On April 13 and 14, Audi Japan held the “Audi Sustainable Future Tour” in Maniwa City, during which participants toured the city in Audi “e-tron” electric cars. On the second day of the event, a “Future Co-Creation Meeting” was held at the GREENable HIRUZEN “Kaze no Ha” building to discuss future possibilities for 2030.

One faculty member and four graduate students from Okayama University attended the meeting, which was implemented thanks to a collaboration between Okayama University and Maniwa City, which are both actively involved in SDGs initiatives, and Audi Japan, which promotes SDGs initiatives through the promotion of electric vehicles. Representing Okayama University, Professor KAWAHARA Nobuyuki of the Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology (Engineering Division), FUJITA Tomoki (currently completing a master’s program at the Department of Mechanical and Systems Engineering, Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology), KANENOBU Minori (currently completing a master’s program at the Division of Electronic and Information Systems Engineering, Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology), IMAMURA Yoko (currently completing a master’s program at the Division of Sustainability of Resources, Graduate School of Environmental and Life Science), and ARIMORI Takumi (currently completing a master’s program at the Division of Social Engineering and Environmental Management, Graduate School of Environmental and Life Science) attended the meeting to discuss electric vehicles (EV), energy and the environment along with Audi Japan President and Representative Director Matthias Schepers and Maniwa City Mayor OHTA Noboru.

Students asked questions relating to the business model of car manufacturers that earn profits through the sales of automobiles. In response, President Schepers commented, “Business models focused on increasing the sales of automobiles are under intense pressure, especially from the perspective of the SDGs. In the future, it will be important to sell cars equipped with operating systems (OS). Our rivals in the near future could be Google and Apple”.

Through this SDGs initiative, Okayama University students had the amazing opportunity to engage in direct discussions with top business executives and politicians.