What Makes Japan Special
Case Study 3: Satoyama—A0 Group Investing in Nature-Positive Community Wealth Building
The Story of A0 The A0 Group, a rural, nature-positive business, started its work in 2009 with a simple question: “How can communities rich in nature also help people thrive?” As an ecology student at Kyoto University Graduate School, A0 CEO Daisuke Maki traveled through Japan’s rural, aging communities. He watched as communities lost population and busi- nesses and people were left struggling. He then worked as the Director of the Amita Institute for Sustainable Economies, a private think tank focused on sustainability, before assuming his current role. In his youth, Maki spent his summers in Toyama at his grandparents’ homes. He recalls the joy of playing in the forests, contrasting it with the rapid development near his home in Kyoto. “As a child, I saw the surrounding areas being developed, with nature disappearing,” he reflects. 2 The tension between progress and preservation, between urbanization and the wild landscapes of his youth, became a driving force behind his work. Satoyama Maki and his team believe in satoyama —the tradition of working at the intersection of nature and humans. As a business, A0 is designed around this concept. Maki explains, “If we were to put our current values into words, ‘nurturing together with nature’ has two meanings. First is that humans and nature grow together while bringing out the best in each other. Second, people nurturing each other, along with nature. I believe that nurturing life itself is at an even higher level above these.” 3
It’s not just about having nature and receiving from it...It’s also about humans actively engaging with nature to help it grow. — Daisuke Maki, CEO A0 Group 1
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Ten Years in the Making
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