Low Carbon Seminar (3/4)

Special Seminar 2008
HOW TO CREATE A LOW CARBON SOCIETY IN JAPAN
--A MESSAGE FROM TOKYO TO THE WORLD--

Mr.Ehara: Decreasing CO2 in Japan is also important and not just overseas. We use 6 kg of CO2 everyday. However, there are things we cannot decrease by individual effort. That is why we need 1) technology, 2) a system in which those who are able to decrease benefit from, 3) awareness towards wanting to change the system. The biggest action we can take is to show our will.

Mr.Nishikawa: To do so, it is indispensable that we see the result of our actions, and that our awareness changes, and that there is a solution. However, the current situation is that all of these are insufficient. To decrease the effect of global warming, we have the following choices: Decrease CO2 1) by using less energy through our own efforts, 2) when generating electricity, 3) by burring the emitted CO2. Such methods need to be shared among businesses and researchers.
What I want to emphasize the most is that it is the individual who makes the choice after all. The individual is the key to choosing one’s lifestyle.


Mr.Mori: In addition to consumption and policies, I believe finance is also important in terms of individual choices. In Japan, many people don’t know that their pension is used for various investments. On the other hand, there are countries in which people can request the usage of their pension funds. If the promotion of information disclosure and a movement by people asking for the information start together, we will be able to make our own choices, and the idea of SRI and green investment will spread.

(to be continued)

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Low Carbon Seminar (2/4)

Special Seminar 2008
HOW TO CREATE A LOW CARBON SOCIETY IN JAPAN
--A MESSAGE FROM TOKYO TO THE WORLD--


(picture above) A participant in Yukata, hanging an ORIGAMI star with her wish written on.

Moderator: In front of you now is the global warming simulator by the National Institute for Environmental Studies. How should we interpret this image which warns us of the future?
http://www.team-6.jp/cc-sim/english/

Mr.Ehara: This is the social economic scenario created by the global simulator. You can see that the temperature rise is significant in the inland areas. As temperature change progresses, we will need to change our lifestyles entirely. In such case, if we want to become a low-carbon society by 2050, it is important to think in a “back-cast” way: that is, to first decide what the answer is to the kind of society we are specifically aiming towards, and then change our current actions to approach that goal. Because an “ideal society” is different for everyone, we created 2 extreme images of the future: the “urban-centered, technology type” and the “rural-distributed, slow-life type.” For both types we built a methodology to make them happen. Predicting the future from a current standpoint makes it seem impossible, and that is why we used the “back-cast” idea instead of a “forecast” one.


Mr. Nishikawa: Back-casting is a principal way of thinking, and it is important to share the vision with the world and not just within Japan. The issue of climate change is related to many issues such as the North-South problem, food, and energy. Therefore, the issue needs to be seen from various industries and positions. It is about everyone sharing their dreams with each other.
When emissions-trading was created, I wanted to end it as soon as possible. It is difficult to change society to a low-carbon one in a day or two. However, we must start now. To do so, it is vital to start controlling costs, which is 45 billion, at a more payable level. In that sense, emissions-trading works as an economical method for an easier start.


Mr.Mori: Currently, there is a plan to decrease 50% of CO2 by 2050, and to do so Japan needs to decrease by an average of 3% annually. This is a big task. And not only is it important within Japan, but the level must be lowered in other countries such as China. CDM is a system which allows both development and emission control to take place, but in reality it is not accelerating investment at the macro level. Implementing such project in the agricultural regions leads to high risk and costs. Therefore it seems more reasonable to make use of individual voluntary money rather than corporate funds.

(to be continued)

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Low Carbon Seminar (1/4)

Ecotwaza launched an event about low carbon society this summer. Titled "Milky Way in Love, the first half was a seminar by three young professionals and the latter half was a work shop.

↓More about event
http://www.eco-friendly-japan.com/2008/07/milky-way-in-love-presented-by-ecotwaza.html

Although it is impossible to completely reproduce the excitement of the seminar on letters, we would like to share the summary here for the next three days.

