自治体学会40周年記念の横浜大会は8月21日から23日にかけて開催される。それに先駆けて、地元神奈川の実行委員会主催でプレフォーラムが5月30日（土）に開催された。自治体学会は田村明が関与して40年前に神奈川・横浜で誕生した。自治体のあるべき姿を、自治体職員、市民そして研究者が自主的に集まり実践研究する場である。NPO田村明研究会としても、横浜大会とプレフォーラムそしてエクストラセミナー（オンラインで8月3日に開催予定）の企画運営に関わっている。プレフォーラムは、田村明のまちづくりを都市デザインの視点から紹介する分科会その１と、神奈川県内の小さな自治体のあり方を論じる分科会その２で構成された。午前中に、横浜都心部のマチ歩きをNPOが案内役で行った。分科会には80名近くの参加者が全国から集まった。分科会その1では、都市デザイン担当の変遷を語る三世代の担当者がでて、その苦労を語った。田村明から始まる横浜のまちづくりも、世代をまたぎ継承することで進められてきた。本音トークの講演内容は聴衆からもおおきな共感を得られたようだ。なお、その後の懇親会でもおおいに盛り上がった。以上の企画運営に携わった、自治体学会の関係者の方々にお礼を申し上げたい。そして、写真提供も感謝したい。
The Yokohama conference, commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Japan Society for Local Government Studies, will be held from August 21st to 23rd. Prior to this, a pre-forum was held on May 30th (Saturday), organized by the local Kanagawa organizing committee. The Japan Society for Local Government Studies was founded 40 years ago in Yokohama, Kanagawa, with the involvement of Akira Tamura. It is a forum where local government officials, citizens, and researchers gather voluntarily to conduct practical research on what local government should be. The NPO Akira Tamura Research Group is also involved in the planning and operation of the Yokohama conference, the pre-forum, and the extra seminar (scheduled to be held online on August 3rd). The pre-forum consisted of two breakout sessions: Session 1, which introduced Akira Tamura's urban development from the perspective of urban design, and Session 2, which discussed the ideal form of small local governments in Kanagawa Prefecture. In the morning, the NPO acted as a guide for a walking tour of downtown Yokohama. Nearly 80 participants gathered from all over the country for the breakout sessions. In Session 1, three generations of people in charge of urban design spoke about the changes in their roles and the challenges they faced. The urban development of Yokohama, which began with Akira Tamura, has also progressed through generational succession. The candid lecture seemed to resonate strongly with the audience. The subsequent social gathering was also a great success. I would like to express my gratitude to the members of the Japan Society for Local Government Studies who were involved in the planning and operation of this event. I would also like to thank them for providing the photographs.
