クラウドファンディングの支援者の皆様、こんにちは！先日の長崎に続いて、秋田でも寄贈がおこなわれました。2/14に男鹿市、2/16に五城目町の教育委員会へ、地域コーディネーターの丑田さんや、しょっつる生産者の諸井さんが直接お渡しに行ってくれました。以降、八峰町への寄贈も予定しています。また、昨日2/17には、男鹿市の船川第一小にて、栄養教諭の方のご協力のもと、給食の時間にしょっつるが提供される際に、絵本の読み聞かせと諸井さんによるしょっつるのお話がおこなわれました。こうして絵本が学校現場でも活用されていくことを、今後も取り組んでいきたいと思います！さて、クラウドファンディング終了まで残り５日。90%も目前です。終了まで、たくさんの活動報告もしてまいります！皆様も、シェアをどうぞよろしくお願いします。引き続きの応援、よろしくお願いします。

クラウドファンディングを支援してくださっている皆さん、いつも応援ありがとうございます！残すところあと８日、そして神戸でのお披露目イベントまでも残り１１日となり、絵本も刷り上がってきました！昨日2月14日、刷り上がりたての絵本を持って、長崎チームが雲仙市長へ絵本を寄贈しにいく様子が、NHKで取り上げられました。その時の様子をおさめた動画が、こちらのリンクからご覧いただけます。ぜひご覧ください！https://www3.nhk.or.jp/lnews/nagasaki/20220214/5030014099.htmlこの本を手に取った子どもたちが、エタリについてもっと身近に感じたり、誇りに思ったりしてくれることを願っています。残すところ約１週間で８０％のところまできました。支援者も214名。本当に感謝、感謝です。最後まで、走り切りたいと思います！引き続き応援よろしくお願いします！

Dear friends overseas, We would like to inform you that Slow Food Nippon has been doing a crowdfunding campaign to create 4 Ark of Taste picture books. The creation of picture books is confirmed and it is almost complete, and we are now doing this campaign to have more people get to know about this project, with the wish to make these picture books as a series and keep creating new ones. Currently we have about 10 days left for this crowdfunding with 70% raised. We’d like to reach the goal and we’d appreciate your support!https://camp-fire.jp/projects/view/537496This is the campaign page, you could use browser translator that would be available in Chrome, but you can also read the whole story in English from this link.This campaign is run on a Japanese platform called CAMPFIRE, and it is all in Japanese that it is difficult for you to do a thing without any instruction. So here we are.We would appreciate so, so, so much if you spare your precious time to go through these steps to support our project. Thank you!!1, Create your CAMPFIRE accountOn our campaign page, please click the big blue button on top right.Then you will see a screen like this.Campfire requires you to be a member to be able to support us, so please register here (you will not be charged for registering).If you have a Twitter, Facebook, Line, or Apple account, you can register right away by selecting the respective icon. You can skip to the step 2.If you don't have any of those, click on the long thin box below the icon to go to the screen where you can enter your email address.If you choose to create your account with your email address, fill in your address and click the green button below.You should have received an email from CAMPFIRE. Click on the green square to validate your email address.You should then see a screen like this, from the top is your user name (handle), password, and password confirmation.Please enter your desired name, password, and the same password you entered in the second row, and your membership registration will be completed.2. Support the campaignNow please come back to our campaign page again.https://camp-fire.jp/projects/view/537496On the right side of the page, you should see the list of rewards. Two options from the top are the ones available overseas. Others involve physical mailing which can only be sent to a Japanese address.The 1000 JPY (roughly $10) course is a Thank you letter, and the 2000 JPY (roughly $20) course is a download-only course that includes wallpaper and a thank-you letter.Please click the green button on your chosen reward.3. Payment After you choose the reward, you will see a screen like this.On top, you can choose the quantity. In the middle, you can decide to add on the amount for additional support, which will be very appreciated.After that, if you scroll down, you can choose how to pay. From overseas, credit cards are supported. (Paypal also may be supported in certain countries)Please enter your credit card information.4. Address & MessageYou are asked to fill in your mailing address by default. But it must be a Japanese address. So you can just fill in our address and phone number here.In the field on top, please enter your actual name.In the second field from the top, please enter "2892103", then next two fields will be autofilled.In the fifth field from the top, please enter "74"And the last field is phone number. Please enter "08040032972"You are almost done!Finally, please enter your message for us.You can choose not to edit this field too.Once you complete all, please click the green button at the bottom.You will see a confirmation screen. It is done!Thank you so much if you did this for us. Your support is very much appreciated. We hope to meet you in person and give a big hug (and also actual picture books) in the near future!

