Tajima, Asakawa and others went to companies in Nagoya City where the technology is being developed and researchers in Shizuoka City, to learn about it extensively. They considered how they could turn it into a social business and what was the best way to introduce it to the world. It was during a series of discussions that they learned about the application for the Co-Design Challenge.

The technology does more than simply recycle water and supply it to toilets. In addition to processing water into a reusable water resource, it can be used for treating excrement, which can then be used as agricultural fertilizer. It can respond to global social issues such as the deteriorating sewage facilities around Japan, water shortages in developing countries, and the improvement of sanitation.

Everyone agreed that if they wanted to contribute to SDG 6: “Clean Water and Sanitation,” the Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan is the only place to present it. In order to convey the excellence of the technology, they still need to attract attention. This is where the planning skills honed at TGC come in handy more than anything else. “I want to design it stylishly and come up with something that will make people around the world want to share it on social media,” said Asakawa with emphasis.

Short-time catchy content that would instantly captivate the audience should be included. Since joining the company, Asakawa has pursued dissemination methods that would arouse interest of the young people in the social media generation in information on complex and difficult social issues. As the Cabinet Office hoped to communicate the results of the Cross-ministerial Strategic Innovation Promotion Program (SIP) to young people, the TGC was used as a platform to disseminate information, which was presented in five minutes, through familiar topics such as food loss initiatives and dietary habits.

“The visitors to the Expo range widely in terms of both nationality and age group. Depending on the region, there are different perspectives on the water environment and resources. With so many things to convey, it is important to understand where to focus in order to convey the message to a wider audience. I am looking forward to seeing how it will develop,” said Asakawa with excitement.

It has been 19 years since the TGC started in 2005, challenging the fashion industry represented by Paris Fashion Week. W TOKYO Inc. was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in June last year. “Now that we are starting our business in the second stage, we would like to learn more about the industry outside of entertainment and continue to take on challenging tasks that have no relation to the TGC. We would like to use the Expo as an opportunity to look at projects that connect regional social issues with the rest of the world,” said Tajima.