Mottainai
Act now to save our natural world
Mottainai is an old Japanese concept of wasting less, conserving more and using resources modestly.
I first learned of this way of life, which is making a comeback in Japan, when I visited Fukuoka in December, 2007 to attend the Asian City Journalist Conference Part II, which was organised by The Nishinippon Newspaper and UN-Habitat.
I subsequently interviewed Dr Shobhakar Dhakal, executive director, Global Carbon Project, National Institute for Environmental Studies, Japan on his views of Japan as a green role model (which will be discussed another time).
He touched on mottainai, among other issues, and said that it ”lost its relevance over the last five decades but lately people are paying more attention to it having gone through the height of materialism and consumerism”.
The Nishinippon Newspaper foreign editor Takeshi Kokubu later told me that mottainai caught the attention of 2004 Nobel Peace Laureate Wangari Maathai, who is now actively promoting the concept.
I have been thinking about this ancient Japanese philosophy since then and I have been trying to be more conscious of wasting less and living modestly. This is something we should seriously consider, if we want to move towards sustainability — the intended destination of sustainable development.
My plan of action:
* Keep my life simple
* Buy only what I need
* Take public transport
* Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Repair
Bujang Valley
Standing Tall
You will find this tree on the grounds of the Lembah Bujang Archaeology Museum which is located at Bukit Batu Pahat, Mukim Merbok, Sungai Petani, Kedah, Malaysia.
The museum, which exhibits archaeological collections that point to the existence of a vibrant trading centre in Southeast Asia from the 2nd to the 14th Century AD, is set in a magnificent landscape of Malaysia’s rainforest.
Lembah Bujang or Bujang Valley, which was also known as Nusantara (‘seat of all felicities’), was a bustling centre of a prosperous kingdom.
The museum is worth a visit.
