Tokushima Primary Schools were Approved as UNESCO Schools!
All primary schools in Tokushima Prefecture were approved as UNESCO Associated Schools!

UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization, based in Paris, France) approved all four primaryschools in Aizumi Town, Tokushima Prefecture, as UNESCO
Associated Schools to encourage exchanges between students andteachers at schools around the world to share information andexperiences. They were the first approval cases in the prefecture.
UNESCO Associated Schools started in 1953, and has engaged inpromoting ESD (Education for Sustainable Development) in cultural and traditional events and practices,environmental education, and intercultural exchanges in order to achieve the ideals stated in theUNESCO Charter.
Four primary schools in Aizumi Town applied for the UNESCO School in June 2012 through theTokushima Prefectural Board of Education, as they have devoted themselves to various unique activities
including related to local traditional cultures such as indigo-dyeing called “Aizome”, folklore dancing called“Awa Odori” dancing, and growing indigenous spring carrots. They also have conducted environmental
conservation activities at and along their local river system.
On November 15, 2012, a ceremony was held at the Aizumi town office, and the Prefectural Board wasentrusted to deliver the certificates to the respective principals.

■All primary schools in Aizumi town, Tokushima, were approved as UNESCO Schools!
November 2012
Four primary schools in Aizumi Town, Tokushima Prefecture, were approved as UNESCO Associated
Schools, and the certificates were delivered to the principals respectively at the ceremony. Shikoku EPO
interviewed the principals and learned their activities.

【Visit the Board of Education of Aizumi Town】
Shikoku EPO asked the Superintendent and vice superintendent of the board of education about the town
and educational practices.
Each school has committed themselves to their own unique activities for more than 10 years throughcomprehensive learning classes and other subjects. The activities have two aspects: First, they areclosely linked to their local culture, history, industry and/or geographical features, Second, they arecollaborated with local people.

The superintendent of the Prefectural Board of Education was at first hesitated to apply for the UNESCO
School. But later he realized that what the schools had done was what ESD had aimed for. When hetalked about the intention to the principals of the four primary schools in the town, they were willing toapply for that.

【Visit Aizumi Higashi Primary School】
One of the most outstanding features of the activities that Higashi Primary School has done was topractice the folklore dance called “Awa Odori”. Thanks to guidance by local residents, they followed theofficial guideline of school teaching, and pupils have learned how to play the folklore musical instruments
which are indispensable for the dancing. Pupils also visited the ritual lion dance called “Shishimai” andlearned how to do that annual dance.

【Visit Aizumi Kita Primary School】
In collaboration with local farmers and women’s groups, Kita Primary School has engaged in energetic
activities. One such activity was learning river environment at the Shohoji River conducted mainly by 4thgraders. They observed the local river from the riverbanks and learned about the creatures along the riverand the river itself. At the end of the school year, they made a presentation of what they learned in front ofthe people who supported the activities.

【Visit Aizumi Nishi Primary School】
The purpose of the activities of Nishi Primary School was to love their hometown. The pupils learned how
to grow indigenous spring carrots. Tokushima is the largest producer of the vegetable in the country.
Another activity was to experience Aizome indigo-dyeing throughout the year. For this activity, the school
rented a plot of farmland from the local farmers and the pupils learned how to plant Chinese indigo. Laterin the year, they harvested the plant, dissolved it into water and maintained the indigo liquid. At the end
they used the liquid to make a dyed product.

【Visit Aizumi Minami Primary School】
Minami Primary School has engaged in experiencing local traditional culture and learning environmental
preservation. Their main focus was also to experience local indigo dyeing particularly among 5th- and6th-graders.

【After Visiting 4 Schools】
Shikoku EPO visited four local primary schools, all of which had conducted their activities “with local
people at the local communities”. In other words, their school activities had three aspects of “schooleducation”, “home education” and “community education”. While participating in the community activities,
the pupils would develop a sense of pride for their community.
Some teachers said “we came to explain what we had done in easier ways, which should be the nature ofESD. When we applied for the UNESCO associated school, we classified a variety of activities toreorganize them.”
When people understand their own community culture, they can respect and are proud of them. Suchpeople understand and respect the other cultures in other countries and areas. We will look forward to theperspectives of their activities in the future.

