today we have a small update on the state of our charity project for japan. we have been selling our furoshiki and tote bags from the website, and the tote bags are being sold by the lovely people at garrendenny lane, too. we're always making the bags and furoshiki in our studio with our team, so do feel free to order- you would really be doing a great deed!
though the story is no longer in news reports worldwide, there are still people struggling: they have lost their homes that may have housed generations of their families, and their hometowns may be quarantined because of irreparable damage or even radiation problems. in fact over 30,000 people are still living in temporary housing and school halls and gyms. it is not something to overlook- we in the west may not be able to help physically rebuild japan, so we should emotionally support people as much as possible, as life like this can feel isolated and unsettled as there is no real space to call 'home'.
as a surface design company we feel a sense of love and 'home' is so special. of course we want to help these people as much as possible with rebuilding their feeling of safety and belonging in their hearts. so when we watched this program we discovered a group of very dedicated and selfless people in sumita town, an inland town in Iwate prefecture, japan. sumita town is situated nearby to a japanese cedar tree forest, and they use this special wood to create sustainable, long lasting and extremely well made temporary housing for those people left without homes after the earthquake.
the mayor of sumita town announced the project in january of this year, having watched the recent news reports of disasters in various parts of the world. using the town's own budget, not government money, he decided to draw up blueprints for sustainable housing. 'we want to help our neighbors, no matter what', he said, of the decision to build housing even if his area was not hit by the tsunami and earthquake. 'this precious forest was left to us by our ancestors...we must use these valuable trees in a sustainable and respectable way'.
the houses, made of FSC approved cedar wood, are constructed using the 'kesen daiku' method. the 'kesen daiku' way of building is a craft passed down from building the beautiful and centuries old shrines in japan, from the period when modern methods of building were not available.. one house costs around $32,00 to build, which may seem a lot, but is much less than the steel fabricated temporary housing many people live in now. these houses are often cold in winter, and baking hot in summer. unlike this, each wall of sumita's cedar wood houses are fitted with an insulation layer to make sure the houses are warm in the winter and well ventilated in the summer.
LIFE311, a charity affiliated with the More Trees NGO, became involved with the project and now fund the building of these houses through communities outside of sumita town. the town's efforts were recently praised by the composer ryuichi sakamoto, speaking through the LIFE 311 More Trees NGO- he said 'inland towns should not exhaust their budgets to make these houses. we need to help support their efforts'. in may, 98 families moved into the houses in sumita town. the houses are not only eco-friendly and sustainable, but the fact that they are made of wood is something psychologically beneficial, too. 'wood makes [the houses] feel cozy. i feel safe that the tsunami won't reach us [inland], too', a new resident told the reporter. his house was destroyed in his coastal hometown. 'the mountains will protect us. this wood is helping us regain a calm state of mind.'
we really want to promote this feeling of safety through care and traditional craftsmanship. not only is it fitting with our 'slow life' ethos, it is healing and so important towards the full recovery of japan. we will be donating the money we have amassed so far from our charity project to this worthwhile cause. LIFE311 is a really worthwhile cause and we will be giving the money to them from now on.
we hope that we can encourage you to send donations to organizations that will directly receive and be able to use even a small donation immediately and on a much more personal and direct level. we found a blog that has a great list of places to donate to here.
as ever, let us know your opinions by commenting or sending an e-mail to me at kimika@yukarisweeneydesign.com. to get immediate updates and news, 'like' our facebook, follow our twitter and visit our website. we hope to hear from you soon!
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