Special Seminar 2008
HOW TO CREATE A LOW CARBON SOCIETY IN JAPAN
--A MESSAGE FROM TOKYO TO THE WORLD--

Guests:
Tomoki Ehara from Mizuho Information & Research Institute, Inc
Junya Nishikawa from Mitsui & Co., ltd.
Yoichi Mori from Pear Carbon Offset Initiative

Moderator: Reina Otsuka
Summary: Noriko Ohsumi
Translation: Motoko Sakashita

Moderator:Please briefly introduce yourself, and tell us about your job.

Mr. Ehara: At my company, I work as a consultant to study environmental issues with the Ministry of the Environment and other researchers. Four or five years ago, we released a report on global warming saying that Japan can decrease CO2 emissions by 70%. We considered who needs to do what in which order. The report shows a part of a possible direction toward a low-carbon society. Today, I am looking forward to discussing about this point with all of you.



Mr. Nishikawa: I have been studying about climate change since I was at university. At that time, I wanted to become a bureaucrat in order to think about the Kyoto Protocol’s legal infrastructure and create the Overall design of the law. However, I ended up working for Mitsui & Co. to become one of the players of the emissions trading project. I am also a governmental member for a project by one of the Ministries. Currently, I also take part in an emissions trading project in the business field.


Mr. Mori: My job is to visualize how much CO2 a product used and its effect on global warming so consumers and companies can "see" when they choose a product. There is a system called Cleand Development Mechanism (CDM) in which the decreased amount of CO2 in the emerging countries can be used by the companies in the developed countries which assisted the decrease. In China, we are trying to make it possible to use the CDM in smaller scales. For example we help households in the regional area install low-tech biodegradators to produce their own sustainable electricity. Although each project is tiny, by adding up the households we can make it a project. Not many Carbon providors can do this kind of projects because it is difficult, but we think this is what the world needs in the long term, so we do it.
Also, related to CPA, my job is to create the framework for companies to disclose information related to global warming. It is an attempt to supply “necessary information” that lacks from today’s flood of information.

(to be continued)

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Cradle to Cradle

by William McDonough



Another great book. Well this was written by two Americans, an architect and a designer. It was inspiring, and I heard many American companies (especially in the building sector) were influenced. As I wrote yesterday, the EDO period was all like what was written in this book.
The book itself is an interesting design. It is printed on thin plastic slates instead of paper, and technically it can be collected, taken apart, wash out the ink and remade into a new book. A bit heavy, but the attempt can be highly valued.

EDO is ECO Rule#6

DESIGN PRODUCTS SO IT CAN BE RETURNED TO NATURE

This way of thinking is attracting attention these days, especially since the epoch making book on production design, "Cradle to Cradle". Products should be designed so that it doesn't become or leave "trash". The 20th century was the age of mass consumtion, mass deposal. Consumers felt satisfaction by buying, possessing, and throwin away. However, we cannot survive the next century wasting resource like that. Packaging should be less, of course, but also the product itself should be designed so the material can be reused many times. According to "Cradle to Cradle", natural material such as wood should be returned to the naturlal ecosystem, while artificial material such as plastic and certain metal should be reused repeatedly. And this can be possible only if the producing companies design their products so they can be taken apart and reused.

People were doing this naturally in the Edo period. Kimonos were all natural materials so returned to the ecosystem as ash fertilizer. Metal were precious material, so they were taken apart and used repeatedly. Recycle is good, but not the best. If you know any Cradle-to-cradle, or EDO product around you, please tell us!

Gold on Dish?

I found this plate at a cafe in Kichijoji. The dish was chipped on the edge, but they painted thin gold on the part like treating a cavity. It looks fancy and yet it is eco-friendly. A simple idea can extend the life cycle of your dishes!

ARIGATO

Another great word. ARIGATO, as most of you may know, means "Thank you".
But do you know how this word came to be?

It is supposed to be pronounced ARIGATOU, with a "U" in the end. (Btw, Japanese pronounciation is similar to Spanish. Forget your English accent and recall your Spanish course!) The "R" is like the spanish single "R" in the middle of a word, or near to an "L" sound.

"Arigatou" comes from the word "Arigatashi", which means "very difficult to happen". "Arigatashi" + "gozaimasu" (meaning "it is") became ARIGATOU-GOZAIMASU, literally meaning "It is so difficult to happen!", or "Too good to be true". And to make it short, we say ARIGATOU. ARIGATOU-GOZAIMASU will be the proper way of thanking somebody elder or of higher position.