Mima Solar Valley in Tokushima Prefecture Generated Solar Power!
Mima Solar Valley is a unique joint venture invested by Gaiapower,
the president of Mima Solar Valley and E Community (Citizens
Association to Create Energy) and local citizens. The mega solar
power house in Mima City, Tokushima Prefecture, started to generate
power from December 2012.
The generation capacity of the powerhouse is 1,189kW, equivalent of
the power used for 350 households. The Citizens Association and 48
private people in Tokushima purchased private placement debt
securities (1 share is ¥500,000-, at 4% a year, 8 year of redemption),and this was the first citizen participatory eco power supplying
operation.

GPS Traces Black Bear in Shikoku!
NPO Shikoku Institute of Natural History, located in Suzaki, Kochi
Prefecture, launched a tracking survey of Asiatic black bears using
GPS (Global Positioning System). This was a part of a“comprehensive study of the population of black bears in the Shikoku
Region for preservation purposes” conducted in collaboration withWWF.
In Shikoku, only some scores of black bears were confirmed in the mountain system between theprefectures of Tokushima and Kochi, and they were designated as “endangered local species” by theMinistry of Environment. The NPO expects to find more concrete range of habitat and animal behavior forpreservation activities.

Grad Students of Two Universities Published a Book for ESD!
Graduate Schools of Education of Kagawa University and Aichi Universityof Education jointly published a supplementary book for ESD called“Pioneers of Water, Land and Village – Stories of ‘Water and Food’ toConnect People”.
The book deals with some topics such as drought in Australia, where themajority of wheat consumed for udon noodles of Kagawa Prefecture isproduced. The books includes other topics such as the slow-food
movement in Italy, changing eating habits in China and Japan, and foodsecurity issues in developing countries, and food disposal problem inJapan (disposal food problem). Through these topics, the considers foodsecurity and safety issues, and ways to connect Japan to the world.
The book employs a comic book style and uses a lot of dialogue. It also shows graphs and other visual
illustrations for easier understanding. It helps readers think about our eating habits and ways to build asociety for sustainable development.

Tokushima Public Health Center Provided Power for E-cars!
Tokushima Prefectural office experimentally set up a plug-in station at
Tokushima public health center in the city, and people got power freeof charge. (Started on June 11, 2012).
The power was generated by solar panels on the rooftop of theprefectural office, and people could get the restored power to charge
their electric cars.
The original purpose was to secure the electricity for emergencies
such as massive disasters, but alternatively this was to help people be aware of e-cars and their spread.

Kagawa is not just a Noodle Eater, but Ethanol and Methane Producer for Circulatory Society.
Kagawa Prefecture is famous for its original udon noodle, but at the sametime, people dispose of a surprising amount of noodles every day.
A “Consortium for Udon Noodle Circulation Project” established byvarious stakeholders including NPOs, private companies, local
government and academia started a recycling project in January 2012.
They encouraged the production of ethanol, methane and liquid fertilizer
from uneaten noodles to recycle, rather than to dispose of them.
The mechanism is ready for practice now, and it will be introduced at eco
events to spread.
(top) Ethanol combustion experiment at a noodle shop (below) udon
noodles are boiled in water heated by bio ethanol

