A Lively Future
for Everyone“SDGs Future City,”
Rikuzentakata

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Toward an Accessible and Inclusive City?”

SDG Players in Rikuzentakata
In July 2019, Rikuzentakata was designated as an “SDGs Future City”
by the Japanese government in recognition of its efforts to achieve
the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In the city, you’ll see many citizens
who are doing what they can and moving, step by step, day by day,toward the achievement of these goals.
Let’s meet some of these active SDG-oriented friends
in Rikuzentakata.
Photo by Takamune Ito2Murakami Sawmill

Hidekatsu Murakami

SDGs Bring the Local Woods(“Satoyama”) Closer to People
At the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake
and tsunami in 2011, I saw many people who
had become so used to modern life that they
did not know how to build a ﬁre. This made me
realize that people need to be determined andbold to survive in any environment.
The busiest period of the reconstruction
has passed, and as the third generation in
my family to run the sawmill, I would likeeveryone to get closer to nature. In particular,
I want people to become familiar with thelocal woods, or satoyama, that connect thecommunity to the mountains and the forests.
Several years ago I visited Germany, where
I saw local residents on their days oﬀ taking
their families on a walk through the local
woods. I thought about how great it would
be if that recreation became a regular activity
in Japan as well. To protect and maintain thelocal woods, it is necessary to build simple
roads and also use light machinery for periodic
thinning of these woods, which require theinvolvement of the local government and otherstakeholders. In the past it was diﬃcult to
explain why the local woods are meaningful,but now it is easier thanks to the SDGs,
which have been increasingly recognized as ashared language. I feel that the SDGs are morepractical and connected to our lives than I everexpected.

My Contribution to the SDGs

3

Ito Stationery Shop

Akiko Ito

Both Work and the SDGs Should Be Funand Cool
A good bookstore attracts people. As I see it,when a bookstore provides a space that makes
people feel good, gives them something new
to encounter, and makes them want to comeback, the store and the community will thrive.
To create such a bookstore, it is very important
for workers to enjoy their work. The SDGs are

similar. Rather than grimly working to achieve
the goals, why not see the SDGs as a cool,
stylish way of living? As part of eﬀorts involving
the SDGs, I plan enjoyable events and activities
that everyone can participate in as a memberof the Junior Chamber.
I returned to Rikuzentakata the year after
the disaster with expectations to see with myown eyes how the new community was goingahead with reconstruction. Although we are stillin the process of recovery and development, I
feel that Rikuzentakata holds great excitement
and opportunity for the future.

My Contribution to the SDGs

Tohoku Co., Ltd.

Katsuhiro Asama(On the right side of the photo)

My Contribution to the SDGs

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Save Takata
Reconstructing the City Before theDisaster in a Virtual Space with Children
Our organization was formed by people
originally born and raised in this city whocame together to provide emergency support
for their hometown. Today, we are supporting
the area as a community development
company.
One of the programs we utilize is theeducation edition of the popular gamesoftware Minecraft. We have an activity
where we re-create the Rikuzentakata thatexisted before the disaster in a virtual space(i.e. Minecraft), together with children. Their
passionate involvement in rebuilding a city
they never knew will become the power
to sustain Rikuzentakata in the future. The
program also gives us a chance to teach thechildren about the past, resulting in a form ofmultigenerational
exchange. As the
future leaders of thecity, the children are
full of desire to face
new challenges.

Venturing with Companions into an
Electric Vehicle (EV) Car Rental BusinessParticipating in the reconstruction of thecity, I wanted to try something completely
new, something that has never been done
anywhere else. That’s how I came to set up a
new car rental company specializing in EVs. I
faced many obstacles, but I tried my best to
overcome them rather than keep worrying. As
soon as I took the leap, I met people who were
happy to help and support me. An expert in

Kenta Yamamoto

My Contribution to the SDGs

EVs, Kenichi Tsutsumi (on the left side of thephoto) is one such person. What a single person
can accomplish on their own is very limited, butwhen you let people know your intention to takeaction, people will gather around you, and you
will be able to get problems solved with their
help. This is a lesson I really took to heart.
If things go well, you have your answer. Ifthey do not, you can look for a way to improvethat gets you even closer to your ideal. I reallyfeel that Rikuzentakata today is a place full ofhope where it is possible to pursue one’s ideals.
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An interview with Kaoru Nemoto,Director of the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) Tokyo

What Actually Are the?
The SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) are goals for the futureof the planet that the whole world is striving in unison to achieve.
We asked UNIC Tokyo Director Kaoru Nemoto to talk in more depth
about the SDGs, which have been initiated by the United Nations.
Photo by Wakana Baba
This page is an excerpt from the Japanese magazine ecomom Spring 2019 edition,
Nikkei Business Publications.

