Volunteer team organizing meetings tomorrow

Faced with too many ideas for things to do on behalf of Jingu Gaien and not enough time to do them, I’m taking a hint from Ukraine, where President Zelensky’s effective motivation of the Ukrainian people to act independently has been a key factor in the country’s resistance against the Russian invasion. So, tomorrow I am organizing two meetings for those who are interested in pitching in on efforts to oppose the project. We will form self-managing teams that will pursue specific topic areas.

If you read and speak Japanese very fluently and would like to get involved on a team with Japanese, I will be having a Zoom meeting for organizing purposes tomorrow (Saturday, November 5) at 11 am Japan time. Registration is here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAsf-CurTsqGtJiq7pCdwaicOdYC-HpTXHn

We will be forming a team for each of the following topics:

• Outreach to baseball fans
• Outreach to rugby fans
• Outreach to users of the golf practice area
• Outreach to users of the softball fields
• Outreach to historical preservation organizations
• Outreach to environmental preservation organizations
• Handing out fliers and gathering petition signatures at Jingu Gaien
• Small demonstrations (at Jingu Gaien, in front of the developers’ headquarters, at Tokyo Metropolitan Government building, etc.)
• Lawsuits
• Jingu Gaien themed art exhibit
• Competition to design alternatives for the Jingu Gaien redevelopment

For those who do not speak Japanese fluently and/or would prefer to work in English and/or want to focus specifically on activities that non-Japanese can do most effectively, I am scheduling another meeting tomorrow, at 9:30 am Japan time. This is for English speakers, to brainstorm what we can do, either by mobilizing opinion leaders globally or leveraging our special roles in Japanese society, and then form teams to work on the ideas. You can sign up for that meeting here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcrdOytqDIuGtdv9fS3HzP7wa3DT4AxI4be 

Hope you will be willing to join in on our efforts!

Greenpeace report on cooling effect of Jingu Gaien's trees

On Wednesday, Greenpeace Japan had a press conference to announce results of its study documenting the cooling effect of the trees in Jingu Gaien. Detailed reporting on the press conference from the Huffington Post here.

Using satellite date and infrared cameras on the ground, Greenpeace showed that Jingu Gaien is 2-4 degrees C cooler than surrounding built up areas, and that areas shaded by the trees were 18 degrees cooler than unshaded asphalt nearby. 

The developer says they plan to plant replacement trees. Takehiko Mikami, Professor Emeritus of Climatology at Tokyo Metropolitan University cast doubts on the efficacy of that plan, saying at the press conference: "Young trees are not effective in blocking solar radiation or transpiration. It is sophistry to say you can replant the same number of trees that were chopped down and then everything will be OK."

Meanwhile, I also participated in the press conference and said: "This detailed study by Greenpeace proves that the trees in Jingu Gaien make a large contribution to the reduction of Tokyo's heat island effect. If the trees protect us, we must protect them."

Tokyo Shimbun also covered the Greenpeace press conference. A lot of accounts with lots of followers have been tweeting their article, including one Diet member.

You can read Greenpeace's press release here, and in it there is a link to their full report.