Today we face various global issues, such as global warming due to human activities, loss of biodiversity, nitrogen pollution, and COVID-19. From Japan, it might seem like some of these are irrelevant matters in a faraway world. However, with products and information travel all across the globe in the blink of an eye, the world has gotten smaller. Things that have been pushed off as a hassle sometimes come back full circle. Japan procures food, animal feed, raw materials, and fuel from various countries worldwide, and bears a great deal of responsibility for future possibilities. That is, if Japan gets serious about solving these global issues, it can make the world better connected through trade. This is perhaps the very purpose of Cool Japan.
Moving on, some of you may be unfamiliar with nitrogen pollution. Nitrogen is an essential element for proteins, nucleic acids, and other biomolecules. Humans absorb nitrogen from food proteins. Nitrogen (N2) is ubiquitous, and accounts for around 80% of the Earth’s atmosphere. However, N2 is incredibly stable and cannot do much by itself. Only when it is transformed into a reactive compound such as ammonia can it be used as a fertilizer for crop production, a raw material for industrial production, and a fuel for energy production. Technology for the artificial synthesis of ammonia was put to practical use in the early 20th century, and since then nitrogen has brought great benefits to us as a fertilizer for mass food production. That said, much of the nitrogen we use is released into the atmosphere in a reactive state. This in turn leads to a wide range of environmental problems such as global warming, stratospheric ozone depletion, air pollution, water pollution, eutrophication, and acidification. These combined environmental impacts are known as nitrogen pollution.
Our world is huge but finite. Including ourselves, there are many different living things in the world, and we all influence and impact each other. Human activities have become so large that they have drastically changed the material cycle and in turn caused various environmental problems. In doing so, we have made the world more difficult for other organisms to survive. There are many things we can do to ensure that future generations can live in happiness, and to ensure that the world’s living things can remain as they are. Food is one element of our daily lives that is closely linked to global issues. The production, distribution, processing, consumption, and disposal of food are significant sources of greenhouse gases and nitrogen. The production of some food has a particularly large impact on the environment. When food is wasted, the resources that have been used in every process from its production to its delivery to the consumer are also put to waste. Reexamining the handling of food, as the accumulation of small improvements, can ultimately play an important role in solving global environmental problems. Japan is home to a rich food culture, abundant ingredients, and most importantly, outstanding human resources. In addition to revisiting food culture from all over Japan, we must also seek to create a new food culture. By thinking about food sustainability together, implementing it, and communicating it to the rest of the world, I hope we can inspire future possibilities. Food and food culture are the key to solving the world’s many environmental problems.
投稿タグ: SDGs
A Respect for Nature and Life Alongside the Sea – Kesennuma Pride
Breaking Free of Our Reputation as a Major Generator of Food Loss and Waste and Communicating Our Achievements to the World
According to estimates from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and the Ministry of the Environment, in fiscal 2019,Japan was responsible for around 5.7 million tons of edible food loss and waste. This placed Japan as the sixth worst country in the world and the overall worst in Asia for the volume of food loss and waste. Despite this shocking figure, since long ago, embedded in Japanese society has been the term mottainai, a thorough expression of regret that something has been put to waste. Moreover, long before the SDGs came to the fore, Japanese people have expressed their thanks for a meal with the phrase itadakimasu and, as a sign of respect for the deity of rice, treated the completion of a meal as a virtue. Meanwhile, Japan is famous for its manufacturing, and its outstanding manufacturing companies have for a long time created highly durable, long-lasting products, building sustainable business models in an array of fields that are far-removed from other mass-production, mass-consumption models. Where, then, does this contradiction between Japan’s traditional dislike of waste and its current food loss and waste problem come from? This question was the very reason I set up the Food Loss Bank in 2020. Ultimately, I came to the conclusion that Japan’s peaceful state was part of the problem. Japanese people tend not to take ownership of a problem, instead relying on the idea that someone else will take care of it. This doesn’t only apply to individuals. In fact, some corporations have been criticized for “greenwashing”—that is, engaging in environmental initiatives as a mere formality for the SDGs, but not really working to minimize environmental impact. Moreover, there are also some fruitless claims that climate change does not exist. It is also often the case that companies or individuals feel like they have taken the necessary action after one-off donations or single SDGs events, tending to forget about the fundamental issue itself. In the end, perhaps the most important thing is how many people can take ownership of the problem and generate action. Some think that it is the duty of major companies to take the initiative and deal with the food loss and waste problem. Of course, companies in the food and drink industry, the food manufacturing industry, and the logistics industry, for example, do have a huge responsibility. However, the truth is that around half of the abovementioned 5.7 million tons is from household waste. The illusion that a single individual’s waste won’t have a significant impact on the overall outcome is creating several million tons of waste. This shows that we must have much more belief in the power of the individual. The “Bank” in our company name represents the idea that we are a place where one can amass knowledge. If we can inspire individuals to acquire correct knowledge on food loss and waste and in turn generate action, the sum of their efforts can lead to huge results. Our desire is to inspire people to act. Having lived abroad for 18 years and experienced a wide range of cultures and businesses, I can say with confidence that the Japanese have some outstanding qualities. If we can take ownership of the problem, our individual food loss and waste countermeasures can be the first step toward achieving a decarbonized society. Another issue I have found is that generally, Japanese people are not great at communication. The more we have something good to say, the more we fear that it will be seen as boasting, and as a result the nature of our communication is dulled down. There is only one world and we are all connected through it. Climate change is not an individual issue, nor is it an issue limited to a company, or even the whole of Japan. It is a global matter on which we should be proactively communicating our responsibilities worldwide. Regarding our own global communication initiatives, following a request from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, we created six videos on Japan’s sustainable food models—entitled Masterclasses for a Better Food Future—for the World Food Forum. The six episodes were aired at the World Food Forum Film Festival in Rome, and are currently available to view on our official website and YouTube page. These episodes describe the current plight of the global environment and showcase individuals who are using this information to generate action. The videos feature a wide range of individuals from the Minister of the Environment and prefectural governors to business managers and children. Throughout the series, the emphasis is on the idea that as a member of the community that shares the planet, it is important to work together across borders and generations to tackle the issues at hand. Our hope is to create a Japan from which as many people as possible can take that first step, no matter how small, toward a better future. I hope we can all take ownership of the situation, rid ourselves of the title as one of the world’s foremost generators of food loss and waste, and confidently communicate our achievements to the rest of the world. I want to believe that the day we can inspire food loss and waste solutions in other countries is not far away.
Well-being Social Design Inspired by Food
In Japan, 2021 was the so-called the first year of well-being. Because, well-being was positioned as an important part of the government’s Basic Policy on Economic and Fiscal Management and Reform and its growth strategies.
In this Basic Policy, it is clearly stated that “well-being KPIs should be established in the government’s various basic plans.” In response, well-being KPIs were established in a total of 32 basic plans put together by governmental organizations such as the Cabinet Secretariat, MEXT, MHLW, MAFF, MLIT, MOE, Cabinet Office, and CAA. These developments are expected to be accelerated further from fiscal 2022 onwards.
One of the many definitions of well-being is “a positive feeling or state among individuals or communities.” This is not a fixed definition, but rather a concept that can change dynamically across different generations and cultures.
Needless to say, as a such an ambiguous concept, there are diverse interpretations as to what constitutes well-being and what leads to well-being. As such, scholars have long since given up on efforts to define a fixed shape for well-being.
How are scholars tackling the topic? Rather than focusing on a shape, they are looking at the factors that lead to well-being. And so, leaving what constitutes well-being to the targets of their investigations, scholars have been researching what factors influence their targets’ ideas of well-being through various surveys for more than half a century.
