Center for Advanced Tourism Studies concludes partnership agreement with Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters

University News | August 01, 2016

On July 8, 2016, Hokkaido University’s Center for Advanced Tourism Studies and the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters concluded a partnership agreement on Hokkaido tourism promotion. Under the agreement, joint research will be conducted and personnel exchanges will take place toward the revitalization of Hokkaido.

Center for Advanced Tourism Studies concludes partnership agreement with Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters


The rich history of relations between Hokkaido University and the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters includes visits by the manager, players and other members of the team to students attending in-hospital classes at Hokkaido University Hospital and the delivery of public lectures at the hospital’s Sports Medicine Center.


In February 2015, the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters set foot into the tourism industry with particular focus on the promotion of Taiwanese inbound programs. This led to the conclusion of the current partnership agreement toward the implementation of practical joint research on sport tourism and by extension the advancement of university-industry collaboration for regional promotion in Hokkaido via tourism-related efforts.


The ceremony at which the agreement was signed on July 8 at Sapporo Dome was attended by Dr. Noriaki Nishiyama (Director, Center for Advanced Tourism Studies, Hokkaido University), Dr. Yoshihiro Yamada (Dean, Graduate School of International Media, Communication, and Tourism Studies, Hokkaido University), Mr. Kenso Takeda (President, Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters), Mr. Hideki Kuriyama (Manager, Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters) and other officials.


The agreement will remain in force until December 31, 2016, after which it may be extended for extra one-year terms by mutual agreement.

The details of partnership/collaboration are outlined below.

(1) Research on Taiwanese inbound programs

  • The Center for Advanced Tourism Studies and the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters will survey Taiwanese tourists attending/not attending Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters games and analyze the results. The insights gained in this way will be used for PR, sales promotion and other marketing activities.

(2) Research on regional promotion via sport tourism

  • The Center for Advanced Tourism Studies and the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters will develop regional promotion measures via sport tourism based on organic coordination of Center for Advanced Tourism Studies resources and programs implemented by the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. These will include an initiative by which players are dispatched to Hokkaido’s 179 municipalities as ambassadors.

(3) Personnel exchanges

  • Students taking the Tourism Creation Major at Hokkaido University’s Graduate School of International Media, Communication, and Tourism Studies will engage in internship programs conducted by the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters.
  • Officials and other employees of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters will give presentations on courses and at lecture meetings at Hokkaido University.

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