Kurashi - News From Japan

Time again for the greatest environmental festival in town. Each year, Earth Day celebrates food and farming, the forest and the ocean, and all the good people (and animals). Performances and music all weekend long in Yoyogi, and it promises to be a particularly sunny party this year. Yes, Peace! More info (J) This year, there is also a more political side to the events, with a Peace Parade starting on Saturday, 14:00 going through the busy commercial streets of Shibuya and Harajuku. Arranged by among others Parc and A Seed Japan, as part of the global action day, People and Planet, Before Profits . And at 18:00, there will be a candle night event for peace.

This should be a lot of fun. Moving on from the success of the Earth Day events... Globe-straddling eco event Earth Day has found a particularly receptive audience in Japan, where the two-day gathering in Yoyogi Park consistently draws over 100,000 people each year. It's an opportunity for charities, NPOs and eco-conscious businesses to flaunt their wares and draw new recruits, but many people just go to enjoy the art, vibes and free music. If you're one of the capital's long-suffering vegetarians, too, you owe it to yourself to pay a visit to the Earth Day Kitchen zone for a good selection of herbivorous eats. Time Out ...now we also get Love Thanks Earth in Tokyo! Or is it Love Earth Thanks? This is a gathering that has already held festivals in Fukuoka, Kyoto and Wakayama this year. And it just gets better and better. thank-earth.net So, what to expect? Lots of music, healthy food, and inspiration from NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) like V...

In conjunction with the day “Earth Day” to think about the global environment of April 20, Earth Day Hamamatsu 2014 will be held in Municipal Enshu Seaside Park. I like how these guys spent the weekend enjoying music and all kinds of shopping with a focus on organic foods and crafts. They also went out on the beaches to pick up the kind of garbage - plastics, ropes, all kinds of nets and whatnot - that wash up from the ocean. Image from facebook Our heavy lifestyle choices are making that kind of dirty impression on our precious planet. Others who care are celebrating Earth Day in the Seto Uchi , or the Seto Inland Sea, south of Okayama.  It used to be that you would go to a beach to look for beautiful sea shells. Now, what you also find, is lots of garbage made of plastic. Sorry to say, but the footprint we are making on this planet and its oceans is not a pretty picture. Earth Day is one event that tries to make more people aware.

I could go on and on. Earth Day is such a mainstay of great events in Japan. Give these guys some credit. Another Japan is indeed possible, no, it is already happening. All over the place. So much good you would have to be hiding under a rather heavy rock to not notice it. As they say, it is more up to you, than the place you happen to be in. Asahi: Demonstrators turn out in force in Kagoshima to oppose Sendai plant restart KAGOSHIMA--An estimated 6,000 anti-nuclear activists rallied on March 16 here to protest the Nuclear Regulation Authority’s decision to short-list reactors at the Sendai nuclear power plant for safety screenings--a prelude to their restart. Go with the flow and you will notice there is a new movement happening. Earth Day Kagoshima Balance by Kagoshima native Nakamura Tetsuro Facebook Earth Day Kagoshima

So many events, so much focus on our planet and our future. So much to feel good about! Earth day all over Japan. Here is more from the event in Nara , the ancient capital of Yamato, or Wa. Focus on how history connects to the future. That's life! Cool marching band, from 2:30 or so!

Globe-straddling eco event Earth Day has found a particularly receptive audience in Japan, where the two-day gathering in Yoyogi Park consistently draws over 100,000 people each year. It's an opportunity for charities, NPOs and eco-conscious businesses to flaunt their wares and draw new recruits, but many people just go to enjoy the art, vibes and free music. If you're one of the capital's long-suffering vegetarians, too, you owe it to yourself to pay a visit to the Earth Day Kitchen zone for a good selection of herbivorous eats. From Time Out Be that as it may, I'm really disappointed by the event's website's main focus on meat eating, and I do not normally want to be pointing fingers, but why let this guy's passion for deer hunting and his " venison cooking " be such a major part of this event? Bad, bad taste. Mr. C. W. you may have your own likes and dislikes. We all have our favourite issues and concerns. But you do not use Eart...

