Despite COVID-19, Hahajima is implementing "Hahajima Bukatsudo," a space to talk freely about Hahajima's future, by connecting people on- and off-island virtually
Hahajima is a small island with a population of about 450 people. Under the Hahajima's brand concept of "a motherly island where people can live as they like," the island is implementing "Hahajima Bukatsudo" (lit., "Hahajima Club Activity Hall") and working to raise the level of community involvement.
The Hahajima Bukatsudo is a "space" where people can think about Hahajima's past, present, and future, learn about Hahajima's strengths and challenges, and freely engage in dialogue in order to work towards solutions. Originally, Hahajima's meeting members had planned to invite relevant individuals to the island in May to hold the Bukatsudo, but the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, the Bukatsudo is being held online every month.
One of the initiatives that emerged as a result of the Bukatsudo was "Hahajima Play." This idea came from a sense of crisis over the disappearance of Hahajima-like play activities and the desire to pass on the joy of catching anadako (Octopus oliveri), sentiments shared by the shimakko--people born and raised on the island--at the Bukatsudo. Thus, an outing was arranged to give the children of the island an opportunity to experience play activities typical of Hahajima.
In August, while paying close attention to the safety of the participants, members conducted a trial octopus-catching experience.
This was the first time for most of the children to take part in octopus-catching, but having been raised on the island, they were strong swimmers. Even though the octopus were less plentiful at this time of year, everyone caught an octopus. The adults who were watching over the activity were pleased: "Shimakko are amazing. The future of the island is in good hands."
A round-table discussion was also held in September to share the recent situation in the Izu and Ogasawara Islands. That day, 14 participants from all 11 islands gathered to exchange opinions on topics such as "the best island episode from this year" and "what is your island planning for the future?"
Participants' impressions of this discussion included, "I was reminded that each island is similar to each other and that we all have points in common," and "Connecting with friends is important. I would like to increase my circle of friends by connecting with people outside of my island online."
Hahajima will continue to hold the Bukatsudo and will work toward the publication of a "Hahajima Bukatsudo Newspaper," with the aim of publicizing the event to the island's residents and reminding readers of the island's charms.