That is why this word can be used to express appreciation to non-humans too, such as good luck, god, nature, and happennigs. It may be nearer to "Gracias" or "Merci".

The Line Between Animate and Inanimate

Seibutsu To Museibutsu No Aida
(The Line Between Animate and Inanimate)
by Shinichi Fukuoka

So what is the difference between animate and inanimate beings?
This book was a bestseller in Japan this year, giving a great overview on modern history of biology. It is like a mystery novel (although it is all non-fiction) trying to find the answer to the above question.
If you are looking for a Japanese book that can fulfill your intellectual curiosity, this can be the one. The author is a professor at Aoyama University, but his Japanese writing is beautiful, better than most professional novelists. A new insight for your life.

Dr. Shinichi Fukuda
http://www.agnes.aoyama.ac.jp/cgi-bin/WebObjects/f921c2aea8.woa/wa/read/fe23a70378/

Tree or Stone Culture?

From my experience traveling and meeting people from many countries, I feel that people of Japan and many European countries share the same mentality toward environmental issues. Very concerned, and people are trying to take action in everyday life.

However I feel there is a difference in the HOWs, and today I would like to share just one thought about Stone culture and Tree culture.

Europe is a culture of "Stones".
The mountains or rocky, and architecture is made with bricks and stones. Religion is based on stone (eg. as you know, the first Christian church was built on a rock).

On the other hand, Japan has a culture of "Trees".
70% of land is forests, architecture is built with wood, and both Buddhism and Shinto have many stories related to trees (eg. Buddha died under a lime tree).

This makes a difference in how both areas concieve "sustainability".

European countries are good at "lasting quality". Many houses are built to last for hundreds of years, many houses are reformed and reused for centuries. Clothes and furniture are refurbished, and old things are valued as antique. The main approach to global warming is to build solar and wind energy plants. Sustainability means to create things that last for long.

Japan is good at creating "circular flow of material". Traditional houses are built to be renewed every few years, using trees and plants from nearby forests so after using it can be returned to the ecosystem. It is not surprising that Japan developed a great network of recycling industry, although there are critics that recycle can be a waste of energy. Biomass energy and forest maintainance are two big approaches toward global warming. Sustainability means to create things within the ecosystem, to return to nature.

Of course it is difficult to clearcut the two cultures, but I feel the difference occurs because of the different characteristics of Stone and Tree. stones are almost eternal, it doesn't burn or decay easily so it is natural for people to use stones to create something that will last forever. On the other hand, trees are not supposed to last for long when cut out from the woods. Therefore instead of trying to make it last forever, people tend to create things that are easy to return to nature. Trees are concieved not as single wood but as a whole concept, string of reproduction.

Indiginous natural condition definately shape the basic philosophy of people living there. If you know any other examples of nature and ways of thinking, or if you have any thoughts to add, please feel free to post a comment!

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TARU WO SHIRU

"TARU WO SHIRU" (足るを知る) means "to realize that you are fulfilled"
It is originally the saying of Lao-tze, a Chinese philosopher that largely influenced the Japanese ways of thinking. It is so easy to notice what you don't have, to want more, or to be unfulfilled. The common approach known as "Strategy" is to set the goal, realize how "unfulfilled" you are at the moment, and to fill in the gap. This approach can be successful at times, but it also can make you unhappy because you will never be able to feel satisfied until you reach the goal, and even though you do, there will still be higher goals for you to go after. Hmm, this looks like the present capitalism world we are living in... when are we allowed to feel satisfied?
So TARU WO SHIRU way of thinking may help you escape from this rat race.

Once a very unusual venture capitalist gave me a tip. "Your life is so short compared to the life of the Earth. Don't try to solve the whole problem. Of course, keep your long term vision to create harmony within nature and human, but don't set a goal too far away because that won't esteem you but will make your mind suffer. Do what you can within your capacity, and let the movement spread by itself. That will be the key to real success." He was true. I quit trying to solve all the issues on Earth, and concentrated on "bridging the gap between good Japanese environmental technology and people who need it". By knowing how fulfilled I am doing this small (but important) job, I don't suffer anymore.