※海外の方向けのプロジェクトページ英訳です※Introduction - About usThank you for taking your time to read this campaign. My name is Megumi Watanabe, and I am the president of Slow Food Nippon.I'm sure many of you have heard the term "Slow Food" before. It is the name of a grassroots movement that was born in Italy in 1989, with the motto "Delicious, clean, and just food for all people" Nowadays, this movement has spread to more than 160 countries around the world, including Japan, established in 2016, and since engaged in a variety of activities and branching out to several regions.About the "Ark of Taste" ProjectJust as it happens in nature with wildlife, traditional foodstuffs are also in danger of disappearing. That occurrence is the reason for the existence of a project called "Aji no Hakubune" (The Ark of Taste), which since 1996 has been keeping a register of traditional food from around the world that carries history, tradition, and culture. A project that keeps growing and it's continuously being updated.As of the end of November 2021, more than 5,500 foods have been registered worldwide, including traditional and indigenous vegetables, fruits and processed foods, fish, and shellfish caught using traditional fishing methods. Out of them 74 are from Japan.Many of these ingredients are unique to certain regions and have become so rare, that if left unchecked, there would be no one left with the knowledge to prepare them or eat them.The purpose of this project is to keep a registry that allows maintaining a record of the food around the world, so they would not be lost.About this project At present, 74 food items from Japan are registered in the Ark of Taste, and producers from all over the country are protecting them. We have been receiving many voices with a mixture of sadness, impatience, and lamentations, saying, "If we don't do something about it, it may be over in our generation".The reality is that the food culture that has been passed down from generation to generation throughout Japan, along with the local climate and history, is on the verge of dying out.Bonito Preserved in Salt, one of the subjects for picture booksIf we don't do something now, we might lose the taste of our hometowns, the taste that our grandparents carefully preserved, the same flavors we want to eat when we go back to our hometown, and the stores that the community loves.The question is, how can we pass on the "deliciousness" of the region where we were born and raised to our children and grandchildren? How can we convey the thoughts of the producers and nurture the next generation of leaders?That's when the idea of creating picture books was born from the members of Slow Food Nippon, those who are raising children.Reason and purpose for publishing picture booksPublishing a picture book is a new challenge for the Ark of Taste project and Slow Food Nippon. This project is not just about registering ingredients to the "Ark of Taste" but going a step forward in an attempt to pass them on to children and the next generation.We will create an original picture books by involving various people in the community, such as producers, people involved in preservation activities, chefs, writers, artists, and mothers and parents raising children.Once the book is completed, we will be able to taste and learn about all the flavors connecting us, our community, and the earth, while reading the book to children and holding food education workshops. I also believe that we can take action together, not only food producers, also integrate more people living in the community, educational institutions, and local governments to protect and pass on the knowledge of food.The picture books are focused on four marine Ark of Taste products of four regions:(1) Akita Hatahata Shottsuru https://www.fondazioneslowfood.com/en/ark-of-taste-slow-food/shottsuru-made-with-hatahata-from-the-gulf-of-akita/(2) Bonito Preserved in Salt https://www.fondazioneslowfood.com/en/ark-of-taste-slow-food/bonito-preserved-in-salt/(3) Salted Etari https://www.fondazioneslowfood.com/en/ark-of-taste-slow-food/salted-etari-anchovies/(3) Fu-nu-lyu https://www.fondazioneslowfood.com/en/ark-of-taste-slow-food/fu-nu-lyu/About the productionThe book counts with the collaboration of artists, illustrators, painters, and other creative people who draw pictures from the area.We asked for people who care about the community and would be involved in the project for years to come, not just for drawing for the book.We, the members of Slow Food Nippon, also went to the sites, talked with the producers and local people, and sometimes held online meetings with the four regions to exchange ideas.Rather than drawing or choosing words based on someone else's instructions, everyone involved captures their thoughts and feelings, and when in doubt, listens to the voices of the community. Little by little, piece by piece, the project moves forward as it takes shape.Everyone involved in the project is aware of the fact that an illustrated book has a life of its own, and many stories to convey. There are four different types of picture books from different parts of the world, each with its own unique story and taste. The creation of picture books does not mean, for example, that the catch of grouper will immediately recover or that the consumption of shottsuru will increase.However, when children in Akita read this book, they can understand the connection between grouper and Akita, about shottsuru and finally, when they see it in the supermarket they will remember everything they learned from the book.  