These investigations have led to some interesting discoveries. That is, while the shape of well-being differs from person to person, there are many similarities in the factors that influence their well-being. One easy-to-relate to factor is income.For many people, a certain level of income is a key factor behind their well-being. The way that this income is used to achieve well-being, and what shape this well-being takes, varies by person.Another factor is social tolerance. This shows that, regardless of generation or culture, a society in which there is no categorization or discrimination is an important factor for many people’s well-being.
As a one of the researchers of well-being myself, I regularly examine what factors play an important role in people’s well-being. One factor I have discovered is the gender gap in cooking frequency. Specifically, when looking at society overall, the narrower the gender gap in cooking frequency, the higher the level of well-being. In almost all societies, women cook more frequently than men. In other words, societies in which men frequently cook boast higher levels of well-being.
Today, diversity and well-being are two keywords that are growing in importance. Moving forward, I believe that cooking can be a symbolic action for both diversity and well-being.
Qualitative Global Changes and Expectations for Japan
Securing energy resources is paramount for our livelihoods. Until Russia’s invasion of Ukraine hit the headlines in 2022, decarbonization and the SDGs were the main topics in the UK, which hosted COP26 in the autumn of 2021, and in other environmentally advanced European countries. With it now compulsory for companies to disclose their environmental information, systems are in place to limit funding in industries that have negative environmental impacts and in companies with negative, passive approaches to environmental measures. Carbon neutrality, meanwhile, has been positioned as an achievable target through enormous funding and technological development, which to be prepared mainly in advanced nations. Elsewhere, through Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the distressing dependence of European countries on Russian energy has become increasingly apparent. Since the beginning of life, securing energy resources has been the most important task for humanity in every age. Behind the scenes, however, there has been a qualitative change in values that can be viewed as a countercurrent in time.
Changes in the Monetary Value
There are some who believe that the monetary value is decreasing, while others believe that the more money they have, the happier they will be. Let us use real estate as an example. New-build condominiums in the city center are often sold out on the spot. Chances of purchasing the most popular homes are less than a hundred-to-one, while the prices of these condominiums have increased by approximately 50% over the past decade. Let us now compare the value that can be obtained from a residence that cost 40 million yen ten years ago with that costs 60 million yen today. Functional value, such as convenience and safety, and emotional value, like views from the windows and local atmosphere, remain almost completely unchanged. Even if you pay 50% more, you do not get 50% more value. There are two things we can learn from this example. The first is that the soaring prices caused by the recent excess liquidity have not increased the value of an object, but rather lowered the monetary value. The second is that there is a limit to measure value in terms of monetary value.
Changes in Society
Next let us look at changes in social trends except for monetary value. I have intentionally created a list of the trends with two extremes.
From measures of the whole to measures of the individual
From individual ownership to collective ownership
From forced human companionship to human companionship connected by values
From logic and reason to intuition and sensitivity
From economy to spirit
From predetermined clothing to casual clothing
From muscle strength (outer muscles) to muscle balance (inner muscles)
From the real to the virtual
From meat-based diets to fish- and vegetable-based diets (eating from the top or the bottom of the food chain)
From cities to rural areas
From formal politics (rules) to informal politics (mutual understanding)
From visible economics to invisible economics
From a linear economy (make, use, dispose) to a circular economy (make, use, recycle)
From fossil fuels to renewable energy
From Japan’s point of view, the systems, customs, technologies, and values on the left of the above list were introduced between the end of the Edo period and the Meiji period and have been continued nowadays. The elements on the right can be said to be from before the Edo period. In this sense, the shift to the elements on the right could be seen as a return to the past or non-visualization. However, is it enough to simply take at both extremes, determine what is good or bad and keep moving forward?
Western Approaches vs Japanese Approaches
In the West, generally there is a clear line between black and white. This goes for national borders, but also for the lines between nature and man, spirit and matter, and other concrete rules. In Asia including Japan, however, these lines are somewhat more obscure.
