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Once again, Munakata city in Fukuoka prefecture is hosting the Munakata Global Environmental Symposium, focussing on ecological concerns around the world.
Munakata is home to a group of Unesco World Heritage sites including the three outposts of Munakata Shrine and the entire island of Okinoshima – a sacred Shinto site filled with East Asian archaeological treasures dating back to the 4th century. Needless to say, the city has a long-standing interest in conservation.
The Munakata Global Environmental Symposium takes place in the city over the weekend of October 23 to October 25, and features discussions and seminars on marine debris and microplastic pollution, marine regeneration and recovery, climate change after the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, and more. Speakers include domestic and international academics, and representatives of local government, business, nonprofit organisations, and media outlets.
This year’s event – the seventh edition – is focussed on the theme of ‘Tokowaka – The Circle of Life and Our Natural Environment’. More than 40 speakers will share their views, including Tokutaro Nakai, the Vice-Minister of the Ministry of the Environment; Reiko Kuroda, Professor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo and president of the Munakata International Education Program; NHK Enterprises Executive Producer Kyoko Gendatsu; Kazuto Ataka, professor of Environment and Information Studies at Keio University and Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) of Yahoo! Japan Corporation; photographer Everett Kennedy Brown; Isko Moreno, the mayor of Manila; and Original Inc. Executive and Senior Consultant Masashi Takahashi, who was involved in the registration of many World Heritage Sites during his time at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Note that, while some talks will be in English, the majority will be in Japanese without any English interpretation.
In cooperation with local students, event organisers have arranged fieldwork sessions to collect plastic waste from local beaches and build artificial fishing reefs using bamboo.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, you won’t be able to join the symposium in person, however, it will be live-streamed for a fee (¥3,000, students ¥1,500). To gain access, you’ll need to make a reservation here.
In addition to the symposium, you’ll also be able to virtually participate in the Munakata Eco Festival, an event that connects environmental activities and performance art. Make sure to take a look at the short movie ‘Co-Exist Tomo ni Ikiru’ by Ai Futaki, an underwater artist, who makes the sea creatures and the ocean itself her subjects.
Between October 23 and 25, the festival’s YouTube channel will offer free live-streams of the kyogen (comic theatre) performance ‘Sanbaso’ by Mansai Nomura, kabuki dance performance ‘Ennen no Mai’ by Ebizo Ichikawa, and a concert by J-pop sensation Kyary Pamyu Pamyu titled ‘Oto no Kuni Live: Maboroshi no Utopia – Munakata Eco Fes Monogatari’.
If you do happen to be in the area, though, drop by the Munakata Taisha Shrine, which is displaying some of its 80,000-item collection of National Treasures at the on-site Shinpokan Museum. Until November 23, you can check out a range of items from the sacred island of Okinoshima, supported by the photo exhibition ‘Kamigami he no Miho’ (A Treasure to the Gods) by Zentaro Yamamura.
For more information on the Munakata Global Environmental Symposium, click here.
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