Talk, thought and action

We recently held our company-wide seminar, an annual event, this year in Kunisaki and welcomed Walk Japan staff from Hong Kong, Singapore, UK, USA and other regions of Japan. We were also honoured and delighted to welcome Shin’ichi Tsuji (a.k.a. Keibo Oiwa) to join us as guest speaker. Tsuji san is a cultural anthropologist, environmentalist and founder of the Sloth Club, the leading Slow Life environmental group in Japan. He authored the influential book Slow is Beautiful (スロー・イズ・ビューティフル), which has been acclaimed as the bible for the Slow Movement in Japan, and become the leader of Japanese activists for a fairer and more sustainable society.

Slow is Beautiful

Tsuji san at Koumori-tei surrounded by Mihoko & Paul Christie

Tsuji san teaches International Studies at Meiji Gakuin University in Tokyo and his interests encompass the environment, food culture, socially responsible business, grassroots activism and distinct ethnic societies including African Americans, Jewish, Native Canadian and his own compatriots, the Japanese. He brought these broad interests to bear on his presentation to us which, amongst many other things, made us think more deeply about our Community Project and how we can make it a more progressive, meaningful activity both locally and in wider society. An early result is that we are determined to incorporate the Project more into our tours for schools and the Kunisaki Trek. We have been bringing schools to Japan for over 16 years and the first came to Kunisaki in November 2013. More schools look set to follow in 2014~15.

With everyone gathered in Kunisaki we took the opportunity to guide them through our Community Project to deepen their understanding of what it is and how it helps underpin our commitment to our tours, Japan and society in general. After visiting Koumori-tei, a Japanese farmhouse refurbished as our main office, Tsuji san left us with great words of encouragement and, through him, some extremely valuable connections to others who are similarly working at grass-root levels.

Tsuji san counts among his friends renowned Canadian science broadcaster David Suzuki, with whom he collaborated on the book The Japan We Never Knew - A Journey of Discovery (a.k.a The Other Japan); C. W. Nicol, who is very well-known in Japan as an environmentalist, passionate restorer of the nation’s woodlands and founder of the Afan Woodland Trust; Satish Kumar, editor of Resurgence & Ecologist magazine and the head of Schumacher College in the UK; and the scientist and environmental activist Vandana Shiva.

Another milestone in our Community Project was reached when we gained ownership of our first paddy fields. This is important for two reasons. Firstly, the aged owners were unable to look after them anymore and without us taking them over there is no one else to do so. The paddies would have been left fallow and eventually fallen into overgrown disuse. And secondly, through doing so we have established credibility with the local government, which is vital in further developing the agricultural side of our Community Project.

The rice seedlings have been planted and, with the summer weather now beginning in earnest, our fields will become a green haven for waterborne wildlife including frogs, dragonflies and egrets.