Development, success, stepping up, these are all for the same goal, for "happiness". Sometimes we forget about happiness and try to develop or succeed for the sake of developing, but why not step back, relax, and TARU WO SHIRU for a few days?

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Japan Centre

You can buy an Ecotwaza Times at Japan Centre if you are living in London.
Japan Centre is located near Piccadilly Circus, London. It has a food market, tea shop, travel agency and a book store, all related to Japan.
Access will be↓
http://www.japancentre.com/?cmd=hlp&page=loc

There were many Japanese restaurants around the area. If you feel like tasting Japan take a ride on the tube and stroll through the area!

Another place you can find Ecotwaza Times in the UK will be...
The Japanese Embassy
http://www.uk.emb-japan.go.jp/
check out the library!



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EDO is ECO Rule #5

BE GRACEFUL TO THE FOUR SEASONS (EAT FOOD OF THE SEASON)

A new vocabulary = "SHUN" (旬)
It means "of the season", "most fresh now", and used for food. Examples will be
SHUN fish
SHUN vegetable
SHUN fruit
or apply for SHUN actress/actor, meaning she/he is now boosting.

So Japanese people really value this SHUN. If we see the word SHUN on the menu, we can't stop ourselves from ordering. SHUN food is the best in taste, nutrition and cost effectiveness. This mind is very important to live in harmony with nature, since modern society is wasting tons of energy to enjoy things that aren't supposed to be there during non-seasons. It is important to be graceful to the seasons you have in your country. It could be two seasons for tropical areas, and four seasons for areas with higher latitude. Japan was lucky to be able to enjoy the clearly defined four seasons (HARU =spring, NATSU =summer, AKI =autumn, FUYU =winter). You can see how much it is appreciated from the various poems (HAIKU and TANKA) read from the ancient times. It is a rule to put in at least one word that represents the season. Why do you have to ski in summer? Why do you have to eat the same food all seasons? Let's enjoy the best gifts from nature and live an eco-friendly life.

Another article with a bit about SHUN
Kabuki Way of Relation with Nature; Reciprocity

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Small Efforts Make a Difference

AKS is a hair salon in Omotesando. They recently switched their cups from normal paper cups to cups made from Kanbatsu-trees (thinned trees, usually disposed. More about KANBATSU). Yu Imamura (photo above), in charge of beverage, decided to adopt this new cup last month. "Why not start doing something, when the cost is the same and it is better for the environment?" Using Kanbatsu trees for products will contribute to the healthy growth of Japanese forests. The impact may be small, but whatever small a change is a change. Visit AKS to experience how "same" the cup is with normal paper cups!

AKS website (Japanese only)
You can read Ecotwaza Times at AKS too!
http://aks-japan.com

Sansei website (Japanese only)
Cups and tea
http://www.sts-sansei.co.jp/

Zushi Community Park

There will be an event on November 2nd and 3rd at Zushi, a beach area in Kanagawa prefecture.

2008.11.2.(Sun)10:00～17:00
2008.11.3日（Mon, national holiday）10:00～16:00

Many local restaurants will be participating. I will be on stage for one of the talk shows about local use of biomass energy.

Zushi CP website (Japanese only)
http://zushi-cp.com

Some Nostalgia

Some Nostalgia...the picture above is the ticket of the tram at Mitake-san. Can you see the punched half-hole on top? There used to be ticket punchers at the entrance to punch your ticket at all railway stations in Japan. I wonder if this was a common scene in other countries as well? The station staffs were really proud of their job, they were able to click-click-click their punchers so fast! The shape of the punch differed according to station.
We don't see many of these staffs anymore because of automation, especially in the Tokyo area. I don't know if this is an eco-friendly habit, but at least it was nice to have someone say "Hai, do-zo" (okay go ahead) when entering and "Hai, do-mo arigato" (Thank you) when exiting the train.

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100 clicks!

Cindy sent me the picture of our counter counting 100 clicks yesterday.
It was the first time so many people clicked on our site!
Thanks Cindy, and all of you who are reading this blog :)

And I realized this happens to be my 100th post...!

