Kobayashi City in Miyazaki prefecture was designated as a "city at risk of disappearing" in 2014 by the Japan Policy Council's Depopulation Problem Subcommittee. Overall, Miyazaki Prefecture leads all other 47 prefectures across Japan in terms of 2016 and 2017 high school graduate outflow rates, making efforts to stem the outflow of people from Kobayashi and Miyazaki a serious issue. To inculcate an interest in city planning among the younger generation, brand new solution was needed.

We established “Department of SimCity BuildIt” in Kobayashi city Miyazaki prefecture as a totally new regional creation project. The Department is an initiative approved by the Mayor aimed at creating a new city using SimCity BuildIt to facilitate discussions about an ideal city.Comprehending and envisioning plans for urban development through conventional documentation is a difficult task. The visualization enjoyed in popular video games is, well, game changing. It allows everyone to join in the discussion and planning process.The department is a virtual organization that encourages younger generations to think about city planning.It is staffed by Mayor, Kobayashi City employees and students from Miyazaki Kenritsu Kobayashishuho High School. Its workshops began in late sptember 2018, These Department workshops began in late September, and over the course of approximately three months, students created their ideal city.

The Department cooperated with public high school, and it is staffed by Kobayashi City employees and students from Miyazaki Kenritsu Kobayashi-shuho High School, where SimCity BuildIt is used as a teaching material in an official learning program utilizing integrated study time in which students imagine ideal futures for Kobayashi City visualized using this familiar city planning game. The ideal city means something different to each person. Through these workshops, we intend younger generations to take a fresh look at the place where they live, become interested in city planning and develop into the human resources needed to create a new era in Kobayashi City.

The city planning meeting began in late September, and over the course of approximately three months, each menbers created their ideal city. By encountering issues arising in the cities they created and exploring ways of resolving them, the students learned about the enjoyment and significance of participating in city planning. The Department is planning a variety of future activities. Activity reports are updated as necessary on the Department website and an activity briefing is planned for mid-December where Kobayashi City employees and residents will present their future visions for the city. In conjunction with the establishment of the Department, We create the movie for this department, and distributed on YouTube. Also, numerous key visuals are released. Signs and posters featuring the Department logo are displayed throughout Kobayashi City Hall, Department staff wear logo-embroidered polo shirts as a uniform or logo pins on the lapel of their suits.

-Advertising expenditures in terms of the amount was about 300 millions.

-350+ MEDIA EXPOSURE

-250M MEDIA IMPRESSION

The proposed ideas for urban planning by the SIMCITY Department were approved, and cloud funding in support of implementation will start in June 2019.

A plan created by high school youths using a virtual game is changing the real world.

On top of this success, other governments have started showing interest, and Kariya City in Aichi Prefecture is planning on establishing a SIMCITY department in 2019.

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