Kayuu Iimura (participant)
*Group name
Kita Elementary School Eco Club, Earth Defense Force
*Country/Region
Takasaki City, Gunma Prefecture, Japan
*Type of Group
School
*Number of total members of your group/project
30 persons
*Number of regular participants in activities
30 persons
*Characteristic of members
Students between 3rd and 6th grade work together in activities. We learn about the natural environment through research of rivers, breeding Callicarpa Japonica, scouting out in nature, and energy conservation efforts.
*Theme(s) of your group/project
*Energy Issues
*Missions and activities of your group/project
All members worked in unison to reduce the emission of CO2 through energy conservation activities.
*Characteristics of the group/project activities
In an effort to find out how we can reduce the emission of CO2 through energy conservation activities, we checked the electricity and water usage as well as the amount of waste over a 2 week period. We led our lives as usual during the first week, and kept energy conservation on our minds during the second.
*Most importnat way of thinking of your group/project for environment
Upon calculating the numbers collected by members, we found out that we were able to reduce the emission of CO2 by 5.1 percent. It became clear to us that CO2 emission could be brought down if everyone kept it in their minds at all times. We also realized that the percentage we achieved was very close to the 6 percent promised at Kyoto Protocol. We vowed to each other to do our best towards preventing global warming.
*What kind of group/project do you want to exchange for imformation and experience with?
Exchange ideas with groups working locally on distinctive environmental activities.
*Short message for exchange with other group/project
There is an enormous 400 year-old Japanese Hackberry in our school. Since the Japanese national butterfly, Callicarpa Japonicas, eat Enokidake Mushrooms growing off this tree, we have been breeding Callicarpa Japonicas at our school. Our nature conservation activities include bringing up and observing the larvae, helping them through adult eclosion, and doing research on larvae that hibernate over winter.
*Impression of Children's World Summit for the Environment 2005 Aichi
Since it was my first experience to take part in a world convention like this one, I was completely overwhelmed by the great number of people there as well as their various nationalities. At first I was a little flustered because of my limited English, but with the help of my father, who translated for me, I eventually learned to communicate through body language and gestures. Through workshops and meetings, I learned a lot more about environmental issues around the globe and also made many friends who share the same cause. Currently I am preparing to participate in the summit to be held in Malaysia.
*Others
The teacher of my Eco Club recommended me to participate in the Summit since my father could speak English. I immediately decided to participate when my mother, who had known how the Children's World Summit on the Environment had started because of Severn Suzuki's speech at the summit in Rio, highly recommended me to take part in it. I cannot thank my teacher enough for blessing me with the chance to participate in such a splendid convention which I could have only dreamed of being at. After the Summit, my awareness towards the environment has been heightened and I am thinking about my future a lot more seriously. My efforts at the Eco Club became more focused and our wall newspaper reporting our recent activities was selected by our prefecture to be entered at the national convention. I feel like this convention has been a beacon showing me my future path.
*Contact person
Iimura Asaki
*Contact Address
S-803, 187-1 Suehiro-cho, Takasaki-city, Gunma 370-0065 Japan
imr@tka.att.ne.jp