Global Goals for the Future

The SDGs were adopted at a United
Nations Summit in September 2015 by
all the 193 member states of the United
Nations, as part of the 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development which set out a
15-year plan to achieve the Goals.
The SDGs are a universal call toaction to end all forms of poverty anddiscrimination, protect the environment,
and achieve social development. The
SDGs are goals for a better future that wemust work together to achieve worldwide.

How the SDGs Came to Be

The SDGs were born out of a sense ofurgency that the planet would not survive

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if we continue down the path we are
currently following. Unless we take action
now to solve the problems facing theworld, we will not be able to pass down
the abundance that we have enjoyed toour children, grandchildren, and greatgrandchildren. That was a shared global
understanding.
One example of worsening
environmental conditions is severe heatand heavy rains that hit Japan every
year. Extreme weather and extraordinary
disasters caused by climate change havebecome a global phenomenon.
Various inequalities are expanding
as well. Inequalities between countries,
among the developed countries, andGender equality andempowering of women is one of
the most important SDGs.
among the developing countries are
becoming serious. There are also
disparities between cities and regions,
between men and women, between
majorities and minorities. Such gaps are
increasing and giving rise to feelings ofinequality and social unrest, which may
ignite coup d’etats and armed conﬂicts.

Determined to “Leave No One
Behind”

It ﬁnally became imperative to addressthese problems properly at theinternational level. Both developed anddeveloping countries alike had to engage
in the eﬀorts. That’s how 17 SDGs cameinto place.
Underlying the launch of the SDGs wasa strong determination for the world to

G et toknow more
a bou t

SDGs

Kaoru Nemoto
Director, United Nations
Information Centre Tokyo

Graduated from the Faculty of Law of the
University of Tokyo. After working for TV
Asahi, earned a Master of InternationalAﬀairs degree from Columbia University, New
York. Worked for the United Nations HighCommissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) andthe UN Headquarters in Geneva, and thenbecame a freelance journalist. Has been inher current position since August 2013. Her
published works include Nanmin Sakoku
Nippon no Yukue—Nihon de Ikiru Nanmin
to Sasaeru Hitobito no Sugata o Otte (The
Future of Japan as Excluder of Refugees—
Refugees Living in Japan and the People
Who Support Them) (Poplar Shinsho).
7

work together to “leave no one behind.”
The goals clearly state from the outsetthat the needs of those who are the mostvulnerable and tend to get left behind bysociety should be addressed ﬁrst.
Viewed from a diﬀerent angle, the 17
SDGs are all related to human rights. They
express the need to protect people’s rightto food, education, water, and so on.

Importance of Gender Equality

All 17 SDGs are important, but Goal 5 inparticular—to achieve gender equality—
tends to get overlooked, especially inJapan. For the United Nations, gender is a
crucial priority issue.
When Malala Yousafzai*1 visited Japan,
the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate
and activist for female education madea strong impression on me with her
message.
“I am here to speak to all of you onbehalf of 130 million girls still out ofschool,” she said. She called strongly for“the world’s leaders to make it possible
for girls to not only get primary school
education, but be able to complete theirsecondary education—the full 12 years.”
If all girls in the world could get asecondary education, they would have abetter chance to get good work, and thetotal income earned by women over their
lifetime would increase to an estimated$30 trillion (about 3,300 trillion yen).*2
According to the World Economic
Forum’s gender gap report 2018, eventhough Japan and South Korea almost
attain gender parity in terms of education,
the two countries lag behind in termsof gaps in economy. The environment
for women to continue working as
professionals is perhaps not adequate inthese countries.

