Putting strategies into action to balance the needs of people and planet is the ongoing aim of many of us around the world- here are a few positive examples to inspire from Japan.
In this month’s sustainable short-takes talk this month, sustainability-focused consultant Tove Kinooka shared her recent Enteleco project- at one of my favorite destinations in Japan — Kamikatsu.
Kamikatsu is one of the smallest villages in this area with a population of only 1431 residents, but thanks to its sustainable strategies, it attracts more than 3000 visitors each year who are seeking out inspiration. While most of Japan struggles to deal with the costs and labor shortage difficulties of waste management, Kamikatsu has been able to divert 70% of its waste from going to landfill and incinerator whereas the rest of the country is stuck at 20–40%.
The program was to develop a sustainability mindset for Japanese company executives who could experience sustainable hospitality by staying in Kamikatsu’s hotel WHY, and talking with entrepreneurs at local zero-waste-minded businesses.
Bringing aims to action in Kamikatsu can be seen at the Rise&Win brewery, Cafe Polestar, the INOW program, the local grannies and grandpa upcycle kuru-kuru workshop, and the central onsen hotel even has initiatives that are creative and effective.
Many of the strategies in action in Kamikatsu will blow the minds of most people living in a typical community in Japan where waste is something everyone is obliged to separate into 8~12 categories and take out on certain pick-up days. But most of us don’t consider what becomes of waste, once it is taken away by the trucks.
In Kamikatsu, there is mandatory composting which immediately reduces household waste by 30%. The hotel WHY also does a composting session with all of its guests in addition to tours of the waste facility shaped like a question mark. The waste is sorted by everyone in the community into 45 categories. The aim is to reuse and repurpose as much as possible in the town- spent oil is reused as fuel for farm tractors, food scraps as compost back to the earth. The aim is to minimize what must be taken away to the prefecture’s landfill and incinerators- to reduce costs to the community.
Something Tove mentioned from their program always excites me on visits to Kamikatsu- it is the A-Ha moments from engaging with local entrepreneurs who have moved beyond compliance to creativity in terms of putting into action effective sustainable strategies.
Of course it is easiest to see how effective sustainable business strategies and healthy community development is when you see it is towns like Kamikatsu, but many visitors disregard what they see as impossible where they live or work for various reasons.
The Kamikatsu ideal may be too hard to fathom in your day-to-day, so here are some other examples which may help to train yourself to have a sustainability mindset no matter where you are.
Find your sustainable tribe
Can you spot the ‘could be better’ issues in your neighborhood or at your local coffee shop? Do you challenge yourself to try new opportunites? Do you take time to share on social media, or make a positive comment to staff on any ‘better,’ more sustainable initiatives, you come across? Once you start looking for these opportunites to try and share, you will find your tribe and have a chance to engage with other likeminded folk.
Since the borders have reopened in Japan, overtourism and irritation due to crowding have once again become a focus of the media. There are some effective sustainable strategies in place that help spread out the crowds.
The extension of opening hours- like the beautiful gardens above in Hiroshima- for example is a great sustainable business model. It spreads out the crowds in the day by offering visitors a chance to enjoy the autumn leaves at night. Better for visitors, locals and the environment while making as much, if not more, revenue. The reflections of the leaves in the central pond at night are simply gorgeous.
Another example it’s not too hard to find is where REUSE strategies are in place instead of SINGLE-USE. It’s unusual now, so it’s worth appreciating when you see it. For example, the Japanese LAMUNE soda bottles above are collected separately, washed and reused by local makers- that’s one benefit of having a higher-quality unique container.
Even better than reuse is finding opportunities to refill my own container and have zero-waste such as refilling water bottles at water fountains or finding great drinking water refill spots by using the MyMizu app thanks to the good folks at Social Innovation Japan.
Japan has an 11-million worker shortfall predicted by 2040, so one of the most challenging social issues in Japan now is finding workers. If you can find a strategy to address the labor crunch but which also addresses customers irritated by short and unpredictable hours- that would be great.
One strategy I saw in place in Hiroshima’s naval town of Kure does just that with the use of vending machines outside eateries and shops. The above Komugi-ya bakery has a vending machine catering to customers anytime of day. This also reduces the amount of wasted items unsold when the shop closes. At a set price of 300 yen, the bargain set of breads helps the staff clear the stock at the end of each day.
To take this concept to the next level of sustainable strategy, the items could be offered without plastic packaging in paper- or inside reusable containers to keep it fresh and customers bring their own containers and bags to put it into.
Exciting news from New Zealand- now the country to watch and see how they manage their new ban on any thin plastic bags and packaging.
Watching shoppers in Japan layer each already plastic covered product in even more thin plastic bags when packing groceries is frustrating to see as a workaround for many avoiding the plastic bag charge rule of 2020. It’s impossible to avoid plastic when buying anything in Japan still, so it is no wonder the country still holds the embarrassing title of being the 2nd most plastic use country per capita.
Whenever I see bread, fruit and veg in Japan without a plastic wrapper, I make an effort to not only buy it, but also say thank you to the staff for offering a plastic-free option to put directly into my own bag. Sometimes they are confused that I don’t want a plastic wrapper or bag which is a chance to have a conversation.
Sure, they might just disregard what I said and think I am a strange person, but it might spark an idea or inspire someone to see a sustainable strategy potential. Hope these were interesting ideas- I’d love to hear from you too! What are some of the more sustainable strategies you see around you?