Earth Day in Nasu is now an annual event for many small organizations that have hosted large symposiums on how to care for our planet over the years. They do wonderful market events and workshops as well as art shows. Earth Day in Nasu , Tochigi prefecture has all kinds of projects prepared for May, 2014. Which got me to explore another rural Tochigi initiative, that has been around for over 40 years: The Asian Rural Institute (ARI) is a training center for Rural Leaders. Founded in 1973 by Rev. Dr. Toshihiro Takami the aim of the program is to invite and train local grassroots leaders to more effectively serve in their communities as they work for the poor, the hungry, and the marginalized. Each year from April to December we bring together about 30 leaders from countries primarily in Asia, Africa, and the Pacific to take part in our Rural Leaders Training Program . The training focuses on sustainable agriculture through integrated organic farming techniques , com...

I was lucky enough to walk through the Earthday market in Tokyo today, a regular Sunday. If you haven't tried it, you haven't experienced the more aware youth in Japan, all the NGOs, the amazing farmers markets, the hemp clothes, the organic tea, the hippie vibe. This is a city that cares about the environment, the state of the planet, the wholeness. We are all connected. More Tokyo farmers markets here .

As we all wonder what happened to spring, with chilly weather this weekend, I enjoyed the Earth Day Market in Yoyogi today Saturday. Do visit again on Sunday and you will be amazed by the creativity and positive vibe in Tokyo, Japan. So many people with great ideas for the future, making a point of being positive almost to the limit of what is possible... Best of all, none of it is fake, in a city that just a year ago was turning down its neon lights while the aftershocks still rattled the northeast of the nation. From eco tourism to organic food (and cotton) and solutions to all kinds of problems you have probably never heard of, the Earth Day Market in Tokyo has grown into a massive event. If I may be just a little grumpy, it is due to the lack of space on the walk in front of NHK and the Olympic Stadium. It was pretty noisy too, for my liking, but no one else seemed to mind. Tokyo Earth Day Market The amazing thing about Tokyo and Japan is that we are all doing all right. Wi...

With fewer and fewer nuclear power plants up and running, Japan has just barely made it through summer without power outages or black-outs. Thanks to millions of people reducing their electricity consumption, the worst case scenario has been avoided. The energy crunch is far from over, though. There is virtually no hope of "renewable" energy making up for the huge loss as 39 nuclear reactors are off-line, with huge doubts if they can be restarted at all in the cases where they were not destroyed. It is worth noting that Tokyo and the entire Kanto region will not be back to "normal" again, ever. As we take stock of events since March 11, 2011 there is now also news that oil and coal plants, (also known as "thermal" power plants) are suffering glitches and trouble. While such issues can be resolved much more easily than the emergencies due to the earthquake and tsunami, they still make for a tense energy environment. Add to that the upheavals in the ...

To find out more about how the Kyoto Vegan Earth Day was brought to life, Kyoto resident Jennifer Teeter interviewed Iwasa Akiko (a.k.a. Chiko), who has been organizing the Vegetarian Festival since 2003. From 10,000 Things : Can you tell us a little bit about the Vegetarian and Vegan scene in Kyoto? 9 years ago, when the first Vegetarian Festival was first held, people had only heard of the word vegetarian and many thought "vegetarian" simply meant vegetable. Also, many people thought it was strange for people to chose to lead a lifestyle where they didn't eat animals for religious purposes. However, as the years have passed, judging by the people who come to the VegFest, questionnaires, the number of vegetarian restaurants and the media attention vegetarianism has garnered, we can see that the image of vegetarians has changed. Perhaps Kyoto and Tokyo can be considered the easiest places for vegetarians to live in all of Japan. Kyoto is well-known for the vegetarian cook...

