The Nippon Foundation and the Ministry of the Environment are hosting a nationwide clean-up campaign called “Spring Marine Garbage Zero Week 2024”! The boost event “Cosplay Marine Garbage Zero Campaign!!” will be held for the first time in Fukuoka.

Zero Marine Litter Week is happening all across the country and the world!

At the opening ceremony, the organizations, companies, and cosplayer teams that participated as event supporters declared their enthusiasm to reduce marine litter under the name of “UMIGOMI-ZERO Declaration”. In addition, the seven locations that are the venues for Umigomi Zero Week were broadcast live to liven up the start of “Spring Umigomi Zero Week 2024” from each location. In Japan, five venues (Nagano, Oita, Akita, Fukushima, Hiroshima) and, for the first time in the seventh event, overseas broadcasts were also held from Korea (Busan) and the Philippines (Cebu), where the enthusiasm for Umigomi Zero Week was conveyed. The reason for holding the event overseas this time is that in recent years, there have been many voices saying that “even if we pick up trash, it just washes up from overseas,” especially on the Japan Sea side of the coast of Fukuoka Prefecture, the main venue. Therefore, in order to convey the message that “it is important for each country to cooperate with each other to reduce trash,” a cleanup event with cosplayers will be held in Korea (Busan) and the Philippines (Cebu), which are foreign countries where trash from their own countries is likely to wash up.

Greetings from the organizers and sponsors

As organizers of “Zero Marine Garbage Week,” Nippon Foundation Executive Director Mitsuyuki Umino, the Ministry of the Environment Parliamentary Vice-Minister of the Environment Hayato Kunisada, and Fukuoka City Deputy Mayor Eiichi Nakamura took to the stage as a supporter. Umino cosplayed as Jotaro Kujo from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure and performed the JoJo pose with the other speakers, livening up the atmosphere. Each representative appealed to the participants at the venue about the importance of “cleaning up trash on land first in order to reduce marine trash,” and the cleanup began with a shout of “Pick up trash and protect the ocean!”

The Nippon Foundation: Managing Director Umino Mitsuyuki

80% of marine litter flows from land into the sea. If you actually pick up litter, you will see that it is only things that are part of our daily lives that are thrown away as litter. Why does this happen? It may come from us, and in some cases, from our own hearts. I have heard that once you pick up litter, you will never leave litter or litter again. I hope that more and more people will do this, and that eventually the act of “picking up litter” will disappear altogether. Let's pick up all the litter in Fukuoka to leave a rich and beautiful sea for the next generation.

Ministry of the Environment: Parliamentary Vice-Minister of the Environment, Mr. Hayato Kunisada

If things continue as they are, it is said that by 2050 there will be more plastic waste in the ocean than fish. One of the statements made by the leaders of the G7 countries last year was to “aim to zero additional plastic pollution by 2040.” If a treaty is established this year and each country is able to manage waste in accordance with the same rules, we can avoid the crisis of the amount of plastic waste exceeding the amount of fish.

Today, I would like you to pick up trash while being mindful of the current marine debris problem.

Fukuoka City: Deputy Mayor Eiichi Nakamura

We are pleased and proud that Fukuoka City has been selected as the Boost venue this time. Not only is the marine litter problem said to be a major global issue, it has also been said that “the Earth is boiling,” and environmental issues are an urgent matter. Fukuoka City is also undertaking various initiatives, and as a measure to combat the marine litter problem, we hold a litter pick-up event called the “Love Earth Clean-up” every June. Today, June 1st, is the first day, and we are very grateful for the opportunity to start the “Love Earth Clean-up” period in Fukuoka City together with people from around the world and everyone here at the venue. We will be holding a Fukuoka City-wide cleanup on Sunday, June 9th, so if you live in Fukuoka City, please join us if you are able.

I hope you will join us. I would like to conclude my speech in commemoration of this opportunity to spread the wave of zero marine litter from Fukuoka City to Japan and the world.

*We also played a video message of support from Mayor Soichiro Takashima, who was unable to attend due to conflicting official duties.

