activities do not stay only in the area of disability and social welfare, but widely collaborate with industry, academic, public and private sectors for promoting public awareness, advocacy, and research related to advancement of our society. The main feature of our efforts is to host an annual international symposium, the Challenged Japan Forum (CJF) held in various regions.

The term "challenged" is used for a person with disability as "given a lifelong task or mission to challenge." In Japan, educational system and employment and welfare policies only focus on the negative aspects of people with disabilities as the weak of society requiring protection. We are advocating a drastic reform on this closed social status of people with disabilities and let them play a significant role as supporting members of our society. We are receiving generous understanding and support from U. S. A. and Sweden, the most advanced countries on disability issues for realizing a universal society in Japan where everyone irrespective of gender, age, social status and with or without disabilities may share equal roles supporting each other.

One of the most significant reasons of my devotion to Prop’s activity is because of my 33 year old daughter Maki, born with a severe developmental impairment requiring full support and care for her living. She guided me to a great desire: "When it’s time for me to die, I want to go in peace, knowing I can leave my daughter in a society that values people like her."

"In Japan, the world’s fastest aging society with rapidly falling birthrate, it won’t be able to survive as a sustainable economic state unless those elderly population including working people with disabilities should become taxpayers and fill productive roles as supportive members of society for achieving a universal society where everyone including those severely disabled people may share an equal and independent life with pride." This is my serious concern at present.

Last year in Kobe we co-hosted "The 10th Challenged Japan Forum 2005 International Symposium in Hyogo Kobe" commemorating the 10th Anniversary and dramatic and universal restoration from Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake. We are grateful for success of the forum with generous and thoughtful support and cooperation of the respective parties dedicated in this project.

In fulfilling our mission integrating resources acquired through our activities in the past decade, we are pleased to host "The 11th Challenged Japan Forum 2006 International Symposium in Tokyo" on Saturday, July 22, 2006 at Tokyo Big Sight.

We sincerely appreciate your continued understanding and support for our long-range project.

"Realization of Universal Society," Prop’s mission and its activities born in Kansai will soar high in the blue sky throughout the country as "Universal Wind of Reform" .

The CJF has been successfully organized each year as a handmade forum by positive support and participation of diversified organizations and individuals in and outside the country including international experts and leaders in the general areas of disability and social welfare.  We would like to appreciate your continued interest on our behalf and welcome you to participating in the CJF 2006.

Let's soar a creative wind of Universal Society together throughout the country and high to the world!