SDGs Appear in the Japanese
Government’s Oﬃcial School
Curriculum Guidelines

Teaching about the SDGs is beginningin schools as well. The Japanese
government’s oﬃcial guidelines (“Courseof Study”) include the SDGs in elementary

Issues in your daily life areclosely linked to the SDGs.
8school curricula starting with the 2020
academic year and in junior high school
curricula starting in 2021. Some publicschools and private tutoring schools
have already begun actively incorporating
lessons on the SDGs ahead of schedule.
Thanks to these eﬀorts, children seemto be asking their parents if they know
about the SDGs and then sharing what
they have learned.
The SDGs address issues that arealso highly relevant to Japan. Goal 1,“No poverty,” is a good example. In
Japan, one in seven children lives below
the poverty line. There are many otherissues that Japan faces too, including

G et tochild abuse, lack ofknow more
a bou tjob satisfaction, death
SDGsfrom overwork, how
to build sustainablecommunities andenvironmental problems. They are alladdressed by the 17 SDGs.
It is important for adults and children
together to think about a range ofissues, bringing them into their daily
lives and homes. These might include
local production for local consumption,
cutting down on one-way plastics, andnot discarding clothing. Paying attention
to such things on a regular basis willcontribute to achieving the SDGs.

*1: Malala Yousafzai: Human rights activist. Shot by the Taliban in Pakistan for her activism, she continues to ﬁ ght for theright of children to enjoy education. Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014.
*2: Calculated by the Malala Fund and the World Bank

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G et toknow more
a bou tSDGs

The SDGs andChildren’s Vision of
the Future

The SDGs have been promoted in Japan as well as in the world.
From a prefecture designated as another SDGs Future City, Kanagawa,we introduce an example where children play a leading role intackling the SDGs.
Cooperation: Hokago NPO Afterschool (nonproﬁ t organization)
Photos by Shinichiro Oroku
Photos courtesy of Hokago NPO Afterschool
This page is an excerpt from the Japanese magazine ecomom Spring 2019 edition,
Nikkei Business Publications.

Taking Actions for the SDGs
at an Afterschool Daycare ClubAt Shonan Gakuen Elementary School
in Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture,
the nonproﬁt organization Hokago
NPO Afterschool runs an afterschool
daycare club for children, and provides
a stimulating and safe afterschool

environment for all kids, regardless of suchconditions as whether or not both parents
are working.
What catches the eye upon entering
the room used by Afterschool is a pillar
near the entrance decorated with the 17
SDGs hand-drawn by the children. Here, itis the children who play the leading role inactively learning about the SDGs.
Hoping that the children can learn that
the SDGs are closely related to their own
lives, in July 2018, Afterschool began
an initiative to collect old toothbrushes.
Empathizing with the initiative, theelementary school now collects old
toothbrushes as a school-wide eﬀort.

Posting SDG Cards
Made by the Kids Themselves
Around the School

Stimulated by this activity, the children
raised their voices to do more in relation to

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The 17 goals made and posted by the childrenthe SDGs. Kids who identiﬁed themselves
as belonging to the “Team SDGs” were
instrumental in thinking about what could
be done with the SDGs in the school. Theycame up with a proposal for the principal
to post handmade SDG cards around theschool.
When you walk around the school,
you will see SDG cards everywhere. In
restrooms and at water fountain areas,
there is “Goal 6: Access to safe waterand sanitation for all.” In front of thehome economics room, there is “Goal
2: End hunger,” “Goal 12: Responsible
consumption and production,” and “Goal
4: Quality education for all.” In the English

classroom, there is “Goal 10: Reduce
inequality within and among countries.”

Fun to Discover and Practicethe SDGs in Everyday LifeAll daily activities at the afterschool clubare connected with the SDGs. Sharing thisawareness with the children, Afterschool
conducts various other activities as well.
In a monthly special program, thechildren listen to talks by experts about
eﬀorts to protect clean oceans and issues
related to endangered and nonnative
species, and staﬀ members explain
the SDGs with the help of songs andpicture books. The children also discuss

Everything in our daily
lives is linked to the SDGs.
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the future of the planet with senior highschool students tackling the SDGs.
According to Junko Fujiwara of Hokago
NPO Afterschool, “The children now
have a better understanding of the SDGs
than us!”Protecting Their Future
Through the SDGs

The children make such comments as“When we started reading a book about
environmental issues, it suddenly became
more and more interesting,” “When we
started playing an SDGs card game usedby senior high school students and adults,
we found that even as elementary school
kids we could do it,” and “When I become
an adult, I want the Earth to have beenprotected so that we can live withoutanxiety.” From their statements, it is clearthat the children have fun learning about
the SDGs and link them with the future.
Going forward, the school plans toincorporate the SDGs more fully intoclasses and school life. It is hoped adults
also keep abreast of the children andpractice lifestyles that contribute towardachieving the SDGs.