Mitake-san

The Ecotwaza management team holds a "MIRAI (future) Meeting" every three months. 2008 Autumn was at Mitake Mountain, an one hour westbound ride from Kunitachi on the Chuo-Ome line.

So we get off at Mitake Station, and take the bus to the trail starting point.
Since we didn't have enough time for hiking, we took the mountain tram from there.

And then here comes the rather funny rope-way. It is a 3 minutes ride, but it turned out that you can easily walk up (We walked on the way back). But you get to enjoy serious looking old people coming down on the other side, kind of cute.

The weather was not clear, unfortunately, but still you can see all around the Kanto Plain from the mountaintop 929m above sea level. It is one of the oldest religious mountains.

Good air, good ideas. The meeting was a success and we departed Mitake-san with bright future in mind.

KOGAI (pollution)

KOGAI 公害 is the collective term for environmental destruction, such as air pollution, water contamination, acid rain and even noise. It will literally mean "Public harm", which is including an even more specific concept than its English counterpart.
Japan has gone through various types of KOGAI. The first outcome was in 1885, the infamous pollution by Ashio Copper Mine during the "cultural enlightment" period in the Meiji Era. The most serious KOGAI boom will be in the 1970s, during the rapid growth after WW2. The four major KOGAI will be "Minamata desease" (mercury-contamination), the two "Itai-itai desease" (cadmium pollution) and "Yokkaichi asthma".
So it will be Japan's major responsibility to communicate how awful these KOGAIs can be, and to help other countries prevent going through the same history. There are many countries now just about to face the same issue. We hope they will take some time to listen to others' experiences and learn from it.

EDO is ECO Rule#4

LIVE WITHIN THE AMOUNT OF NATURAL ENERGY SOURCES

All energy within our biosphere will ultimately depend on the amount of energy from the sun. Burning fossil fuel means that we are using energy accumulated from the past. Living in modern society, to simply criticize fossil fuel will not be the solution for anything, but we can sense how irregular it is from natural order.

Since there were no use of fossil fuels during the edo period, energy was either solar, wind, water or geothermal power. Using natural energy source means to live within the flow of natural energy. "Living within the flow" is a very Japanese concept, a base of life philosophy. See how the famous tale "Hojoki" starts, "River flows never stop, and never is the same water. The bubbles form and disappear, and nothing will stay forever." In this case the author is indicating how certain authority cannot prosper forever, but the same metaphor between human life and river flow can be seen in many literature and songs. "Tsureduregusa", a bestseller essay in the Edo period (written before in the Kamakura period) may be interesting to read.

It is broadly said that solar power will be the future source for all energy on Earth, which may be for the same reason. Our society and life is all built on electricity. Food, shelter and clothing cannot be maintained without electric energy. But two approaches can be taken at the same time. Reduce the amount of energy needed (including smart usage of solar energy directly instead of turning into electricity), and switch to energy that doesn't depend on the "past" but can follow the nature law of energy flow.

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Adventure in Cornwall

Last weekend, a friend and I went to Cornwall, a region spread in the West of London, for a weekend trip. The picture above is the beach of Bude. We went to see a professor I admire, which didn't happen because he was out of country and I didn't have an appointment, but the trip itself was simply beautiful. We met many kind people on our way, the landscape and towns were fascinating, and I got to spend time with my dearest friend. As many fairy tales conclude, what we find in the end of a quest is usually not glittering treasure but a rediscovery of values of life. Everything seemed so vivid and alive. The memory of this trip will keep my heart warm for a long time...

Japan Low Carbon Society Scenarios toward 2050

Have you ever heard of the word "Backcast"? It is punning the word "Forecast". Instead of forecasting the future from the present past, it is a research method to first imagine the ideal state, and think of ways to bridge the gap between the present state. There is a report called "Japan Low Carbon Society Scenarios toward 2050" (Japan and UK co-project) based on this backcasting method. It presents two extreme ideal societies, one a countryside slow-life society, and the other an urbanized technology-based society. The group made scenarios to realize a low carbon society with 70% less carbon emmission for both types of society. By combining policy, technology and social structure, the research presents a realistic solution toward such a society.