I hope that the children of Okinawa will yearn to be fishermen.In addition, by developing this picture book as a series, we hope to increase the number of opportunities for children to see the ones from other regions, and learn about the diversity and expansion of the world of food. It may not be an easy book to understand or have an immediate effect, but the hope is that its impact will be long-lasting.It is a proud moment for them to see the ingredients from their own region come to life in an illustrated book. I hope that "Picture Book of My Hometown" allows children to develop a sense of love for the people who live in the region and a sense of appreciation for the blessings of nature.The beginning part of "Hatahata, ke"Meeting in OkinawaA scene in the picture book about Salted EtariWe have completed around 90% of the work in the production of the picture book. On February 26 and 27, 2022, Slow Food Nippon and the city of Kobe will co-host the "We Feed the Planet Japan 2022" event.This event was held in 2020, bringing together producers, chefs, and food experts who care about the earth, as well as people who share the Slow Food philosophy. "Good food" is the entry point to bring awareness of issues and a call to take action in our daily lives.For the event that will take place this year, we will have a corner for the Picture Book Project. In this space, we will show a documentary film of the production process, host a party where people can taste the four ingredients used in the book, and plan workshops related to the four regions.How the funds will be usedThis picture book project is funded by the Nippon Foundation.However, the grant alone will not cover all the necessary costs. We would like to ask for your help with printing, binding, editing, and proofreading costs for the production of the picture book through this crowdfunding campaign. In addition, the more support we receive through crowdfunding, the more copies we can make of the first printing, which is called the "first edition. The more copies we print, the more money we will earn from selling the book as a picture book, and the more we will be able to give back to the local community for food conservation and future activities.The difficulty and importance of reaching a large number of peopleSlow Food activities are sometimes misunderstood, seen as "highbrow," "something for people with money and time to spare," or "activities for a limited group of people. However, in essence, it is an activity for all people living on this earth.Slow Food aims to create a society where every meal is tasty, healthy, and environmentally friendly, and where producers are given due recognition, even in a modern world where speed and efficiency are emphasized. We are working to pass on a food culture that everyone can feel comfortable with to the next generation.No matter how big your ideas are, if there are not enough people who know about it, you will not be able to change the system. The picture book that we will produce through this project will be published and sold to fulfill this purpose. Of course, we would like to sell the book through the Slow Food network in each region, as well as in small bookstores. However, to reach a big crowd, we hope that also large bookstores will start to carry our books. We have already been in conversations with bookstores with more than 50 stores around Japan. If any bookstores are interested in this crowdfunding page and willing to sell this book, we would be very happy to hear from them.We also hope that this will be a great leap forward for this project in the future. I hope that our activities will gain the warm understanding and sympathy of many people and become a big wave in the long run.I would like to ask all of you who value the thoughts and feelings of the people in the community to support and share this initiative.

味の箱船絵本プロジェクトを応援してくださっている皆様にもぜひ来ていただきたい、お披露目イベントのお知らせです。絵本のお披露目以外にも、全国各地からスローフードを体現されている生産者や職人の皆さんが集まるマーケットスペースや、さまざまなテーマについて、豪華な話題提供役の顔ぶれの皆さんと、みんなで丸くなって対話する「円卓会議」や、子どもも大人も楽しめる、五感を使ったワークショップや展示など、盛りだくさんの内容です。フライヤーも完成し、各所に配布を始めています。関西近県の方々で、個人での拡散をいただくでも、置いていただけそうなお店や施設を教えていただくなど、フライヤーの拡散にご協力いただける方がいましたら、ぜひご連絡ください！クラウドファンディングのメッセージ機能や、メール（ slowfoodnippon@gmail.com ）にて、ご連絡いただけます。絵本の納品日も近づき、来週には、各地の小学校に寄贈されていく予定です。いよいよ、クラウドファンディングも終盤にさしかかってきました。現在達成率70%目前です。引き続きどうぞよろしくお願いします！