Conversations with Green Changemakers in Japan

Azby Brown is originally from the US but has lived in Japan since 1985.  He is a leading authority on Japanese architecture, design, and environmentalism, and the author of several books amongst which Just Enough: Lessons in living green from traditional Japan which was published in 2010. On top of that, since the Fukushima disaster, Azby has been lead researcher for Safecast,

Mona is a strategic communications consultant. Born between German and Japanese parents, she spent most of her life in England, before moving to Japan in 2016. She founded No Plastic Japan in 2018 to raise awareness around our consumption habits and the waste it creates – one of its main activities is the replacement of plastic straws with stainless steel ones for individuals and

Chuck Kayser is originally from the US and has been living in Japan for over 20 years, mostly in Kyoto. He started growing vegetables in the mountains of Shiga 12 years ago and what began as a hobby quickly turned into a passion. He established Midori Farm a few years ago to sell vegetables, host volunteers, and run tours and events. On top of that, he co-founded Seeds of Sustainab

Ian Shimizu is the founder of weMORI, an app that aims to make protecting and restoring forests fun, easy and accessible for all. In this episode, he will tell us more about his story and how he came about starting weMORI. We will also talk about deforestation and how our consumption habits have an impact on it. You can find the summary of the discussion on the Mottainai Transition

Robin Lewis, is half Japanese, half English and has many years of experience working with inter-governmental organizations, social enterprises, and NGOs. One day in 2018, while visiting Okinawa, he noticed firsthand the impact of plastic pollution and decided to do something to address this issue. That is how the idea of mymizu was born. On top of being mymizu Co-founder, he is als

Noriko Shindo is Japanese but was brought up abroad before moving back to Japan. After transitioning to a plant-based diet and seeing the positive influence she had on some of her friends, she decided to start Veggino. Veggino is a bi-lingual non-for-profit website and group that aims to spread a plant-based lifestyle in Japan. In this episode, she is telling us more about her stor

Jon Walsh is a New Zealander who has been living in Japan for almost 20 years. He is an urban farming and sustainability instructor and consultant based in Tokyo. Since 2012, he has taught nearly 1,000 people including individuals, families, students, and working professionals how to grow healthy urban food to improve health, support the environment, and reconnect with Nature. In t