Thinned Timber is Delivered for Firewood for Mountain Elderlies!
Tosa-no-Mori Maki (firewood) Club started delivering firewood from 2010
in order both to make use of timber from forest thinning along the Niyodo
River and to support life of elderly people living in the local mountainvillages.
Many people still use firewood to boil bath water in the mountain area in
Kochi Prefecture, but people have more and more difficulty these days incollecting firewood, partly because of the declining forest industry andpartly because of the aging population of the villagers. The club, then,started delivering 200kg of timber of per month to the elderly households
who use firewood for bathwater.
Converting from the firewood to gas and kerosene cost more as well as
increase CO2 emission. Therefore, the project was very popular among
the elderly particularly during the winter season. (below: a staff member
delivers firewood to a contract household)Sewage Water is Recycled to Save Waterfront Environment and Water Shortage!
Tadotsu Town (Kagawa Prefecture) introduced advanced process ofsewage water to recycle in 2004 to solve agricultural water shortage fromthe drought and ease water quality deterioration.
The processed water is sent for agricultural purposes when needed, ordischarged from upstream to ease the bad smell caused by the river water
shortage, and reduce the negative effect toward the ecosystem. They also
improve the preservation for little brooks and firefly village, so theneighboring people can enjoy the waterfront, as well as use it forenvironmental education.
This project was awarded a top prize by the Ministry of Land,Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism in 2010, and it will be presented asa good example of excellent water usage at 6th World Water Forum inFrance in March 2012.

Thinned Timbers for Spa Resort Cut CO2 Emission!
Consortium to foster biomass energy produced by timber from forest thinningin Kagawa prefecture was established by various stakeholders such asKagawa Prefectural Center for Stopping Global Warming, people who act tostop global warming, NPOs, and people from hot spa facilities. Thisconsortium started curving CO2 emission as well as revitalizing local
communities by using biomass energy produced by timbers from forest
thinning (including discarded timbers), started in April 2011.
Under coordination by the Kagawa Prefectural Center for Stopping Global
Warming, two NPOs have worked for forest thinning to preserve forests andused them at the hot spa resort instead of using kerosene, which lessens
CO2 emission. (Staff members thin the forest)

Sales of Biodiesel Fuel Mixed from Cooking Oil was Started!
A petro station in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, started providing new fuelcalled B5 for automobiles. The B5 is a mixture of diesel oil and 5% of BioDiesel Fuel (BDF) produced from used cooking oil (from December 1, 2011 –March 30, 2012).
The sale of this mixture fuel for ordinary users was conducted as a part ofBiomass Energy Project by Ehime Prefecture. BDF was produced by DaikiAxis and petro-diesel was produced by Taiyo Oil Co., Ltd.

Tokushima Group Submitted Proposals for Strategic Guidelines for Regional Biodiversity!
A group which has tackled biodiversity in Tokushima submitted arecommendation regarding strategic guidelines for regional
biodiversity to the Governor of Tokushima Prefecture in June 2011.
The group was established by eco-savvy groups and experts.
(Press conference)
The proposals stated as follows;
・Reflecting from the regional characteristics,
・Hosting town meetings to collect views from town people collaborated with specialists, and・Setting numerical targets and action plans.
Tokushima Prefecture is aiming to establish the strategic regional biodiversity guidelines by the end offiscal 2012.
Live Earth Matsuyama 2011 was Held to Raise Awareness to the Environment“Live Earth Matsuyama” was held at the Matsuyama Castle Park in
Ehime Prefecture on May 15, 2011. On the outdoor stage, bands
performed their songs and other performers had their talk shows.
Some 70 stalls sold organic food and handmade crafts to 3000
participants.
The following “five Actions to Thank the Earth!” symbolized the event.
★ Use public transportation or walk to the event★ Bring your own plate or rent them for meals★ Bring your clothes to exchange

★ Ride a bike-power-generator to create power★ Bring used cooking oil
These messages appeals went out before the event and conducted during the event.

One of whose features was to encourage participants to use rental plates and spoons, or bring their own.
Food stalls did not provide any plates or spoons. The participants had to deposit 100 for each item.Whenthey brought them back, they could get refunded. They got foods and cakes onto their own containers,
and sometimes that created conversation with the shop owners. At the end of the day, there was nogarbage. No one left used plates behind without taking back their money. It was a very efficient system.
On the stage, Yu Tanaka from Mirai Bank talked on energy and global environmental issues. He hascome to the event every year. This time, he talked about the electricity business and nuclear power plant,
which were hot issues these days. Also UA, a musician, came on stage to perform.
As a part of disaster relief activities for East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, a fund-raising box was setup. At the same time, they called to collect fans and pyrethrum coils for donation, advised by the sufferers
from Hanshin Great Earthquake in 1995.