In Europe, where natural disasters are rare and therefore nature is seen as kind, the idea that nature is under human control is ingrained. The boundary between the natural world and the human world is clear. With gardens, the Western approach is to create and appreciate manmade natural settings. In Japan, on the other hand, the harsh natural environment means that nature is both a blessing and a threat. This is why we look up to elements of nature with awe as deities, or kami. We live in wooden homes with numerous crevices and openings, and rebuild them when they are knocked down by natural disasters. Gardens in Japan make use of the surrounding landscape and are expressions of nature itself. From the reality of existing as one in nature and being kept alive, the Japanese feel living in harmony with all things in nature. We can also say that it is this natural-energy based spirit that has made the development of judo, kendo, sado (the tea ceremony), kado (flower arrangement), and other disciplines of “do” that bring together the mind, technique, and body. The Japanese also understand that spiritual and material civilization are not antinomy of one or the other, but that these are inseparable. If we use this Japanese mindset to overview the global trends once again, we can see that rather than considering them as two extremes of right or left, good or bad, they are connected, and the important thing is that they both exist in harmony.
Hundreds of Millions of Years or Hundreds of Years
There isn’t enough space here to examine all the social changes mentioned above, and so I would like to shine a little light on the energy and economy. Where is the connection between fossil fuels and renewable energy, then? Representative examples of fossil fuels are coal, oil and gas, all of which are made from the decomposed remains of ancient living things. The food chain shows that all living things benefit from plants’ ability to fix solar energy and turn it into food energy. We can therefore see that the original source of energy for fossil fuels is solar energy. On the other hand, typical examples of renewable energy are solar power, wind power, hydropower, and geothermal power. Apart from geothermal power, which comes from the earth, the remaining three are all the very energy of the sun, or are attributed to its energy. While we tend to think of fossil fuels and renewable energy as separate, both in fact originate from the sun. It is understandable that there are many groups that have been worshipped the sun as a god since ancient times.
What about the link between a linear economy and a circular economy? When simplifying roles in the food chain, we have producers (plants), consumers (animals), and decomposers (microorganisms). Replacing this with a industrialized, post-industrial revolution food chain, although the producers and consumers are the same, the decompose ways are disposal or combustion. The linear economy is known as such due to the linear connection between fossil fuels and minerals that are mined out of the earth, transformed into commercial products, sold, and then disposed of or burned. This is distinguished from the sustainable circular economy that has been in the natural world all along. That said, even with disposal, we know that they will return to nature over a long period of time. Whether it is plastic or nuclear waste, if we leave it be, it will eventually decomposed and living things several hundreds of millions of years down the line might be none the wiser.
However, the major difference between these two subjects and the other trends is the number of years for harmonization. Before the industrial revolution, in addition to hydropower and wind power that came from natural sources, the energy source for the fire power were the wood itself from the earth’s surface and even animal- and plant-based oil. All of these sources could be regenerated in a comparatively short period of time. As early as 150 years ago, despite engaging in high-quality, artistic manufacturing activities, Japan had achieved a fully recycling-oriented society that involved shared use, long-term use, re-use, recycling, and natural decomposition. At this time, Japanese society existed in full harmony with nature. This was based on the Japanese belief that kami exist in everything, as well as the thorough Japanese dislike of waste, or mottainai. Moreover, this mindset was developed by the abovementioned coexistence with all things in nature, including the aspects that couldn’t be captured by fifth sense.
Conclusion
Applying scientific technologies to effectively use the natural energy resources (and mineral resources) accumulated over several hundreds of millions of years to bring convenience, health, and happiness to mankind is admirable. However, when selfish purposes intervene, resources are kept being used in one direction (linearly) over a short period of time, causing disharmony and in turn a global environmental issue. Working to conquer nature through continued economic development with money and technology cannot solve this issue. Further, even though means of measurement have switched from GDP values to the SDGs, the structure where the means to increase the value of happiness has become the end remains unchanged. The failure to cut to the essence of the problem makes the younger generation and emerging economies disappointed with the outcome of COP26.
Although money has huge value in economic activity, that is it. Technology, on the other hand, is something that should be used to develop ways for humanity to return as a part of nature. What is important is not the means of measurement, but the awareness of humanity to harmonize with nature, including human beings, from the inside.
