Mitsubishi Monitor 0604 COMMUNITY

	Kirin: Kirin Competition Supports Emerging Artists
	Nippon Oil: Enriching the Community through Baseball
	Mitsubishi Electric: Mitsubishi Electric US Volunteers Receive 2005 Eagle Award

In 1990 Kirin established the “Kirin Plaza Osaka Contemporary Award” as a way of discovering and supporting contemporary artists. Kirin continued to expand and develop its support for new artists through this competition, which became the “Kirin Contemporary Award” in 1993, and the “Kirin Art Award” in 2000. In 2005, Kirin further evolved and enhanced the initiative into a new format, the “Kirin Art Project.”

“Gomi Yodogawa San,” constructed from flotsam and garbage collected in and around the Yodo River in Osaka

Four groups of new artists submitted works for the Kirin Brewery “Kirin Art Project 2005.” The artists created new works based on a common theme, “Jiji,” meaning “possibilities.” A curator was assigned to support each group, helping them to coordinate the project, from the choice of the theme to the selection of works. The finished works were unveiled from late September onwards at exhibitions in Tokyo and Osaka, and the winners were selected on the basis of voting by visitors to these exhibitions.
The Grand Prix went to Yodogawa Technique for “Style.” The Kirin Award was given to all participants, including the Grand Prix winner and guest artists.

Supporting youth baseball to enrich the community

Nippon Oil has helped establish a nonprofit organization with the Yokohama BayStars, a Japanese professional baseball team. The NPO will contribute to the community through sports instruction. As Nippon Oil already maintains the home field of the Nippon Oil Corporation ENEOS Baseball Club in Kanagawa and holds baseball clinics for primary school and junior high school students it was natural to cooperate in the project.
  The NPO seeks to raise the level of competition in the region and promote baseball appreciation through technical instruction in baseball and other sports; to contribute to the sound development of minds and bodies by communicating the joy of playing sports and the importance of sportsmanship; and to participate in sports as a way of having fun and bonding with area residents.
  The organization plans youth baseball clinics, instructional visits for local junior high school baseball teams, workshops for baseball instructors, and visits to hospitals and care facilities on a year-round basis.
  At the end of 2005, the NPO conducted the ENEOS Junior High School Baseball Clinic for junior high school baseball players in Kawasaki City, Kanagawa to foster the development of the children who are the future of baseball. It also taught baseball coaches techniques to prevent long-term injuries.

The Mitsubishi Electric companies in the United States have been honored for “creating positive change for young people with disabilities” and for the work of the Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation (MEAF), whose mission is to promote the independence, productivity and community inclusion of children and youth with disabilities. Disability Rights Advocates (DRA), a national disability rights law firm based in Oakland, California, on November 22, 2005 named the Mitsubishi Electric US companies a recipient of its Eagle Award. Eagle Awards thank organizations for outstanding efforts to advance the rights of people with disabilities.
Other Eagle Award recipients included Wilderness Inquiry, an inclusive outdoor recreation organization funded by the Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation. Shoji Hibara, Executive Vice President of Mitsubishi Electric US, represented the companies at the ceremony, along with Rayna Aylward, Executive Director of the Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation.
Mr. Hibara said: “We established the Foundation in 1991. After much discussion, we decided to focus our work on supporting young persons with disabilities. This DRA Award confirms that we have chosen the right direction.” Ms. Aylward added: “This award also honors the wonderful work of our employee volunteers across the country. For the past 15 years, they have donated thousands of hours to organizations in their communities that support youth with disabilities.”