The brochure of the event says “We were born here and grew up here. That is why we have to have theeye to see safe food in real terms and safe environment for the family to live in.” We saw a lot of practices
and discoveries which realized such a message. The event will be held again next year.
(above: Counter to rent plates and spoons. Middle: People get food into their own container, Bottom:People enjoy music)“Tosacco Town” was Held for Children to Experience Real Life.
An event called “Tosacco Town” was held in Ryoma Stadium in Kochi,organized by NPO Kochi citizens organization for two days on
February 26 and 27. This was the second time after the one held in
September two years ago. 330 children from 4th graders up to juniorhigh school age participated. The purpose of the event was to provide
a place to communicate with other children, an opportunity toexperience social mechanisms and eventually to respect the local
community and become proud of that. (Children work for comic writer.)
When children registered in the “town office”, they learned the community rules for half an hour, andreceived nine tos (“tos” is a unit of money in this community). One tos was deducted as a tax. In theTosacco Town, there were some 30 jobs such as newspaper company, police, bank, broadcasting center,railway company, construction designer, and painter. Cardboard was used for partition for the offices andshops, and each section had its own signboard. There was a comic writer’s office, too, as Kochi produced

one of the most famous comic writers in the country. At the job placement office, children chose jobs fromvacancy ads and worked and earned money and paid taxes. Each section had grown-ups (specialists) totell how to do the jobs. The stretcher at the fire station and ballot box at the election were real ones. The
children who worked each section looked serious. Some children who worked at the railway company
tried to lure passengers-to-be. The grown-ups who came to support the event smiled when they saw suchserious children. Some children could even raise funds to start their own business. When the town had
new jobs, the atmosphere of the town got exciting.
When the children earned money by working, they could spend it at the shops and restaurants. They
enjoyed using the money they had earned.
The participants could run for the town mayor and cast the ballots (Photo: Children cast the ballots for thetown mayor election) and a new mayor was born. “In the previous election, the candidate who promised
the tax reduction won the election and the tax was cut. Because of that reason, some jobs at the tax office
was closed.” Said Ayano Hiroi, the current president of the committee. The sign at the tax office explained
and one out of four jobs was lost at the tax office. The children would learn that their actions changed thepublic service.
Behind the town, about 90 grown-ups from high school students, college students, office workers, local
government employees and NPO staff members worked as organizers. They were divided into six units tooperate the event. Some of them prepared for the overall system and program, some worked to ask for
donations and support, and some developed and prepared the meals consumed during the event. The
grown-ups spent more than a year to create the town. One of the grown-up members said “We have tofigure out a way to let children understand things very well. We have to study hard to know things
correctly in order to tell things correctly to the children”. Others said “We enjoyed to meet people in otherjobs or other situations.” It was a great opportunity for both grown-ups and children to communicate andagree on various things such as collecting garbage, delivering food, developing unique goods and raisingfunds.
The original idea and model of Tosacco Town was in Munich, Germany, where there are 30 of such“towns” where children can experience social activities. And the activities have developed to actualexchanges. The former mayor participated in the “children’s towns exchange meeting”.
What did the participants learn from the “life” for two days? They had to work by themselves and they had
to cast ballots to change the social system. Then what happened to their town? Tosacco Town was not
the place to answer the questions, but to experience them. The town exists not just for two days, it will
reappear in to the next event. As the children grow older, the town may develop, or some children may be
the committee members. We cannot wait to see the future.

★

Shikoku EPO considered that the whole process (preparation to the event) of Tosacco Town event
was a good example of ESD (Education for Sustainable Development), it was shown during the ESD
Forum in Takamatsu in February 19, 2011.