On an observation trip to Japan as part of a Western contingent in the late Edo and early Meiji periods, the Frenchman Émile Étienne Guimet said the following: “The Japanese have such love for nature. They are also incredibly skilled at using nature’s beauty. They have successfully built a comfortable, quiet way of life, free of overambitious desires or competition, with a sense of calm and modest material satisfaction.”
Eichi Shibusawa’s so-called collectivism, George Hara’s public interest capitalism, and Hirofumi Uzawa’s social common capital theory are all concepts of capitalism that prioritize individual spiritual happiness and harmony between the global environment and the economy. These ideas are once again garnering attention as antitheses to excessive Western capitalism. It cannot help but think that these approaches and ideas are unique to Japan.
The word “harmony” has appeared numerous times in this article—achieving harmony with current systems that are in place is also mentioned.
The Future of the UNWTO’s Gastronomy Tourism Initiatives
According to a survey by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), in recent years, the number of tourists who prioritize experiencing the regional lifestyles and cultures of their destination by enjoying the local cuisine is increasing at around the same rate as those who visit tourist hotspots. These tourists have a strong desire for authenticity and tend to consume more than the average tourists.
Gastronomy tourism is defined as “A form of tourism that aims to experience the local culinary culture and to enjoy food nurtured by the ingredients, culture, customs, traditions and history created by the local climate.”
In today’s post-COVID-19 society, overtourism and other tourism issues prior to the pandemic have made initiatives for the SDGs more important, while awareness of the importance of sustainable tourism—in terms of the economy, society, culture and environment—is gradually increasing. Gastronomy tourism is closely linked to the local natural environment, agriculture and culture. Further, gastronomy tourism, which anyone can participate and which contribute to participants’ health and happiness, can be considered an effective way for achieving sustainable tourism.
Moreover, the origins of many types of cuisine can be found in the local history and culture. Food is therefore an ideal contents to highlight a region’s characteristics, and can be one of the great pleasures of travel. In a survey conducted by the Japan Tourism Agency, the primary attraction for foreign tourists visiting Japan was “eating Japanese food”, while in sixth place was “drinking Japanese sake”.
As a result of the above, local governments around Japan are proactively engaging in gastronomy tourism initiatives to achieve regionaldevelopment.
The UNWTO lists the following five reasons for the focus on gastronomy tourism: (1) It is an effective way for regions to differentiate themselves; (2) it can provide visitors new values and experiences; (3) it can be initiated even in regions with few tourism resources; (4) it is conducive to tell regional stories; and (5) it promotes tourists to revisit.
Below are three initiatives led by the UNWTO for gastronomy tourism.
The first is a report that the UNWTO published in 2019 called Gastronomy Tourism – The Case of Japan. This report features 18 excellent examples of gastronomy tourism activities in Japan. The report follows a survey of Japan’s 1,741 municipalities, of which 584 responded. It shows that gastronomy tourism activities in Japan are more comprehensively focused on sustainable regional development and collaboration with agriculture than tourism promotion activities, and that public-private partnerships are more actively pursued than in other countries.
Second, also in 2019, the UNWTO published the Guidelines for the Development of Gastronomy Tourism to support regions that are beginning their own gastronomy tourism activities. These are a set of practical guidelines for governments, local governments, DMOs, and other tourism organizations seeking to develop gastronomy tourism in their respective regions. It features issues to consider when planning and operating gastronomy tourism, as well as required actions and other recommendations.
Third, the UNWTO hosts an annual international meeting known as the Gastronomy Tourism World Forum in many countries around the world. The venue for the forum to be held in 2022 is Nara.
In addition to communicating the diverse and cutting-edge gastronomy tourism activities in Nara Prefecture, the Kansai region, and the whole of Japan to the rest of the world, I look forward to the forum creating connections between producers, businesses and locals, promoting physical and mental health and happiness, and contributing to achieve a sustainable society.