Soseijuku Lecture 02: Growing a Business from Local Life, Creating Local Economic Power

The moment you see the words "outdoor activities," you probably picture things like camping overnight in the mountains and forests, or adventure and survival expeditions, right? So how are such activities connected to "local revitalization"? For this session of Soseijuku, we invited Mr. Murofushi Tamon, a consultant for regional revitalization and industry promotion in Japan, to talk with us about how outdoor activities can bring about local revitalization.

Having graduated from university with a degree in geography, he has long been in contact with the land, and his love for the land has led him to apply the feelings and experiences gained from outdoor activities to his work in local affairs. His sharing this time also closely revolves around the word "land." Below the land, through leading outdoor activities, the public is guided to explore downward into the land they live on, and to ask what a healthy piece of land is. He also suggests that building healthy mountains and forests, building a healthy home, and taking good care of one's own life are all things that require practice.

Above the land, using the local revitalization of Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture, Japan as a case study, he explains that an important concept in local revitalization is enhancing the local employment capacity and economic power, and attracting people to stay or settle. However, the reason the local economy cannot grow is that a leaky bucket keeps local cash flow draining away. So if you try to tap into local potential to patch the hole, local economic power will improve.