About 400 groups and cosplayers picked up trash in the streets of Nakasu

After the opening ceremony, about 400 participants cleaned up Nakasu, a busy area with a lot of foot traffic and litter, collecting 19 90L garbage bags full of garbage. They picked up household garbage such as cigarette butts, plastic bottles, cans, and food packaging, and also collected about 40 umbrellas.

Cosplayers enjoying cosplay in the newly renovated Nakasu area!

Cosplayers who picked up trash in the streets of Nakasu enjoyed photo sessions mainly at Canal City Hakata, Haruyoshibashi, and THEATER 010. Participants said things like, “I'm so happy that they held an event combining trash picking and cosplay in my hometown of Fukuoka,” “There were tons of cigarette butts,” “It was great to be able to pick up trash while having fun in cosplay,” “I was happy to be able to connect with cosplayers from overseas through trash picking,” and “I hope the combination of cosplay and trash picking will spread around the world.”

title

Boost event for “Spring Marine Waste Zero Week 2024”

Cosplay to eliminate marine litter!! Spring 2024 in Fukuoka

Date and Time
June 1, 2024 (Sat) 11:00-17:00

venue

Canal City Hakata, Nakasu area

Campaign Organizer

Nippon Foundation, Ministry of the Environment

Campaign Sponsorship

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism

Event Organizer

General Incorporated Association World Cosplay Culture Promotion Association

Event Sponsorship

Fukuoka Prefecture, Fukuoka City

Event Cooperation

Japan Coast Guard, Kuragerengo Incorporated Association, Japan Soft Drink Association, McDonald's Japan Co., Ltd., Ronald McDonald House Incorporated Foundation, Hasegawa Machiko Museum of Art, Boat Race Fukuoka

Special website

■About Zero Marine Garbage Week

“Zero Marine Garbage Week” is a nationwide cleanup activity to reduce marine garbage that has been implemented since 2019. Original garbage bags are sent free of charge to organizations that carry out garbage collection activities, and garbage collection activities nationwide are supported and promoted. *A total of 30 or more people are required to participate per organization (it is also acceptable if the total number of cleanups is 30 or more).

In 2024, the period from Thursday, May 30th to Sunday, June 9th, which includes the three commemorative days of May 30th (Zero Waste Day), June 5th (Environment Day), and June 8th (World Oceans Day), will be designated as “Spring Zero Marine Waste Week,” and the period from World Cleanup Day on Friday, September 20th to Sunday, September 29th will be designated as “Autumn Zero Marine Waste Week.”

Special website:umigomi/zeroweek/　

■About our work with cosplayers

Among cosplayers who dress up as characters from manga, anime, games, etc., many take the initiative to pick up trash on a daily basis to prevent the locations they use for their photo shoots from getting dirty. The World Cosplay Culture Promotion Association is working with cosplayers who are environmentally conscious and have a strong ability to spread information on social media to carry out activities to reduce marine litter.

*Additional information: About “cosplay” and “costume”

The act of wearing character costumes and makeup for fun at events such as Halloween is considered “costume play” and is distinguished from “cosplay.” Cosplay events rarely cause noise or nuisances (as is the case with Halloween in Shibuya, which is a hot topic every year), and rarely leave large amounts of trash scattered around after the event.

＜Organization overview＞

Name of organization: General Incorporated Association World Cosplay Culture Promotion Association
Activities: As cosplay culture spreads, we were founded with the feeling that it was necessary to promote the “correct way to interact with cosplay,” including respect for the works and their creators and a proper understanding of intellectual property rights. We are currently working to collaborate with cosplay-related events and commercial facilities on a global scale.

URL:

Nippon Foundation “Sea and Japan Project”

The ocean supports the lives of Japanese people in various ways, and sometimes gives us peace of mind, excitement, and inspiration. This is an all-Japan project to encourage people across the country, including children, to take personal responsibility for the ongoing environmental deterioration of the ocean, and to expand the circle of action to pass the ocean on to future generations.

CHANGE FOR THE BLUE

This project has been underway since November 2018 as part of the Nippon Foundation's “Ocean and Japan Project,” with the goal of having every citizen take the issue of marine litter seriously and raising awareness throughout society of “not putting any more litter into the ocean.”

We will work with stakeholders from industry, government, academia, and the public to create a model for reducing marine litter and promote it both domestically and internationally.

umigomi/