Memorial Hall of Kogakkan University
I attended the Code4Lib Japan Conference 2026, held on September 6–7, 2026. Code4Lib, established in 2003, is a community centered on library-related programmers and systems engineers, primarily active in the United States. Participation from Japan began in 2010, leading to the formation of Code4Lib Japan by those early participants. In Japan, the community is open not only to technical experts but also to librarians in general. Conferences have been held annually since 2013; this year marked the 14th conference, which took place over two days at Kogakkan University in Ise City, Mie Prefecture.
Miya.m presenting the history of Wikipedia Town.
Miya.m, menber of the Wikimedians of Japan User Group, gave a presentation titled “The History of Wikipedia Town: 2013–2025. The first “Wikipedia Town” event in Japan—an initiative aimed at adding information about local cultural heritage and tourism to Wikipedia—took place in 2013. Since then, such events have been held across the country; although the pace slowed temporarily during the COVID-19 pandemic, efforts to enrich Wikipedia’s content continue today thanks to the dedication of many contributors. Miya.m, a veteran instructor who has led over 100 Wikipedia Town events, spoke with a touch of humor about the project’s journey since 2013.
Mitsuru Ishiguro presenting about “Wikipedia Bungaku”
Next, Mr. Mitsuru Ishiguro, who leads the group “Wikipedia Bungaku,” gave a presentation titled “Wikipedia Bungaku as a ‘Literary Walk’: Past and Future.” Launched in 2018, Wikipedia Bungaku is an event dedicated to enriching Wikipedia’s content regarding literary figures and works. With the cooperation of the Kanagawa Museum of Modern Literature and the Kanagawa Prefectural Library, the event has already been held 15 times, utilizing the museum’s special exhibitions and the library’s collections as source material. His presentation clearly conveyed how this cross-institutional collaboration has yielded fruitful results.
The author, who gave a lightning talk
The day before the event, we were guided to the Ise History Museum as an excursion, so I searched Wikipedia to find out what kind of museum it was, but there was no article about it. So, I researched the source and wrote up an article about the “Ise History Museum (伊勢市歴史博物館),” and I presented the story at Lightning Talk, which was recruiting on the day of the event. By writing the article, I suddenly became familiar with Ise City, which I had never known before, and I was able to share the knowledge I gained there widely.
The conference as a whole offered stimulating new insights—such as learning about “Gijutsu-sho-ten” (技術書典–a direct-sales event for technical books), a concept entirely new to me. There was also a memorable exchange where students from the host venue, Kogakkan University, presented innovative ideas regarding OPAC systems, which Ryuji Yoshimoto of Calil Inc. (カーリル) then engaged with directly. The staff managed the proceedings and venue setup with great efficiency; notably, several members attended with their children, and the kids blended naturally into the atmosphere. Childcare was handled by adults taking turns whenever they were free—rather than relying on tablets—creating an impression of a community that naturally overcomes the anxieties often associated with the “The Anxious Generation.” Witnessing the steady growth of this community fourteen years after its inception was a truly heartening and reassuring experience over the course of these two days.
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