A lecture on drinking etiquette taught by a professional was held, attended by approximately 60 students from various countries

Students attending a lecture

Students performing an ethanol patch test

A seminar on how to drink alcohol properly and the effects of alcohol on the body was held on May 27th at Chiba Togane Campus for approximately 60 third-year and above university students and international students. The seminar was held as one of the opening events for the student cafeteria (VaL), which was renovated in April this year with furniture from the Swedish furniture brand IKEA, and was an opportunity for students to socialize, as opportunities for drinking parties have been restricted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the first part of the program, the students received a lecture from Takabayashi Mitsuru, manager of the Corporate Planning Department at Sapporo Breweries Ltd., about the effects of drinking alcohol on the human body when you are under the age of 20, and bad drinking habits. Manager Takabayashi told the students, "How drunk you are is determined by the concentration of alcohol in your brain. This can vary depending on your individual constitution and your condition on that day, so it's important to know how much you can drink."

Next, with the help of students from Faculty of Nursing, the students took ethanol patch tests to learn about their own alcohol tolerance and how to drink alcohol in a way that suits them. In the second half of the lecture, Associate Professor Clark Kevin from the Center for Language Education and Associate Professor Kiraly Attila from the Department of International Studies in Department of International Exchange Studies Faculty of International Humanities the alcohol situation and drinking culture overseas.

In the second part, the students moved to another venue and enjoyed a toast with the company's alcohol to deepen their understanding of the first half of the lecture, and the multinational students enjoyed cultural exchange. The participating international students commented, "In Japan, many people go out drinking with their superiors, and there are rules about where to sit and where to sit, but in Vietnam, we don't have that kind of culture, so Japanese culture is interesting," and "In Latin America, the idea is to drink together and have fun, regardless of whether you are a senior or a junior, and there is no culture like in Japan where you shouldn't make your seniors wait," and they seemed to be enjoying the cultural differences.

The Japanese students also commented, "I haven't had a chance to hear a lecture about the risks associated with alcohol consumption, so this was a good experience for me," and "I think what I learned in today's lecture will be useful even after I enter the workforce, so I want to keep it in mind."

Explanation of the alcohol situation overseas

Students enjoying cultural exchange