Litter-free Japan: A kind of magic?

I’m recently back from a second trip to Japan. They say travel broadens the mind, and Japan really does open your eyes to a completely different culture. The country and people surprised me, and again I found myself thinking hard about my own culture and community back home. Here are a few reflections that I hope you will enjoy.  

There is a kind of magic that takes place in Japan that I find completely awe-inspiring. Public spaces are so clean, even in big cities like Osaka, Tokyo, not to mention the small towns, villages, highways and byways I encountered as I walked and cycled around the country. Using the public transport system of trains and buses, everywhere I went, everything I saw was so clean and litter-free. 

With transport infrastructure, everything worked, from trains both fast and slow, where average delays are measured in seconds, to buses and ferries, again fast or slow, they all ran on time. I travelled a lot but because everything works and connects it really wasn’t stressful to get around. Everywhere I travelled people stopped me to ask where I was from, once Scotland was mentioned people smiled, mentioning malt whisky naturally and Thomas Glover, aka the Scottish Samurai who is legendary in Japan for releasing them from the feudal system. Not only did people wish to practice their English, they gave me sweets , fruit and snacks, all beautifully presented with a smile. I did a long-distance cycle and the guys maintaining the cycle path and pot holes tossed mandarin fruits straight from the trees, into the cycle basket, shouting Kon’nichiwa!

Obviously, all this infrastructure is impressive and costs money, representing years of investment, but what I wish to focus on here is something that costs (next to) nothing, keeping places clean. Around the world, we are used to seeing litter and overflowing litter bins. You might just think it’s a cultural thing, which in part it is – Japanese people are as a whole respectful and well-mannered. There are almost no litter bins anywhere, there are recycling bins beside all vending machines. It is noteworthy that Japan is a world leader in recycling bottles, and municipalities are involved in creating a circular economy. Simple measures like the involvement of bottle manufacturers ensure consistent use of PET bottles, all of them clear so that recycling and reuse are easy. The key step is that all (almost) plastic bottles are placed in recycling containers– that needs public cooperation and the residual waste is collected by councils. I am aware however of the high levels of waste incineration in Japan, the controversies surrounding this approach and the need to move to prevent waste in the first instance. Also, I am not naïve about the amount of work that is needed to move to become a circular economy, however many countries are taking steps on that path.

There is, however, a much more sinister reason for no litter bins; in 1995, there was a deadly nerve gas terrorist attack in Tokyo using litter bins; 13 people died, and 6000 were injured. The national government then took the unprecedented step of removal of all litter bins and some 30 years on people take their litter home. It has become a well-established practice, one that is inspiring, adopted by everyone and universally repeated. I used a ferry service, run by the local authority, and watched as everyone picked up their litter and bagged it up to take home. How amazing is that?

I do not think this litter problem is all about money, I do think there is a cultural dimension. Why do we in Scotland and the UK think it is OK to litter? If a bin is full why do we not take our litter home? I don’t litter, my family do not litter, so who does, and why? I walk a lot in towns and the hills, I am incredibly saddened to see litter close to home and in remote glens and lochs. Precious council funding is used to clean up after people. Perhaps we could try taking the bins away, I mused as I travelled around, wondering if anywhere is brave enough to pilot this approach. I asked people I met along the way, and they suggest it starts in school. Children in Japan as young as six know how to clean their own classrooms at the end of the day, building good habits from a very young age.

I was also reminded that things can change. It is 10 years since Scotland bought in a plastic bag charge, following Wales’ lead then followed by England. It was part of my policy while working with ministers in Scottish Government. I cannot tell you how resistant people were to this really simple measure, but that intervention, a small charge, has now made bringing your own bag second nature and a huge number of plastic bags have been taken out of the waste system in Scotland alone. LGIU has covered the impact of small nudges, such as the 5p bag charge to influence behaviour change.

My final destination was Kyoto, ancient capital and a simply beautiful city of hundreds of temples and shrines. There I landed with a bump: Whilst still relatively clean, rather ugly new litter bins were to be found next to parks and temples. After some research I found that Kyoto post-Covid has been subject to an explosion of tourists. These tourists bring with them different habits, and those habits sadly include litter and littering. Does this sound familiar? Signs in streets, on litter bins and in public toilets now say please take your litter home, signs stating your tourist tax pays for cleaning and other ugly signs of lack of respect. You can read more about tourist tax here. Apparently, international tourists are also not respecting cultural sites, refusing to remove shoes in temples, creating litter and harassing young girls in rented kimonos, mistaking them for geishas.  

I knowledge that Japan is far from perfect, while I was there a general election took place and issues discussed included cost of living, climate change and poverty, truly universal issues. Representation of women in politics remains low. However, I am left with huge admiration for the way public spaces are so respected and kept clean.

Finally, I think in my heart rather than my head that some of the respectful nature of Japanese people comes down to religion, Shinto. There is a respect for everyone and everything that pervades Japanese life and some suggest it stems from Shinto, a religion that originated in Japan over 2,000 years ago and is considered Japan’s main, indigenous religion. The name Shinto translates to “way of the spirits or deities”, and its core beliefs revolve around the relationship between humans, the land, and the seasons. Shinto is centered on the worship of kami, or nature spirits, which are believed to inhabit the natural world. This respect for the environment is at the core of Japanese life and perhaps goes some way to explaining the clean, welcoming places and people.

For more lessons from Japan, you can read our research on how local government in Japan is funded here.