My 8 year old self saw my ideal future in flying cars and pampered by robot maids like in the Jetsons or shiny, clean, fantastical adventures around the universe in blinking ships like on Battlestar Galactica.
Listen to JJWalsh read this story.
Even this year, I interviewed for a job with a billion dollar city-of-the-future project only to realize a singular focus on a hi-tech hyper-cool efficiency is not the sustainable ideal.
The ideal future community is not one that deletes what we know and love, but builds on it and uses innovation and integration with modern advances without ruining the beautiful aesthetic.
As humans, not robots, we feel most comfortably connected in some way to our surroundings whether that be for our basic essentials of food-water-shelter or from the stunning beauty of living closer to nature, or the heritage culture and style of a place that connects us to other humans from the past and likeminded folk in the present.
I just spent 3 days at the first Minka Summit held deep in the mountains of Japan’s most famous city of heritage, fashion and culture- Kyoto. It was a chance to get old house renovators, carpenters, rural integration and minka bank reps, wood stove retailers, artists, craftspeople, authors and experts together in one place.
Technology is essential, but a city that cuts ties to the past, and lacks a human connection of personal warmth, shared common values and appreciation of culture is not the ideal future most of us want.
While big money projects claim that IOT and clean-tech will solve all of our problems in the future – getting to that yet unproven tech is an expensive distraction that comes at a huge carbon cost.
Whereas, for anyone in Japan, the solution is usually not far from where you live, or you pass by taking the backstreets on a commute, or an area you visit on vacations to get away from it all. Comfortable and quiet places that are connected to nature- giving us access to healthy food, water and air — these rural areas hold more potential to provide the ideal future communities. The potential for a better balance that brings our past into a relevant present, without erasing it completely.
This connects to the concept of Mitate in Japan.
Mitate is the Japanese art of reinventing old things- still old, but with a new appealing twist.
Some of the common words of wisdom at the Minka Summit were to find a house and community you felt connected to, then use modern innovations to improve the quality of life. Add insulation, grow at least some of our own food, catch our own water from rain in catchment systems, build green roofs, compost your waste (even from the toilet), put in double-paned glass windows to appreciate the seasons without the cold, be a part of your community, invest in a clean wood burning stove, and teach yourself how to fix and maintain things from YouTube-sensei.
I would add that investing in rooftop solar panels and a home battery to charge your daily essentials and even power an electric car without the need to rely on the grid provides more peace of mind.
Overall, it’s more sustainable to reuse old, existing structures instead of building new. It’s also cheaper and of great value on many levels.
Bringing what’s old and charming into modern relevance for a bargain price is a great story that many people want to hear.
As a part of the Minka Summit event, we had the chance to visit Minka nearby to see places for sale or to talk with the owners about the renovations they have done and how they like living away from it all in an old, traditional Japanese house. It’s amazing to hear how much they love the traditional aesthetic but keep it in balance with modern life needs.
There were so many kindred spirits at the event and of all the amazing people I met there, many were interested in how to make good use of old houses and live more meaningful lives in better balance with work, family and nature.
In terms of sustainability, I saw that many people are drawn to the social aspects of sustainability in terms of retaining heritage, culture, and community aspects, while reducing their carbon footprint, while also thinking of ways to make a living with entrepreneurial ideas.
Japanologist Alex Kerr was there to talk with people at book signings and give the keynote speech about the historical connections between interest in Minka renovations and the appreciation of normal, everyday Japanese folkcraft pottery called Mingei.
This year’s Minka Summit was overwhelmingly attended by international expat residents in Japan- most of them invested in living here for good. It was interesting to hear Alex Kerr talk of the influence of international people in the Mengei movement which he says was the start of the momentum to reuse old Minka homes and appreciate old Japanese things. Alex talked about Bernard Leach who is credited as a founder of Mingei alongside famed potter Hamada Shoji and Soetsu Yanagi.
Alex Kerr’s keynote speech was wonderful — he is so deeply knowledgeable about not only Japanese culture, traditions and history but the successes and failures of modern Japan society.
Alex has developed a strong foundation of knowledge through his books, TED talks, and stylishly renovated Minka guest house projects over the last 20 years. Alex is an inspiration to this entire Minka movement in many ways, but his foundation principal is that old Minka houses should not be preserved only as museums to visit, but renovated in order to live in them in comfort as modern residents and visitors.
It was wonderful to see Alex Kerr interact with Japanese carpenter Jon Stollenmeyer, Minka DIY YouTuber Tokyo Llama, organic farmer Chuck Kayser, permaculture and plastering expert Kyle Holzhueter, and Tourism professional Lauren Scharf among so many other budding Japanologists passionate about Minka from diverse industries at the event.
There were so many people I met who I previously had never heard of — doing exciting, interesting and inspirational projects. I am look forward to following up with them in the months ahead in interviews on my talkshow-podcast Seek-Sustainable-Japan.
It reminded me why I love doing the talkshow-podcast series, to shine a light on their individual stories which help inspire us all. I get a strong sense that many of these people will help maintain the momentum for sustainable living, rural life and help to preserve more Minka for future generations.
On our way home from the summit, we stopped over in the classic preserved district of Bikan in Kurashiki, Okayama where I woke up early and did a Heygo walking tour. One of the comments was, ‘Wow, you know a lot about old buildings!’ This surprised me, but then I realized I was using many of the insights from the Minka summit in how I described the buildings.
Unfortunately, being able to enjoy the charm of renovated areas like this in Japan are few and far between. Most Minka are destroyed in the name of progress. Bikan, however, is a great example of how enforcing regulations to protect building heritage in even a small area can help to maintain the traditional aesthetic which pays off economically, socially as well as environmentally.
The investment in maintaining these old Minka attracts entrepreneurs and new businesses as well as new residents and more visitors. It was wonderful to see local people happily using the area before and after the tourist crowds for walks, chats, and rajio-taiso stretching. The locals were friendly and welcoming with me which is an indication that they appreciate the benefits of tourism in maintaining the area.
It boils down to the basic question of how you want to live your life. For many of us, finding opportunities to survive and even thrive outside of the big city centers by living in an old house with a stronger connection to heritage, culture, nature and community is a new-yet old ideal home and community.
