The over 400-year-old historical sustainability story of Marugame Uchiwa - The 31 New Meisters of Marugame Uchiwa Weaving History.

【Good Practice Story (GPS) submitted to GD2023】

Marugame Uchiwa, which has taken root in Marugame Castle Town for more than 400 years, is filled with a lot of local love, including a "world-class history" that has built up the region, a uniquely Japanese "craftsmanship" through using a single piece of bamboo, and the desires of the craftspeople and local people. Marugame Uchiwa is a traditional industry in Marugame City, which boasts the top production volume in Japan, but faces various problems such as the shrinking of the industry and the lack of successors.

In such circumstances, the Successor Training Courses and the Marugame Uchiwa New Meister System introduced by the local government and the Kagawa Uchiwa Cooperative Union have produced results in attracting potential successors from Japan and abroad. The systems have produced results that have led to the recruitment of potential successors from home and abroad.
In addition, projects to increase people-to-people exchanges, such as education for younger generations using Marugame Uchiwa, with tourism as a starting point, and efforts to protect the environment by produce environmentally friendly Uchiwa were also highly evaluated.

The 31 New Meisters of Marugame Uchiwa, artisans who played a leading role in the project, and the succession activities of the local community proved that 'tourists' and 'successors and immigrants' are inextricably linked and weaving history, which led to this global recognition.
In the future, we will engage in wide-area cooperation involving diverse stakeholders to further improve the brand power of the Marugame Uchiwa and raise awareness of the need to create a sustainable tourism region through the creation of educational programmes, and develop activities to weave the region's future together as a unified community.

Marugame Uchiwa is a fascinating item, and visitors can experience the thoughts of the craftsmen who make them and one of the traditions that have produced Japan's 'coolness' through the making of Uchiwa, thereby preserving the history for future generations.
Please play your part in passing on the tradition.
We will be creating such a programme from now on.