Chuck Kayser has been taking over abandoned farmland in rural Kyoto and Shiga Japan to create vegetable farms and do community workshops to raise awareness of the why and how of organic, natural farming and self-sufficiency. #sustainable #living #organic #farming #japan Chuck Kayser Website for Midori Farm Kyoto https://www.midorifarmkyoto.com/

Watch all the talks with Organic Farmers in Japan on this Seek Sustainable Japan YouTube Playlist here:

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcyYXjRuE20GajKYIPFOfVexBBeLTXFHk&si=yhnTqYaHBc9uN8J_

As a part of this year's MINKA SUMMIT event at the end of April 2026, we had the wonderful opportunity to tour keynote speaker Jeff Berglund's fabulous riverside MACHIYA in Kyoto along the famous KAMO river.

Jeff shared so many fascinating stories of design, history and culture.

Jeff's Website: http://www.jeff-kyoto.com/

See the images from the house tour by watching the video version of this tour on YouTube: https://youtu.be/EXRVcgVcfEc?si=oLq_KdOFkl46A2w6

#renovation #traditional #japanesehouse #machiya #minka #kominka #minkasummit #housetour #kyoto

Chuck Kayser shares his insights from trial and errors of organic farming in the Kyoto and Shiga area of Japan to an audience of Minka traditional house and rural living enthusiasts from across Japan and even some from abroad.

Chuck Kayser at Midori Farm

https://www.midorifarmkyoto.com/

Professor Iain Davey who teaches Sustainable Development strategies in a Kyoto University and who over the last 30 years has been renovating old houses, taking over abandoned farmland, converting his car to run on waste oil and so many other wonderful strategies to reduce his environmental impact. This also saves him money and most importantly helps him live his life in the way he wants to, closer to his community and nature.

#minkasummit #sustainable #strategy #japan #sustainaleliving

Originally from London, UK- Emily Smith has been living in rural Nara with her partner and enjoying the slow life, building a lovely homebase with collaborations in the community while she documents the 72 microseasons and goes foraging in the forest with her 2 rescue dogs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji_1hilqG9Y

LINKS

https://www.instagram.com/down2forage/ https://www.youtube.com/@down2forage NHK feature of Emily and her partner Felix in 2025 - WHERE WE CALL HOME https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/shows/2087146/

Tiffany Rossdale is a long-time international resident who has worked in the entertainment industry but is now more involved with social impact projects and businesses in Japan.

In this talk, we explore some of Tiffany's latest projects talking about LGBTQ+ issues with universities and for WeExist film events, suggest being accepted by her professional name by LINKEDIN, helping to support homeless in Tokyo, make more inclusive travel for LGBTQ+ travelers in Japan and insights from her podcast BREAKFAST WITH TIFFANY.

/ tiffanyrossdale / tiffanyrossdaleofficial

The 2026 Minka Summit in Hanase village, Kyoto - a community gathering of people from across Japan who love traditional Japanese houses, rural living, renovations, traditional crafts and cultural preservation.

Join us for a day or for the entire 3 days - looking forward to seeing you there! https://kominkajapan.online/events/

Shiitake Creative Ally Hongo joins Seek Sustainable Japan to share insights on the 2026 winners, behind the scenes stories and a new published book focused on better, more sustainable, accessible and inclusive travel in Japan.

Shiitake Creative Website @shiitakecreative https://shiitakecreative.jp/

Japan Travel Awards Website @japantravelawards https://japantravelawards.com/

Swastika & Trishit have been working with locals in Futaba Fukushima - a coastal area devastation by the 2010 earthquake, tsunami and radiation disaster that forced evacuation of the area. Now 16 years later, telling the stories of disaster and survival with visitors is a positive way to help rebuild the community.

Visiting the Fukushima area is a deeply-impactful experience- you can book your tour on FUKUSHIMA SEASIDE TOURS https://fukushimaseaside.travel/

Trishit Banerjee on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/trishitbanerjee/

Swastika Harsh Jajoo on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/swastikajajoo777/

NHK feature of their work in Fukushima https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/shows/2087155/

#sustainable #tourism #travel #japan #fukushima #disaster #community #rebuilding #revival #resilience

Hana Shiraishi is editor-in-chief of DeepJapan - an online magazine sharing stories written by long-time Japan insiders to share interesting perspectives on local people, culture and travel across Japan.

In this talk, Hana shares insights from working at a convenience store for her first job as well as many other wonderful stories of travel, inclusion and international community in her work with Deep-Japan.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hana-shiraishi-73092415a/

Deep Japan website: https://deepjapan.org/