Tips for living a sustainable life in Japan for 2020 (and beyond!)

Sustainability is a global issue which has gained a great deal of momentum in recent years. It’s often said that the term has grown so much that it’s hard to encapsulate a solid definition of it, but it generally includes concepts like a lessened reliance on fossil fuels, a movement towards renewable energy sources, and adjusting our lifestyles to conserve natural resources.

How is all that doable in Japan? It’s actually not all that difficult to do from a day-to-day perspective, with a few little considerations and changes. Drops fill buckets, and it’s great to start somewhere! If you’re trying to be more conscious of sustainability into 2020 (and beyond), here are some places to start.

Go “old school” Japanese

Charming, wooden bento boxes and other wooden pieces - great for sustainability and lovely from an aesthetic perspective, too!

One thing I think is important when it comes to sustainable efforts is to embrace a bit of old school, traditional Japan. We’re in the era of plastic bottles, plastic bags, and plastic container bento in the name of convenience, but it wasn’t always this way. There are plenty of wooden bento that you can buy in specialty stores or even online at places like Amazon Japan to pack your own lunch in - and best of all, you’ll save money, too. If you’re wrapping a gift, you could use furoshiki, a traditional kind of wrapping cloth, instead of using wrapping paper that will likely end up torn, scrunched, and trashed. Even when it comes to food, one of our local Niigata specialties is sasadango, a type of mochi made from mugwort and red beans - and they come wrapped in bamboo leaves to keep them fresh. Stepping it back to the way things used to be not only helps the environment and your personal sustainability efforts - it gives you a little “vintage chic” street credibility!

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My trusty glass water bottle. Got it on Amazon a few years ago - still going strong!

When I’m out and about and not prepared, I inevitably have to grab a drink - and it’s difficult to avoid plastic bottles when that’s the case. Though there have been slow inroads in this realm, such as the packaging for the Just Water brand now stocked at most 7-11 stores, vending machines are a single use plastic nightmare. I’m trying to be more mindful of this and I’m more conscious of carrying my glass water bottle with me when I go out. For those who have embraced the reusable water bottle, an app that you absolutely have to check out is My Mizu. The app maps out locations where you’re able to refill a water bottle, including public drinking fountains and privately owned businesses who have agreed to fill water bottles from their stores for anyone who needs it. A definite win for sustainability efforts!

Eat locally and in season - or grow your own!

A basket of fresh locally grown produce from my nearest farmer's market. Now, if we can just do something about all that plastic it's wrapped in...

Something I've grown to appreciate more and more since living in Japan has been the idea of eating seasonally. It initially came about not because of sustainability motivations, but for saving money - there's no doubt that buying what's in season is easier on the household budget, simply because there's more of it being produced and it's sold at a lower price than what's hard to obtain out of season. It's an added benefit that it helps with sustainability too. If you're eating what's in season, and ideally consuming stuff that's grown locally, you're cutting down on fossil fuels used to truck stuff in from other parts of Japan, or even flown in from other countries. We have a great local farmer's market in our town, and it's an enjoyable place to shop not just for delicious fruit and veg at reasonable prices, but for a bit of an education into what's in season when.

There’s also the option to do it yourself and grow your own produce. This is a little hard for our family right now just because of the winter climate and no yard space - but our neighbors who have yard space are diligent gardeners who grow a whole host of goodies throughout the year. We get the benefits of their excess, and the summer months in particular are bountiful with watermelon, cucumber, tomatoes, and corn. If you have the time and the space available to do it, growing your own stuff can be both an effort towards greater sustainability and an enjoyable, rewarding hobby.

Drive less, and opt to cycle, walk, or use public transport more.

There’s no doubt that Japan has one of the best public transport systems in the world, and many of us living here already utilize it a great deal. Not only is public transport often more cost effective than paying for tolls, petrol, and all the other costs that come with operating a vehicle, there are a host of benefits for the environment and for sustainability, too. There are fewer greenhouse gas emissions being pumped out, and less demand for resources like petrol - meaning an overall benefit to factors like air quality. There’s also the option to use your own, human-made power for getting from A to B, and either walking or cycling to your destination when it’s practical to do so. It’s a good way to not only assist in global sustainability, but as a convenient way to keep fit without requiring a gym membership or structured fitness classes!