The term ‘Nature Positive’ has become more common in recent years. It refers to ‘halting and reversing biodiversity loss to put nature on a recovery track’.

To achieve the ’30by30 target’ set out in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), the Ministry of the Environment, Japan (MOEJ) launched a system in 2023 to certify ‘areas where biodiversity is being conserved through the efforts of companies, local governments, NGOs and others’ as ‘Nationally Certified Sustainably Managed Natural Sites’.

Under this system, MOEJ certified 75 new areas in its 4th certification, including 5 areas applied for by ICLEI Member cities, Kyoto City, Kobe City, Saitama City, and Nagoya City.

• Kyoto City: The ‘SUSTAINA KYOTO Biotope‘ recreates the natural environment of Yokooji-numa Pond and Ogura Pond that once existed in the neighboring area, providing a habitat for a variety of insects as well as rare plants such as Prickly Waterlily and Heartleaf False Pickerelweed.
• Kobe City: The ‘Suma Abundant Sea Project‘, a joint initiative of citizens’ groups, fishermen, and the government, aims to create a rich ‘Satoumi’ and conducts environmental education, fishing experiences, and events for citizens. 
• Kobe City: To restore the Hyogo Canal as a ‘Satoumi’, a place rich in biodiversity and well maintained by people, various organizations are cooperating in the ‘Hyogo Canal Nature Restoration Project‘, which involves transplanting eelgrass, conserving clams, and improving the soil.
• Saitama City: Minuma Kenbunkan is an environmental learning facility and nature garden attached to the Omiya Nanbu Sewage Treatment Plant. It is also a place where a healthy ecosystem with diverse flora and fauna, mainly native species, exists and ecosystem services are provided.
• Nagoya City: Hachiryu Ryokuchi, a Satoyama^※1 at Kinjo Gakuin University, is a green space located at the northern end of a hilly area in the eastern part of Nagoya City. Most of the hills are covered with woodland, interspersed with water bodies and wetlands, and are home to a diverse range of flora and fauna. Over the years, dedicated conservation efforts have been undertaken to preserve the environment.   

The areas certified as “Nationally Certified Sustainably Managed Natural Sites”, excluding overlaps with nature parts or other protected areas will be registered in the international databases as OECMs (Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures). In addition, the Act on Promoting Activities to Enhance Regional Biodiversity, which builds on the current ‘Nationally Certified Sustainably Managed Natural Sites’ system, will come into force in April 2025. Under the new system, the scope of certification will be changed from ‘areas’ to ‘activity plan’, and it also allows local governments to apply for multiple activity entities together, which is expected to expand biodiversity conservation throughout the region.

※¹ Satoyama is a semi-natural environment located between cities and forests. It features rice paddies, forests, reservoirs, and irrigation channels, maintained through human activities.