One of my favorite Japanese words, MIRAI 未来 means "future". The two Japanese characters will literally mean "not come yet". I posted this word in wish that this confused world can regain some calmness. Yes the finance market is quite chaotic, but it is just too easy to say negative things like "the consumers expectations will go downward" or "everyone will start to tighten their wallet". That is such a boring comment that anyone can say. It is also too easy to forecast that the world's effort for solving environmental issues will shrink because of recession. The needs for eco-friendly products and company effort are not declining yet in Japan, and we hope this trend will not shut down for such copybook mentality.

Japan Low Carbon Society Scenarios toward 2050
http://2050.nies.go.jp/

Welwyn Garden City

Welwyn Garden City is about 30 minutes ride on the train from London, a town from early 20th century. All houses are built in Georgean taste. The area has been able to keep the beautiful unity and safe community because of the traditionaly strong residents' association. The picture above is of a big park running through the center of the town.

The reason why I came to this town was because I happened to know the chairman of the residents' association. There is a town developed in Japan based on Welwyn called Chishirodai Welwyn Garden City. I met him as an interpreter at the opening ceremony of this development area. It is in the Chiba prefecture, about two hours from central Tokyo. It was the first residencial development in Chiba to recieve a Certificate for Sustainable Development. They are making several eco-friendly attempts, such as using solar energy for street lamps and recycled material pavements.

So here I came, to see the original town. It was very interesting to see the houses from the 1910s, the whole plan of town and also the struggle between residents' association and town hall or new coming large capitals. It is of course important to plan and keep the architecture style, but the effort and organization of residents' to keep their own town beautiful and in harmony with nearby nature is even more important.
The house of Mr. Marks was also just wonderful, and I really enjoyed the nice stay with his family. Many thanks to John, Ruth and Vicky!

Welwyn Garden City, Japan
http://www.nomu.com/new/chishirodai/

London Diary

I was in London the past one week, half for business and half just to visit some old friends. The picture above is of Castle Combe, a town reserving 14th century appearance.
It was my first visit to London. I really liked the atmosphere and size of town. It must be a very good place to live in. I stayed at my friends' flat. We met at UCB in 2001, and this was the first time in 6 years to see them. So good to see them again!
Well the air was quite bad there, I could tell because my asthma came out during the stay. I guess it is because of the diesel cars. (The air pollution of Tokyo became better since they banned diesels.) But what I really liked about London was the architecture. They keep the facade as it were from the old days, and reform the inside into modern buildings. This way the streets keep its unity while people don't have to freeze inside.
Also London is such a well-planned city, with clearly segmented districts. The subway was incredible too, everything goes either from West to East or North to South. Coming from a city of cobweb suburbs, it was soooo easy to get around! It is a pity that Tokyo wasn't built in that manner, although some people like the confusion created...
Will write more about England tomorrow.
Big hug to Nadir, Isaac, Melissa and George! Thanks for letting me stay!

A nice cafe for Saturday morning

I found a good cafe KASOYO to spend a rainy weekend morning at.
It is at Mejiro (Yamanote line), an old Japanese style house reformed into a cafe. I think they are selling kimono related goods as well.

website (only in Japanese but many pictures, especially the second one)
http://kasoyo.com/kasoyo/
http://color.sakuraweb.com/sakuracolor/

A nice cafe for Thursday lunch

Well it doesn't really matter which day you go, but I tend to enjoy longer lunch breaks on Thursday... I found this cafe at Sakura Shinmachi Station (Denen Toshi Line) last week when visiting the alpinist Mr. Ken Noguchi's office. It is pretty difficult to find this cafe, because it looks like a normal house of Kimura-san from the outside. The inside is nice and decorated, a reformed old Japanese-style house. Everybody around the neighborhood seems to know this place though, because I asked about 10 people to find my way and they all knew. The cafe is called Tsurumaki Jaya, Jaya (茶屋) meaning tea place.



