CSR Experience: A Special Journey Learning Japanese Tradition and Sustainability

You will make your own original Washi (和紙, washi) using plant fibers that would be thrown away or recycled paper. The process of making one piece of paper while sharing roles with the whole team is perfect for strengthening your bond. Through old-style methods, you can learn the basics of recycling.

We make lamps and tableware using Bamboo (竹, take), which grows fast and is good for the environment. Using bamboo, a renewable resource, helps solve the problem of abandoned bamboo forests. Making bamboo lights that give off a warm glow teaches us the fun of making things in an eco-friendly way.

 You will carve your own chopsticks using Thinned wood (間伐材, kanbatsuzai), which are trees cut down to keep the forest healthy. After the work, let’s enjoy a meal together using those chopsticks. You can learn the importance of protecting forests while being healed by the warmth of the wood.

This is fieldwork where you actually go into the forest to thin trees and take care of nature. By taking part in activities to protect the natural environment with your own hands, your feeling of wanting to protect the ecosystem will naturally grow. Walking in the forest also refreshes your mind and body.

In areas hit by earthquakes, such as Ishikawa Prefecture, we support industries using bamboo and thinned wood. This is a practical activity aimed at helping the local economy and protecting the environment while cheering on the recovery of the area. By being directly involved in rebuilding the disaster area, you will feel a strong bond and a sense of helping out.

There are also programs to visit local schools and interact with children. By using English to understand different cultures and thinking about environmental problems together, you play a role in passing the baton to the leaders of the next generation.

We make pet goods using recycled materials and give them to disaster areas or animal shelters. You can deepen your understanding of animal welfare and feel the joy of your handmade items being useful to someone.

Using glass, which can be recycled, you will try traditional cutting techniques called Edo Kiriko (江戸切子, edo kiriko). The fun of creating one world view by working together, such as deciding on a design theme with your team, is special.

While learning about “ethical tea” grown without chemicals and with care for nature, you will experience the Tea ceremony (茶道, sado). Through a cup of tea, why not rediscover sustainable farming and the heart of Omotenashi (おもてなし, omotenashi), which means caring for others?

We will make Japanese food using seasonal ingredients harvested in that area. Knowing where your food comes from leads directly to cheering on local farmers. Let’s learn about eco-friendly eating that reduces the energy used for transport (food mileage).

Using recycled paper and eco-friendly ink, you will give “shape” to your company’s ideas and thoughts on social issues. Along with a performance by a calligrapher, the experience of putting your feelings into the brush becomes “Art CSR” and a symbol of your sustainability activities.

Work with local artists to turn waste materials into art. Please witness the moment when things that were supposed to be thrown away as trash get new value through creativity.

Watching private stages of Kabuki (歌舞伎, kabuki) or Geisha (芸者, geisha) culture is the ultimate support for culture. It directly creates practice places for young performers and protects the jobs of craftsmen who make tools and costumes. It is an experience where you can feel proud as a “patron” supporting the performers.

This is leadership training through Zazen (坐禅, zazen) meditation at a famous temple and talks by the head monk. It is a mindfulness experience to look inside yourself. At the same time, the experience fee is donated as repair costs for historic buildings that are hard to maintain, becoming power to protect Japan’s beautiful scenery.

Through the spirit of Bushido (武士道, bushido), which “begins with respect and ends with respect,” you will learn ethics that are useful in business too. While training your mind and body, you learn discipline and a heart that respects others, building a strong mental support for global situations.

Visit a Sake brewery (酒蔵, sakagura) that supports the local economy and support a sustainable food culture connected directly to local farmers. Tasting local ingredients and Sake (日本酒, nihonshu) directly helps local producers and contributes to leaving the local brewing culture for the next generation.