Creating a new society through collaboration between nature and the economy
Kunigami Village, Okinawa Prefecture × KMD “Yambaru Pineapple hills Aha Roadside Station”
Kunigami Village sits on the northernmost tip of Okinawa’s main island. It boasts rich natural scenery that has been registered as a World Heritage Site. However, the town continues to be impacted by its low birthrate and rapid aging, and its once flourishing pineapple production is now facing a shortage of people to carry on the work. Against this backdrop, in November 2022, KMD formed a collaborative project with Kunigami Village and the Kunigami Chamber of Commerce spanning academia, industry, and government to start a new initiative aimed towards the sixth industrialization of production through the newly created the “Yambaru Pineapple hills Aha” roadside station as its base. The designated administrator of the roadside station, OKTS inc. CEO and KMD researcher Takashi Oe explains, “I wish to reinvigorate the local community by interweaving primary industries such as agriculture with retail and service industries. By working on-site for this project, we’re able to troubleshoot real-world problems. We don’t want to see what works on paper, we want to test things through hands-on experiences.”
One key element in this collaboration is making the roadside station a base for R&D. Unlike other places, they have invested in creating a coworking space with the possibility to be a second work site with its high speed internet. One aim is that, by establishing the site as a base for research and inviting outside companies and organizations to work there, the project can generate funds to build up its foundation while fostering interactions with the locals, leading to community revitalization and a sustainable lifestyle.
Whether at the roadside station’s attached camping site or from the swing affording people a sweeping view of the land and sea, the station has been well-received by visitors as they can fully immerse themselves in Okinawa’s immaculate scenery, inspiring them to reflect on the intersections between nature, civilization, and local economies. To achieve sixth sector industrialization, the project will include a food workshop and woodworking studio in order to make use of products from Kunigami Village. The sweets and merchandise developed in the workshop can be sold in the facility’s cafe and store. This will allow them to directly see whether the pricing will ensure an appropriate return to the community, as well as allow them to see the needs of visitors. Mayor Yasushi Chibana expressed his hopes for the project, saying “Together with KMD, we will be able to conduct public outreach and research while increasing the number of people who interact with each other. We hope that this initiative will appeal to many people and that it becomes a hub for regaining our region’s former prosperity.”
For this project, moving forward, as people’s working style and workplaces diversify, it is believed that the possibility for innovation is high, but not in the Tokyo metropolitan area where the younger generation still concentrate. Rather, the potential will be in precisely the rural communities that are facing challenges, where Japan’s future is symbolized by its declining population. For KMD, Kunigami will demonstrate this possibility, and the village will be a real-world counterpart in building towards society’s future.
(This article was written in March 2023.)
