Why is this work relevant for PR?

We challenged to the problem of “violence with words” by publishing a picture book contained candies that expressed specific words with taste and appearance. Our project’s goal was have people reexamine the meaning of “words” and the magnitude of influence they have. We held tasting events at various place for children and educators and the released the recipes of the snacks to all educational institutions. “Tasteful Words” has come into the limelight as the new solution to the verbal violence.

Background

In the world today, “violence with words” such as hate speech has become rampant and is a social problem. Japan is not an exception, and is especially striking, when thinking of the negative effects it has on children. “I’ve been bullied, teased, threatened, and said awful things.” “On computers and mobile phones, I’ve been slandered and have had mean things done to me.” With 12,632 cases being reported, cases like these are at an all-time high, resulting in the highest suicide rate amongst minors, making it a serious problem that is of life and death. An environment where negative words can so easily be sent and received is dangerous to children.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

Expressing “words” with “taste”. We created an experiential picture book with words made up of real candy. 7 Words used in communication by all generations were selected, like “Love”, “Gross”, “Sorry”, and created into candy that expressed those words with taste and appearance. Then included them into a picture book. We created a picture book that makes the reader think about the feelings of the people receiving those words through the words’ taste and texture. The words’ taste and color were created under the supervision of many specialists from various fields, such as educators, linguists, childcare scholars, nursery school teachers, pastry chefs, and editors. We redesigned picture books that have supported children’s healthy upbringing, into an experiential tool that is needed in the coming age. And presented a new style of active learning.

Describe the strategy (30% of vote)

The main target audience was children and their parents. The sub-target audience were educators. Words can become violence. Though the reality is troublesome, there are not many opportunities to think about or discuss the power of words. In an age where the language environment is changing, adults themselves have not been able to adapt, making them at a lost as to how to teach children how to interact with words. Words is a communication tool that is essential in our lives, used to express ourselves and interact with one another. However, as it is integral in our lives, we use words without much thought as to the influence each and every word has, much less think about how the person receiving those words feels. In order to have people reexamine the power “words” have, we created a new type of picture book that enables people to physically understand “words”.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

1st Phase: With supervision from specialists, the words’ appearance and taste was decided Specialists from various fields, such as educators, linguists, childcare scholars, nursery school teachers, editors, supervised from diverse angles, to decide the words’ taste and appearance, creating a recipe. The words made up of candy were then included into a picture book. 2nd Phase: An event was held for the launch of the picture book We held a tasting event for the official launch of “Tasteful Words”. We created an occasion for parents and children to actually eat the words and think about the words’ meaning and the feelings of when receiving those words.

List the results (30% of vote) – must include at least two of the following tiers:

We held events at various places for children to experience the picture book. With much positive reaction, the recipes were opened to the public for free. Because of the positive reaction from the launch event, we further held events using the picture book in various places, such as libraries, nursery schools, special education classes. Educational institutions even started incorporating the book in elementary schools’ moral education classes. And received praise from educational institutions stating “It is a new way of education, teaching children to think of the meaning of words”. With this positive reception, we released the recipes for the edible words to the public, making it free to download for all schools across Japan. With the recipe being released to the public, we presented an environment where anyone, whether at home or in an educational setting can freely make “Tasteful Words”. As a new active learning tool, “Tasteful Words” have started to be implemented into elementary schools’ moral education classes, and be used in educational settings across Japan. <MEDIA COVERAGE> 2 Television Programs/ 2 Newspaper Articles/ 2 Radio Programs/ 70 Mentions in digital media (as of now) (excerpt of comments) “Now, it’s time for us adults to recognize the importance of words.” -BRAVA- “A great way to reexamine the way words are used in an age where the use of words have become rough.” -NHK- “The more people realize the importance of words, the world would become a better place.”-Nippon Broadcasting System-