Deterioration of the satoyama and fields

The wildlife in the forests and waterfronts around the Hikami Kairo are facing not only global warming, but also many other difficult rough waves at the same time.
These rough waves are strongly connected to our society.
Since ancient times, the forests and waterfronts that have been brimming with life have continued to spread from the Pacific Ocean and Seto Inland Sea side to the Sea of Japan side.

Even in the landscapes of the satoyama and rice paddies that are connected to human society, sustainable coexistence between people and nature has been maintained through various ingenuities of our ancestors and the wildlife has been active throughout.

In the last 50 years, however, our society has changed dramatically.
With the oil and gas revolution and industrialization, younger generations are moving from rural areas to cities and people are leaving the satoyama and fields.

As this is happening, the satoyama and fields are rapidly declining, and the balance of the wildlife is becoming disrupted. Unfortunately, biodiversity is rapidly declining.

Meanwhile, rapid advances in civil engineering technology and agricultural and forestry technology have allowed us to improve and repair rivers and roads up to the mountainous area, and large-scale tree trimming and species alternation is being carried out right up to the back regions.
As a result, however, very important areas of the waterfront and forest in part of the land have suffered severe damage.

The technologies that were supposed to enrich our lives have reduced biodiversity and actually lowered the richness in the region.

Continuing to protect the our treasure for the future

Now is the time when we must once again closely consider the true nature of richness.
What we must not lose or destruct for the sake of our future are coexistence with nature, coexistence with diverse wildlife, and mutually prosperous ways of living.

Above all, it is the spirit of coexisting with nature that is the cherished treasure passed on from our ancestors, and we must continue to protect this spirit and pass it on to our future children.

The people who love this area have begun carrying out special activities amongst themselves.
For example, there is a group that has been striving for 20 years to create deep connections between urban residents and the local people and cherish the natural environment.

There is a group to teach fun satoyama games to children, and a group to enjoy restoring the terraced paddy fields together with urban residents.
Some people are restoring the rivers and developing new communities through activities to restore the ruined bamboo forests and others are unearthing new appeal of the satoyama together with urban cafes.

Everyone is actively engaging in the activities that are most important to them and approaches that they enjoy the most. They look so lively.

To you who are reading this, what activity will you try?

Feeling with all the senses and taking a step forward

The moment you set foot in the area surrounding the Hikami Kairo, you become enveloped in the satoyama and rural landscape that feels oddly nostalgic. The landscape that looks like any other at first glance breathes vibrantly with the history of its diverse wildlife and the lives of its people who have inhabited the area since long ago.

First, please visit the Hikami Kairo so that you can fully feel the spirit here with all your senses.

The people and nature in this area will surely greet you all warmly.

Then, how about following your intuition to take the first step towards passing what moved you most on to future generations?

That first step will almost certainly lead to smiles on the faces of the future’s children.