Local Initiatives2020 Venue

The Izu Velodrome has a somewhat extraterrestrial appearance. Set amid lush woodland on the outskirts of Izu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, with Japan’s iconic Mt. Fuji forming a majestic backdrop, the glistening silver domed structure resembles some spaceship from a sci-fi film readying to spin off into the stratosphere. Echoes of this futuristic facade can be found even among the more mundane features of the stadium, which …

• Local Initiatives
• Shizuoka
• WUJ Original
• 2020 Venue

Local Initiatives2020 Venue

Naminori Real Estate located in Ichinomiya Town, Chiba, has barely opened its doors for business when the phone rings and an inquiry about a seafront property comes in from out of town. “At times the phone hasn’t stopped ringing,” comments staffer Romy Iwashita as she jots down the Tokyo-based caller’s details and preferred date to view the property.  The caller on this mid-November morning has an …

• Local Initiatives
• Chiba
• WUJ Original
• 2020 Venue

Local Initiatives2020 Venue

A band of green stretches south along the coast of Sendai Bay from Yamamoto Town, Miyagi Prefecture. It’s a lush, 100-hectare oasis amid what was, a decade ago, a wasteland, and is something akin to northeastern Japan’s very own field of dreams.   Here, rippling gently in the breeze, can be found varieties of turf-grass, such as Kentucky Blue, Tifton and Japanese Zoysia, all cultivated under …

• Local Initiatives
• Miyagi
• WUJ Original
• 2020 Venue

Local Initiatives2020 Venue

An alternative newspaper hit the news stands of Natori City, Miyagi Prefecture on July 1, 2020, its front page emblazoned with an elevated view of coastal Yuriage district, one of the worst-hit communities during the earthquake and tsunami that devastated northeastern Japan in March 2011.   In this half-page color photo, however, there are no crumbling buildings, displaced fishing boats, or overturned vehicles floating forlornly in …

• Local Initiatives
• Miyagi
• WUJ Original
• 2020 Venue