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Executive Summary<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Can a business idea transform from a classroom project into a real-world inquiry?My journey with Ruminae wasn’t just about winning 1st Place among 200 investors at our academic pitch. As the Chief Technology Officer (CTO), it was a transformational process of questioning assumptions, navigating technical and commercial friction, and moving from digital interfaces directly into the agricultural fields of Japan<\/p>\n\n\n\n Phase 1: The Spark & The Mindset Shift<\/p>\n\n\n\n It began with a corporate visit to E.SUN Bank, where I witnessed how financial institutions align with SDGs. Returning to my high school, my team began looking at local issues through SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption). When brainstorming names, we kept hitting dead ends. Nothing captured our intent until the term Rumination<\/em> was brought up. To humans, “rumination” sounds strange. But that was precisely the point: people treat surplus food as unwanted “leftovers” simply because of misaligned perceptions. We realized our mission was not just selling cheap food, but reframing public perception<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As CTO, my biggest initial shock was realizing that we were not the first to attempt a surplus food platform<\/strong>. How could we offer genuine innovation rather than a copycat app?<\/p>\n\n\n\n To resolve this, I conducted a deep study into Spotify\u2019s business ecosystem. Just as Spotify gave independent artists a stage, Ruminae could give overlooked local flavors a second chance. I worked through weeks of iteration to design a system that balanced commercial viability with social empathy:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Iterative Feature Design<\/strong>: Introduced customizable allergy filters to solve safety concerns for mystery boxes and built real-time store crowd tracking for pickup efficiency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Quality Assurance<\/strong>: Designed a feedback-driven mechanism where consistently low-rated vendors are phased out to build long-term platform trust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Social Safety Net<\/strong>: Partnered with disadvantaged community members for local deliveries, turning carbon reduction into local employment opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Phase 3: The Pitch & The Unanswered Question <\/p>\n\n\n\n Pitching Ruminae in English under tight time limits forced me to distill complex ideas into compelling stories. Winning 1st Place<\/strong> among 200 investors proved that environmental sustainability could be backed by solid commercial logic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, despite our success on stage, I felt a gap in my understanding: Is solving food waste on a mobile app enough if I don’t understand where the waste originates?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Phase 4: Taking Action \u2014 Pursuing Upstream Answers in Tokushima (Japan)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Driven by this question, I refused to let Ruminae remain just a classroom exercise. To understand the structural root causes of food waste beyond digital interfaces, I actively sought out and applied to participate in an agricultural volunteer program in Tokushima, Japan<\/strong>. My goal is to observe the upstream supply chain firsthand\u2014exploring how agricultural standards, climate factors, and distribution systems create surplus before food ever reaches consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In an era where AI can quickly draft business models, this journey taught me that true Liberal Arts inquiry requires physical engagement, constant self-questioning, and continuous action.From analyzing financial sustainability in a classroom to taking initiative for international agricultural volunteer work, I learned that real solutions lie at the intersection of technology, commercial empathy, and cross-border human connection.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Executive Summary Can a business idea transform from a … <\/p>\nPhase 2: Facing Reality & System Design <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Key Reflection: Human Inquiry in the Age of AI<\/h3>\n\n\n\n