Theme: 衝動

Welcome to TEDxHamamatsu!

This year’s theme is “Impulse.”

Impulse is the source of our new ideas and actions, the hidden creative energy within us. It may be just a small seed, barely starting to sprout in your mind. Or perhaps it hasn’t even begun to sprout yet, but it surely exists as a small presence in your heart.

According to philosopher John Dewey, “Impulse is not merely a fleeting emotion, but rather the source of human creative thinking and action.” He also stated that “when impulses are properly expressed and interact with the environment, they lead to richer experiences and self-realization.”

What is your “impulse”?
And how will it shape the future?

We hope that through the ideas of our speakers and the interactions among participants, your impulses will evolve and grow. These impulses will surely become the driving force that opens new paths for you.

Let’s explore those possibilities together at TEDxHamamatsu 2024!

The TEDxHamamatsu 2024 Staff

Seien Girls' High School
3-20-1 Sato
Hamamatsu, Sizuoka, 4300807
Japan

Aki Furuhashi

Product Marketing Manager

Born in Hamamatsu City, Aki Furuhashi gained experience in general affairs, accounting, and store management at a local company until 2020. Currently, she is part of the Planning and Development Department at Hamamatsu Pulse Co., Ltd., where she is involved in the development of the commercial air purifier Air Revive. Through this work, she has interacted with many farmers and has come to understand the challenging conditions surrounding agriculture, yet she is deeply inspired by their positive attitudes. Motivated by its potential, she pitched the concept of Air Revive, winning the Grand Challenge Award at the Photonics Challenge 2024 and the Governor's Award at the Shizuoka Prefecture SDGs Business Awards 2022.

Anna Mohri

Stage Actor / Stage Producer

Born in Iwata City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Anna Mohri graduated from Shizuoka Seien Girls' High School and the Musical Department at Showa University of Music before transferring to the Vocal Music Department. Subsequently, she joined a talent agency and gained diverse experience as a stage actor, performing in straight plays, comedies, musicals, period dramas, and on television. Additionally, she has used her dance skills to choreograph for stage productions. Since 2017, she has expanded her activities by producing an annual stage production and donating the profits as school support funds to a kindergarten for poverty-stricken children living near a garbage dump in the Philippines.

Kang Hannah

Entrepreneur, Entertainer, Tanka Poet, International Sociocultural Scholar

Born in Seoul, South Korea, Kang Hannah came to Japan alone in 2011. While working in the entertainment industry, she earned a Ph.D. in Sociology and has also been active as an international sociocultural scholar. In 2022, she published her first business book, Content Borderless. In 2019, she published her first collection of tanka poems, I'm Not Done Yet, which won the 21st Modern Tanka Newcomer Award. Since 2020, she has been active as an entrepreneur, having founded the 100% vegan cosmetics brand ""mirari,"" and continues to excel in various fields.

Namiki Matsushima

Capybara Explorer

Born in Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Namiki Matsushima had a life-changing encounter with a capybara during his university years. This sparked a deep fascination, leading him on a journey of exploration centered around these captivating creatures. He has since traveled to zoos and aquariums throughout Japan, and his passion has taken him to countries worldwide, with a particular focus on South America. Through providing educational materials and hosting photo exhibitions both domestically and internationally, he shares the charm of capybaras. His work also extends to promoting international exchanges, striving to create harmonious outcomes for both humans and capybaras by combining technologies and wisdom from different nations.

Sanjiro Minato

Sento Activist

Born in 1990 in Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Sanjiro Minato moved to Kyoto during his university years, where he founded a sento (public bathhouse) club and visited around 160 sento in Kyoto and approximately 700 in total. After working at an apparel company, he left the corporate world to focus on rebuilding "Sauna no Umeyu" in Kyoto. As part of "Yutonami-sha," he manages several sento, including "Minamoto-yu" (Kyoto), "Yoki-yu" (Shiga), "Ninjin-yu" (Aichi), "Miyano-yu" (Osaka), "Kamogawa-yu" (Kyoto), "Minatogawa-yu" (Hyogo), "Ichino-yu" (Mie), and "Pearl Onsen" (Osaka). His mission as a sento activist is to ensure that sento do not disappear from Japan.

Takahisa Sugiyama

Farmer / Peanut Butter Maker

Born in 1982 in Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Takahisa Sugiyama graduated from the Baruch Zicklin School of Business and built his career as an accountant at KPMG's New York office. He learned about the existence of native peanuts from his hometown through a local newspaper, which led him to return to Japan and establish the peanut butter company "Sugiyama Nuts". He is currently working to revive the legendary peanuts, once praised as the world's best, through agriculture.

Yuki Anzai

Entrepreneur / Researcher

Born in 1985 in Nerima Ward, Tokyo, Yuki Anzai graduated from the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Tokyo and completed a doctoral program at the Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies at the same university, earning a Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Information Studies. Currently, he is the Co-CEO of MIMIGURI Co., Ltd. and a Visiting Researcher at the Interfaculty Initiative in Information Studies at the University of Tokyo. His research focuses on new theories of management that leverage the potential of people and organizations. His major works include "The Design of Questions", "The Manners of Questioning", "Paradoxical Thinking", "Research Driven Innovation", and "Workshop Design". His motto is "Cultivate the Creativity."