Trurumaki Jaya website (in Japanese, but you will find your way around)
http://www.tsurumakijaya.com

EDO is ECO Rule#3

BUILD A PARTNERSHIP WITH NEIGHBORING INDUSTRIES

This may be called industrial symbiosis these days.
A recent example will be that of Denmark, an industrial network between a pharmaceutical company, energy company, oil company, nearby farms and local government. They share energy and industrial "waste". In the natural order, "waste" for somebody is always "food" for somebody else, which can be said "Waste for Food". In this case starch waste became fertilizer, surplus energy became energy source, and water disposal became water resource.

The same but smaller cycle was realized in the Edo period between the urban area and surrounding regions. Food was made in the agricultural area, brought to central Edo, consumed, and the sewage was used as fetrilizer. Also clothing was made in the region, and after disposal, burnt to ash and again used to grow new materials. The cycle was four seasons, or one year.

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

by Hayao Miyazaki


This is my favorite comic book & anime movie. The author is Hayao Miyazaki, famous for "Spirited Away". I believe this movie inspired alot of children in Japan about environmental issues. It is about the future, a world after a great war (indicating a nuclear war) polluted everywhere, mostly deserts and forests with large insects and toxic air. The girl Nausicaa is an active young princess of a small country who can communicate with the insects and the wind. Even in a world with less people, mankind still has to kill eachother, fight for land, and concieve nature. Nausicaa, knowing that war is not the answer to a better world, fights, negotiates, and loves for her people. The story is about Nausicaa and her journey to create harmony between different race and with nature.
I first saw the movie when I was small, a great shock. But the comics were even more inspiring and philosophical. Hayao Miyazaki is known for his tremendous amount of reading and research. He is expressing the forgotten Japanese ways of living with nature through his movies. I really want to share this movie and comic with people outside Japan.

Pictures from Kanbatsu Tour

This summer I participated in a Kanbatsu Experience Tour led by NPO Good Day. Here are some pictures to share. The one above is the whole crowd. Forest thinning is an endless work, and such a big crowd can get alot of things done in a short time. The issue is sustainability of forestry. We went to experience the thinning process just for a day, but it doesn't solve the problem of less people and economy in the industry.
A man cutting a thin tree. You have to decide which way to make the tree fall before starting. And then cut half way from two different angles so that the tree can fall by itself.
If you simply cut through, you won't be able to predict which way the tree will fall, which is dangerous for you and also harmful for the surrounding trees. The cut acts like a hindge.











Timber!
It is also important to cut the grass, so that the trees left can absorb enough nutrients and sunshine.

KANBATSU

KANBATSU 間伐 means to thin the forest. The two Japanese characters mean "in between" and "cut (trees)".

67% of Japanese land is forests, and 40% of the forests are forest that need to be maintained by people. It is called "Satoyama". Forestry used to be a large industry in Japan. It is a pity that these days timber is mostly imported from other Asian countries, cheap wood sometimes cut out illegally or without care for natural order.
This is resulting in forest destruction in Asian countries.

"Satoyama" forests need to be maintained by people to keep growing properly, because it was half created for forestry. Thinner trees and grass must be cut once in a while so the strong ones can survive. This is called KANBATSU. However because cheaper wood is coming in, the timber market inside Japan collapsed, and forest thinning cannot be done anymore for economic reasons. It costs too much compared to what can be earned for wood.

I wonder if other countries are having the same problem, or is this only in Japan? Please tell us about Kanbatsu in your country.

Local Restaurant

This is a virtual restaurant in Tokyo.
They don't have a location, but they will hold a lunch / dinner party once every month.
"Local Restaurant" will introduce full course supper made by professional chefs, using fresh food direct from the farm. It will definately be a special experience for those who value good dietary life.

Eating habit and farming is a quiet boom among young Japanese these days. Sustainability cannot be realized without thinking about eating habits and agriculture.
The "restaurant" will be "open" on October 5th. Try it out.

Only in Japanese, but you can enjoy their pictures.
http://local-restaurant.jp/

Kannatsuki (October)

Kannatsuki is the old way of saying "October" in Japanese.
We write it 神無月, meaning "the month without god".

This is based on the old Japanese myth that around this season, all the gods (spirits) in Japan depart their homes to a gathering in Izumo, a sacred place in Shimane Prefecture to party.
It is funny to know that October is called Kamiarizuki, 神有月, meaning "the month with gods" in Shimane.