The big conclusions

• Nishiizu people generally welcome newcomers. From the government level, they want more people to live and work here locally.

• Good neighbors are expected to participate in hosting local events, actively help out others, and sort their trash properly - confirmed different people that we talked to as highlighted below in yellow

• There are already many events organized by the town hall, the welfare center, and local groups. AkiyaDAO residents can participate in some of the events such as language exchange and games for the elderly. We can also create new initiatives to rekindle local people’s, especially young people’s love for the town and their passion for local activities

Ideas for events

Current status of Nishiizu

• 少子化 declining birthrate

  • Declining birthdate leads to integration of schools and thus fewer school options
  • govt tries to lift the burden of childbearing by making school lunches free for elementary and middle school students and encouraging newlywed couples to establish trust funds, etc.

• 人口減少 declining population

  • 西伊豆町の人口は約7000人で、年々減少傾向にある。

• 高齢化 aging population

  • 65歳以上人口の割合を示す高齢化率が県内で最も高い50%以上

• 災害对策 disaster prevention

• 環境对策 environmental protection

• 第1次産業の縮小 - mostly fishing

  • 第一次産業従事者の高齢化及び後継者不足が産業の衰退にも直結している
  • not many anglers （釣り人）leading to not much fish; trying to get more anglers, increase local interest in fishing, subsidies
  • using “sunset coin” to incentivize fishing and make transactions electronic; 電子地域通貨「サンセットコイン」

Recruitment information. The fishing industry’s needs are high - supposedly based on news coverage - but people don’t get paid a lot.

• 第3次産業の拡大 - mostly tourism
  • promote traveling over the first industry, encourage tourism and immigration
  • Even within Izu, Nishiizu is not one of the most popular places
  • shrinking tourism industry due to COVID
  • relying on nature & seaside scenery
  • Nishiizu is introduced through TV programs and other media to increase sales of local products to tourists
  • Sometimes there are too many overnight guests in the town during Golden Week that there is a shortage of staff at lodging facilities. The mayor is considering revitalizing underground akiya for tourism such as by turning it into a free rest facility.

An anime called 『ゆるキャン△』about a group of high school girls camping in different places around Japan, including Izu

• Religion: Shrine activities, which once had the function of integrating the community, are shrinking
• Other issues of concern: Local people also talk a lot about waste reduction and tsunami evacuation. Reducing, reusing, and proper recycling are the basic ways to contribute. Besides, the recent controversy over Japan’s nuclear waste seems to have stirred anxieties among fishing groups. If there are interested AkiyaDAO residents, we may discuss this further with locals and brainstorm ideas to help.

Info from people that we encountered

(most of the information was gathered by Shuu and me together, with him doing most of the talking and translating. Thank you @飞戈 ):

• 8.9 東伊豆micro development program staff
  • it would be nice if new residents could participate in the local economy by working at local businesses such as hotels and restaurants
  • Gentrification is not yet a problem
  • Sometimes new residents are not interested in following local rules (festivals, fire safety volunteering, trash, etc.). He needs to be the bridge and personally communicate with each person. It’s a slow process