On May 22, 2025, the International Symposium “Nature, Culture, and Community: Rethinking Urban Connections from Kanazawa” took place at the Kanazawa Bunka Hall. As cities around the world continue to grow and evolve, the interconnections between nature, culture, and community are increasingly central to shaping sustainable urban futures. This symposium brought together local and international experts, as well as city representatives, to explore innovative approaches to urban ecosystem regeneration while respecting and celebrating cultural heritage.

The event began with opening remarks from Takashi Murayama (Mayor of Kanazawa City).

Keynote speeches followed, featuring:

• Yulia Rubleva (Associate Programme Management Officer, Urban Nature, UNEP)
• Ingrid Coetzee (Director, Biodiversity, Nature & Health, ICLEI Africa
• Wataru Suzuki (Director, Biodiversity Strategy Office, MOEJ)

Rubleva presented on “Urban Nature for People and Planet:  Restoring Ecosystems, Rebuilding Community”, and emphasized the growing recognition of nature’s critical role in building healthy, resilient cities. She stressed the importance of reconnecting cities with nature – not just for aesthetic value, but for their capacity to sustain life, foster culture and strengthen communities in this changing world.

Next, Coetzee presented on “Nature contributing to wellbeing, resilience, and connectivity in cities”, and showcased examples of urban initiatives that reflect strong links between ecological and human wellbeing, understanding the importance of partnerships and active community engagement.  

Suzuki discussed “Cities for a society harmony with nature,” highlighting that Kanazawa has historically coexisted with nature. He emphasized that to restore biodiversity, it is necessary to simultaneously promote green conservation and restoration, climate change countermeasures, sustainable production, and consumption reduction. He also offered valuable insights connecting global, national, and local levels – from the implementation of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), to Japan’s new national biodiversity strategy, and concrete applications of Nature-based Solutions at the local level.

The second half of the symposium featured a panel discussion moderated by Togo Uchida (Executive Director, ICLEI Japan), with contributions from:

• Dzheylan Safet Karaulan Sozuer (Architect & Urban Designer and Strategy Development & Program Coordinator, Istanbul, Türkiye)
• Anthony Paul Diaz (Superintendent/Director, Seattle Parks and Recreation, Seattle, USA)
• Francois Moreau (Head of Urban Ecology Agency, Paris, France)
• Kimberley Anne Statham (Director, Urban Forestry, Toronto, Canada)
• Laura Hernandez Rosas (Coordinator of Biodiversity Strategies, Mexico City, Mexico)
• Judith A. Oluoch (Kisumu County Executive Committee Member-Minister, Water, Environment, Climate Change and Natural Resources, Kisumu, Kenya)
• Juan Pastor-Ivars (UNU-IAS OUIK, Researcher, Kanazawa, Japan)
• Tetsuhiro Ikeda (Kanazawa City Culture and Sports Bureau, Cultural Property Protection Division, Kanazawa, Japan)

The panel theme was “Community-Led Urban Regeneration: Culture, Nature, and Global Perspectives.” Panelists shared case studies from their cities:

• Istanbul is advancing urban rewilding projects.
• Seattle is engaging community volunteers in nature restoration.
• Paris is ongoing the greening of the city hall square.
• Toronto approaches biodiversity restoration through reconciliation with indigenous communities.
• Mexico City is promoting the development and protection of urban nature through networks, women’s leadership, and community engagement.
• Kisumu community-driven efforts are supporting the recovery of Lake Victoria.
• Kanazawa contributes to ecosystem preservation through its water canals and garden systems, while promoting traditional knowledge and community efforts.

In the panel discussion, panelists – having participated in the pre-symposium site visits and workshops in Kanazawa, shared key takeaways and reflections on what they had learned and experienced. They spoke about the insights and inspirations they hoped to bring back to their own cities and contexts. The panelists praised Kanazawa’s unique water system and community lead fireflies conservation activities. The panelists also shared their challenges their cities are facing such as extreme heat, flooding, harmful pesticides, lake pollution and difficulties in securing funds. The panelists emphasized adopting a nature-based solution as well as increasing green and blue infrastructure would be the key to building a sustainable urban city. The discussion concluded that while each city has different challenges, community participation is critical to addressing biodiversity.

To conclude the symposium, Shinobu Yamaguchi, Director of UNU-IAS, emphasized that urban ecosystem restoration is fundamentally about people’s involvement – nature thrives when people are engaged. Referring to the examples shared by panelists, she remarked that restoring ecosystems also means restoring relationships – between people and place, between past and future, and among the diverse communities who share the same urban space.

The symposium was co-hosted by UNU-IAS OUIK, the Ministry of the Environment, Japan (MOEJ), Kanazawa city. It was supported by United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI) Japan, Ishikawa Prefecture, The Hokkoku Shimbun. 

※Related article: Cities Share Solutions for Reconnecting with Nature & Culture | United Nations University

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OUIK is mapping information for understanding the relationship between regional nature and culture. We have published the booklets “Noto’s Satoyama and Satoumi Maps” and “Kanazawa Nature and Culture Maps”.
We are collecting map information at different levels of prefectures and municipalities in the Hokuriku Region. With a focus on the keywords of biological diversity, cultural diversity and ecosystem service, we are creating tools for learning and information dissemination that meet regional needs.

Five years have passed since “Noto’s Satoyama and Satoumi” was designated as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS) by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). OUIK has supported the revision of action plans and monitoring activities after the GIAHS designation.

Biodiversity monitoring activities in Noto, which are carried out in an area that encompasses four cities and five towns, focus on surveys of living creatures conducted independently by municipal governments and private organizations; a unified monitoring system to disseminate information related to biodiversity has not yet been developed.

In response to this situation, “Noto Biodiversity Society” was established by OUIK and Kanazawa University Satoyama-satoumi Project to contribute to Noto GIAHS through monitoring of biodiversity and related activities. The members of this society include people who belong to private organizations that promote the preservation of biodiversity and environmental education in the region, as well as researchers working in laboratories related to biodiversity in Noto.

On January 23, we announced the establishment at a meeting of Noto GIAHS Utilization Executive Committee and Noto GIAHS Promotion Council, in which OUIK participates as an observer. Through surveys of living creatures and related activities, the society will contribute to the preservation and monitoring of biodiversity and dissemination of information, in cooperation with the Council.

The book introduces unique roles and teachings of Japanese Gardens in Kanazawa City in a relation with human society and it is breaking new ground for Kanazawa’s sustainable future. 

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After one year since the 1st Asian Conference on Biocultural Diversity, a series of 2 inernational forums were held to explore the measurements to further promote the Ishikawa Declaration with international initiatives and East Asian partner. 

International Forum Series 1 (4/10/2017)

Biocultural diversity & satoyama: Effort towards societies in harmony with nature around the world.

International Forum Series 2 (15/10/2017)

Preserving Biocultural Diversity for Future Generations:Partnarship of East Aisan Countries. 

From January 1, 2016 until 2030, United Nations adopted Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs), with 17 goals and 169 targets, to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all. These goals are applied to all countries and regions, and for the next 15 years they will be the critical tools in the dialogs to solve environmental, economic and social issues. Youth capacity development towards those issues will be essential to ensure the successful achievements of those goals. This Workshop is jointly created by Kanazawa University and United Nations University, and it aims to create the platform for the younger generations to come together and deepen the discussions on SDGs and share the regional issues.