Office for DEI Coproduction Strategies, UTokyo IncluDE held a Study Session on “DEI-Conscious Event Management”on Friday, February 20, 2026. 36 participants from UTokyo attended this study session. The event featured automatic translation/captions and Japanese sign language interpretation.
First, we shared insights from the kickoff symposium “Creating DEI Together” held on September 22, 2025, based on the materials below.
Tips for DEI-Conscious Event Management | IncluDE｜UTokyo
Following this, members of IncluDE Advisory Board of Minoritized Groups who participated shared their comments. KATO Yoko offered insights from her perspective as a wheelchair user and brought up a topic for the way of conducting events “understandable to everyone.” MATSUMORI Karini praised the thoughtful design of the area map. She also raised the issue that lapel microphones are difficult to use with clothing lacking pockets, sharing the need to consider this as one of the aspects of “inclusivity.” YAMADA Yuhei, who was absent that day, provided comments from the perspective of people with mental disabilities. He emphasized the importance of having rest rooms and calm-down spaces and having a choice for seating.
During the discussion session, HIROKAWA Asako, who also assisted with operations at the kick-off event last year, shared the difficulty of determining “how far to accommodate.” Subsequent discussions covered the importance of venue selection and the use of “Easy(Plain)/Kind Japanese” and its expression.
Participants also noted the importance of recognizing that individual on-site innovations should not be isolated efforts but rather accumulated as shared knowledge across the university, to be leveraged in other initiatives. We intend to continue holding such study sessions, sharing individual experiences, and engaging in ongoing discussions about event management that enables participation by individuals from diverse backgrounds.
