World's first! An international symposium to promote the Miyawaki Method was held at Yokohama National University!

　【Organized by】　Public Interest Incorporated Foundation　MORINO PROJECT

　With the goal of passing on the knowledge of the Miyawaki Method to the next generation and reducing the world's deserts and wastelands by 50% by 2040, a delegation of 55 people from 27 countries gathered at Yokohama National University for the World's first International Symposium on Friday, October 11th, with a total of around 130 people in attendance.

  Raising awareness among children and local communities about the issue of land degradation and opportunities for restoration is an integral part of the G20 Global Strategy. With this in mind, the G20 Global Land Initiative, in collaboration with its partners, plans to hold an international symposium on Miyawaki-style forests and urban forests in Japan in 2024 with the aim of ‘creating Miyawaki-style forests as nature classrooms for schools’. (Excerpt from the MORINO PROJECT HP)

   The G20 Global Land Initiative was established by the G20 countries in Riyadh in 2020, when Saudi Arabia chaired the group. The initiative aims to reflect the G20 leaders' commitment to reduce degraded land by 50% by 2040.

   After explaning the purpose of the international symposium, Dr.  Muralee Thummarukudy, Director of the G20 Global Environment Division of the Secretariat of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), and Dr. Fujiwara, Professor Emeritus of Yokohama National University, gave a lecture emphasizing the importance of passing on the Miyawaki Method to the next generation and spreading it around the world. The session of the symposium then started with many delegates presenting their impressive work, held workshops and presenting with their panel boards.

  Ms. Kawashita, the representative director of Silva, was invited to speak as a panelist at the second workshop moderated by Dr. Fujiwara, Ms. Kawashita gave a talk on ‘Fundraising Strategies for School Nature Lab Projects’ as an example of an innovative approach to securing forest resources and providing educational outcomes.

   How about, “There was a regrettable misunderstanding about which I would like to clarify here…

　 First, during my speech I introduced a specific example related to the topic of the presentation. Each speaker was allocated 13 minutes to speak. I practiced my speech so that I can comfortably finish my speech in Japanese within the allocated time, however an English translation was needed and as a result, I was not able to speak within 13 minutes.  Although the bell signaling the end of the speech, Dr. Fujiwara encouraged me to continue as she considered that the content needed to be conveyed to everyone. I was able to finish my presentation for four school forest projects and the fundraising strategies. There was a misunderstanding to why I had continued to speak, but it was because of Dr. Fujiwara’s encouragement.  I would like to thank everyone for continuing to listen to my presentation.

　After the four speakers for the second workshop finished their presentations, a Q&A session followed.  There was a lively discussion about how to hand down the Miyawaki Method to the next generation, and the audience asked various questions.  I was impressed by the overseas participants’ tenacity in asking questions during the symposium.

  To the left above is a commemorative photo with Mr. Shinkawa, the Secretary General of the Shinto Forest Project, a public interest incorporated foundation, who offered us the opportunity to speak at the international symposium and take part in the Miyawaki Method Tree Planting Festival in the Shonan International Village Forest. Thank you very much for inviting us to this prestigious event, the first of its kind in the world, to pass on the Miyawaki Method to the next generation and spread around the world. We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude.

   I, Toshiko Kawashita, the representative director, participated in a red and white kimono that was inspired by the Japanese flag as a gesture of gratitude, and I appreciate the compliments from the overseas guests. On this day, there were nine forest regeneration instructors from Silva in the audience. They all supported the event, including distributing materials of the school forest projects. Thank you, everyone.

   This occasion was a special moment for world leaders who have inherited the Miyawaki Method to consider the future and celebrate their growth and successes.  As a measure to mitigate global warming, we must promote forest creation as soon as possible.

  As Japan is the birthplace of the Miyawaki Method, Silva recognizes our responsibility as specialists advocating for forest regrowth globally.  The October symposium renewed our determination to continue working toward this goal.

  A Miyawaki Forest Symposium was held from October 10th to 14th, 2024 at Yokohama National University (YNU) as the “International Symposium on ‘Miyawaki Forest and Urban Forest Regeneration.”  The symposium, organized by the United Nations G20 Global Land Initiative and the Chinju-no-Mori Project, introduced the diverse possibilities of Miyawaki Forest in addressing urban and environmental issues. A total of 149 participants attended, including 87 people from 27 countries overseas and 62 people from Japan.

  At the symposium, presentations were made in the form of symposium lectures, workshops, and poster presentations on the scientific foundation of Miyawaki Forest, the planning and implementation of the Miyawaki Forest Project, and fundraising for Nature Lab.　　　　　

  Ms. Kawashita, representative of Silva, gave her presentation dressed in traditional Japanese Kimono, which was highly praised by many. Dr. Muray, director of G20, requested that participants give their presentations wearing traditional costumes from their respective countries, however since the event was held at the University, we responded that it would be difficult for everyone to gather in their national costumes. Ms. Kawashita presented in her kimono, which was very compelling in representing Japan. Additionally, Ms. Kawashita’s lecture focused on how Miyawaki Forest could be applied as an educational venue, along with topics of forest regeneration outcomes, which addressed the core subject of this conference and has led to an active discussion.

  As a result, Silva’s outcomes of their activities were presented as Japan's achievements, making it a valuable presentation.