Today is a sunny, warm autumn day, just the best weather possible for the Soil & Peace Market 2009 in Hibiya Park, central Tokyo. Lots of groups are participating with homemade foods, organic veggies, crafts, performances, lectures and much more. Tanemaki has more details (in Japanese) Checking my archives, it was 2 years ago that I visited this event, and wrote about it here .

Are you reading Greenz.jp? Recently, a few new writers joined us who are really good. I liked Joan's post about the Earth Day Market in Yoyogi Park, where she talks about some of the food sellers and pottery makers, as well as tea: Tea is a hot topic here, and a few good sites include this one with information about different kinds of teas in Japan ; this nice post about organic green tea blended with family memories , and a video recounting some of the challenges of organic tea growing . There is, of course, also absolutely no shortage of books about tea in Japan . Where to Find Local Seasonal Food- Tokyo Farmers Market Since June, Chris is doing an ongoing series on sustainable living in Japan and he will focus on the unique lifestyle and agricultural practices of Konohana Family near Mt Fuji: In 1993, perhaps long before the term Eco Village came into popular usage in Japan, a middle aged interior designer and carpenter from Nagoya and several companions were asking themselves...

This weekend you can celebrate Earth Day all over Japan. Here in Tokyo, the event is in Yoyogi, and regular readers of this humble blog know that I am a huge fan. According to The Japan Times, the Tokyo event has grown to become the world's largest: Earth Day Tokyo 2009, a two-day festival aimed at raising environmental awareness, will kick off at Yoyogi Park in Shibuya Ward and other venues Saturday. The world's largest Earth Day festival is expected to attract 130,000 people to the park, where musicians will hold concerts, nonprofit organizations will exhibit their philanthropic activities and shops will have a range of organic foods on sale. Participants at the ninth annual festival will promote ecological lifestyles and the development of electricity generated by fuels with low carbon dioxide emissions. Earth Day Tokyo '09 aims to spread green message Click here for more Earth Day coverage on Kurashi News from Japan - since April, 2005!

From King Features Earth Day 2008 , where they have a lot more goodies. BTW, Blondie was always my dad's favourite comic. I think he still reads it every day. Absolutely ;)

NHK World has a brief video report on its Internet website from the Earth Day held in Tokyo's Yoyogi Park for 2 days from Saturday: More than 300 NPO and NGO groups in Japan are participating in the event, addressing people to think about environmental issues and to act kindly toward the Earth. Many tents take up the theme of environmental issues, and some people are selling recycled goods. A group advocating preservation of African gorillas called for a ban on cutting jungles there. The group is appealing for the reuse of rare metals by recovering worn-out cellular phones as part of the effort to hinder reckless mining in Africa. Some groups are selling cloth and miscellaneous goods that are environmentally conscious. A demonstration referring to the G8 Summit scheduled in July in Hokkaido is also being presented. Environmental matters are high on the agenda of the summit. NHK: Earth Day Tokyo 2008 demonstration The five years from 2008 through 2012 represent the First Promise Per...

Nice focus on food mileage, organic restaurants and good food! Earthday Kitchen.net Powered by Greenz.jp

Date: Sat 19th, Sun 20th, Tue 22nd 2008 Main site: Yoyogi Park Aimed attendance: 120,000 people Theme: Shift to green Concept: The movement to make the world more greener. Guidemap (pdf): Click here This year, the mission for Earth Day Tokyo 2008 is to convey the knowledge and messages that have been learnt from past events and to develop positive impact to people's behaviour. Therefore Earth Day is going to focus on energy, food and agriculture which is essential to our every day lives. Biodiesel, solar power and hydrogen are the main energy sources for Earth Day Tokyo 2008. Not only eco fuel like recycled tempura oil and bio diesel (which powers the main stage), but there will also be an Eco-Mobile - a green-energy powered car - in Yoyogi Park! The talk show has guests who are the pioneers in their field, to discuss visions for a sustainable world and what we can to do make the world more green. Another highlight for this year is the hydrogen-powered generator, which is going to...