What canwe do toprotect our
future?

G et toknow more
a bou tSDGs

SDG cards posted
here and therearound the school

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Start living with the SDGs today!

Shopping Is a Vote for the Future
When we do our shopping every day, by what criteria do we choose
what to buy? Price? Quantity? Appearance? Place of origin?
Through the producers, distributors and sellers, the things that
we casually purchase for our daily lives are actually linked to a range
of issues, including environmental and human rights problems.
When was the product made? Where? By whom? What materials
were used and how? Taking an interest in the story of how a producthas taken shape is the ﬁ rst step toward achievement of the SDGs.
“Sustainable labels” help us to make this ﬁ rst step. The Japan
Sustainable Labels Association promotes various international
certiﬁ cation labels in Japan that pertain to sustainable materials
procurement and environmental/social considerations. Below aresome of those labels. What do you value in your life? What do you
choose? Shopping is a vote for the future and a chance to express
your feelings about what you think is really important in life.

Check and choose withsustainable labels!

Madewhere?

By
whom?

Using
what?

How was it made?
Every item has a story.
Protecting theenvironment/Improving
working conditions

Sustainable society

MSC (Marine StewardshipCouncil)
The blue MSC ecolabel is only
applied to wild ﬁsh or seafoodfrom ﬁ sheries that have beencertiﬁ ed to the MSC Fisheries
Standard, a science-based
set of requirements forsustainable ﬁshing.

RSPO (Roundtable on
Sustainable Palm Oil)This label certiﬁes that a productuses sustainable materials sothat palm oil production does
not damage tropical rainforests,
biodiversity, or people’s lives
and has contributed to suchproduction.

Rainforest Alliance CertiﬁedTM seal
This seal indicates that a product uses
crops grown by certiﬁed farms that meetrigorous criteria which require continual
improvement on the journey to sustainableagriculture that conserves biodiversity andnatural resource and improves livelihoodand human well-being.

ASC (Aquaculture
Stewardship Council)
The ASC ecolabel certiﬁes
that seafood has been
responsibly farmed inconsideration of theenvironment, producers, andlocal residents.

GOTS (Global Organic Textile
Standard)
This is the leading worldwide
standard certifying that textile
products are made fromorganically grown or raisedﬁbers and meet ecological andsocial criteria.

The FAIRTRADE Mark
Products bearing this label meet theinternationally agreed social, environmental
and economic Fairtrade Standards which
are designed to support the sustainable
development of small producers and workers
in developing countries, such as the guaranteeof minimum price and premium, andprohibition of forced labor and child labor.

OCS (Organic Content
Standard)
The OCS label certiﬁes
that the product is made oforganic textile material by
tracking the ﬂow of the raw
material from its source tothe ﬁ nal product.

Organic JAS
This label guarantees that foods
are produced and processedorganically according to theJapanese Agricultural Standard.
It indicates that production
utilizes the cyclical functions of
nature.

FSC® (Forest Stewardship Council®)This label means that materials have been
responsibly sourced from well-managed,
certiﬁed forests, recycled materials, and othersources of low environmental and social risk.

Think of the SDGs when Shopping!

If you are aware of these sustainable labels, you can check that the items
you buy have been produced and distributed in consideration of theenvironment and in accordance with appropriate working conditions andfair rules and thereby contribute to the SDGs in various ﬁelds. Why not
begin an SDG-oriented lifestyle, starting easily with shopping?

Cooperation:
Japan Sustainable
Labels Association

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Messagefrom
the Mayor

Rikuzentakata and the SDGs

Rikuzentakata and the SDGs

In July 2019, Rikuzentakata wasdesignated as an “SDGs Future City” by
the Japanese government. We see greatsigniﬁcance in the fact that our city, which
experienced devastation in the 2011 Great
East Japan Earthquake and tsunami,
has received such a title in recognition of
our eﬀorts to build a community that isaccessible and inclusive.
The disaster made everyone“vulnerable.” Without any assistance,none of us could have survived. When
reconstruction began, a gap started toemerge even among the “vulnerable,”making it clear that special consideration
would be required for the elderly,
people with disabilities, and others. The
commitment of the SDGs to “leave no one
behind” perfectly matches the commitmentof Rikuzentakata. Reconstruction that“leaves no one behind” is not merely adream or ideal but something that we
simply have to accomplish.
We have received a tremendous amountof support from people throughout Japanand around the world, but we are still in
the process of reconstruction. Meanwhile,
however, we have been facing the issuesof population outﬂow, a declining birthrate,
and a growing proportion of elderly people,
so the future of the city cannot be taken for
granted. If the city cannot sustain itself after
10 years, all the support and eﬀorts madeso far will have been for nothing. Promotionof the SDGs is essential for Rikuzentakata’s
continuation of growth and sustainability.

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Each Individual Step Is Important

The power of our citizenry is vital for
promotion of the SDGs. At one conference
I heard someone say, “It is not 100
steps taken by one person, but one steptaken by 100 people that is crucial.” Themeaning of that is clear. Rather thanrelying on the eﬀorts of a small number ofpeople, if everyone sees the SDGs as theirown and makes an eﬀort in whatever way
they can, we will get much closer to ourgoals. If someone uncovers problems inthat process, please give voice to thoseconcerns by all means. We are building
our city’s capacity to solve problems as asystem, receiving support from inside andoutside. Through interaction with othertowns and people from other areas, theCity of Rikuzentakata will gain strengthand become full of life once again.

“Sustainability” Means Everyone Can
Be Active

I see a sustainable society as one in which
all people, including the elderly and thedisabled, feel a sense of purpose and areempowered to play an active role in society.
Having felt utter hopelessness after theGreat East Japan Earthquake and tsunami,
by rebuilding Rikuzentakata into a place
where all people can play an active role,
we will be able to reach the state where
we can overcome any circumstances nomatter what. That is what sustainability is
all about. That is what is sought after in adisaster-hit area. It is a message that only acity like ours can generate. With our own
hands, let us turn Rikuzentakata, an “SDGs
Future City,” into a community where every
single citizen can live energetically withsmiles on their faces, and where people
who visit can gain strength and vitality.

Futoshi Toba

Mayor, the City of Rikuzentakata*Accessible and inclusive: Aiming for a society in which people can lead vibrant, full lives, whether or not they have disabilities and/or diﬀerences.

Efforts by Rikuzentakata to Achieve the SDGs
Economically:(1) Achieve cutting-edge, high added-value agriculture, forestry, and ﬁsheryindustries that anyone can work in.
(2) Provide job opportunities to people with disabilities, foreigners, and othersin the manufacturing and processing of specialty products, various public
facilities, and the like.
(3) Accept people with disabilities in companies and provide opportunities forinteraction through rehabilitation and Paralympic sports.
(4) Establish a center to support community development R&D and businesscreation for products and services based on universal design.

Socially:(1) Promote eﬀorts to build facilities that adopt universal design (including
environmental improvement and universalization).
(2) Create a diverse, multicultural society.
(3) Improve the childcare support environment (anti-poverty, schooling support).
(4) Promote sports exchange activities with Japanese and foreign Paralympic
athletes.

Environmentally:(1) Revive the famous Takata Matsubara pine tree forest and pass it on to the next generation.
(2) Promote the introduction of renewable energy.
(3) Promote sustainable forestry and ﬁsheries.
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You know, I love Takata so much.
It has everything you could ask forfrom the sea and the mountains,
and the people are so friendly and kind.
I want to live here until the day I die.
From “Treasure in Our Hearts,” a record of the proceedingsof the Rikuzentakata Mukashi-gatari no Kai (Reminiscence Society)

With Everyone’s Hopes on the SDGs

Policy Planning, City of Rikuzentakata,42-5, Naruishi, Takata-cho, Rikuzentakata-shi, Iwate, 029-2292, Japan
TEL: 0192-54-2111 EMAIL: seisaku@city.rikuzentakata.iwate.jp
FAX: 0192-54-3888 URL: https://www.city.rikuzentakata.iwate.jp