“Web3.0 x Fukushima” A new attempt in Fukushima Prefecture, a prefecture rich in nature, history, and tradition

Located in the southern part of the Tohoku region, Fukushima Prefecture is the third largest in Japan after Hokkaido and Iwate Prefecture in terms of land area. It is one of Japan's leading prefectures, blessed with history, culture, and nature, including the Byakkotai during the Boshin War and the Spa Resort Hawaiians, the setting for the movie "Hula Girls" in recent years.

Since 2022, local governments and regions have been using Web 3.0 and NFT technologies to promote regional revitalization and town development in various forms, and Fukushima Prefecture is also promoting Web 3.0 projects that make use of the prefecture's charms and characteristics.

Among these, the "Kokudaka Project" being developed by Nishiaizu Town in Fukushima Prefecture is particularly unique.

The Kokudaka Project is a project in Nishiaizu town, where rice cultivation is the town's core business, that uses Web 3.0 technology to find ways to give rice important value like it did in Japan of the past. It aims to stabilize agricultural management in Nishiaizu town, raise awareness of Nishiaizu rice, increase the number of people with connections and visitors, and expand sales channels for Nishiaizu rice.

For more details, please refer to the interviews with those involved in this section, but it is a unique attempt with ideas and a sense of purpose that you can only expect from a famous rice-producing region.

Converting renewable energy usage into NFT

Fukushima Prefecture is known for its sake, having won the most gold medals in Japan nine times in a row since 2013.

In Fukushima, KDDI group company ENERES Co., Ltd. is working with Fukushima Prefecture's Yamatogawa Sake Brewery LLC to promote a Web 3.0 project related to sake.

This is a demonstration project that began in August 2022 to issue NFTs based on renewable energy data used in the sake production process and verify effective use methods. Digital art is created by combining the renewable energy use data recorded using ENERES' blockchain platform with image data from Yamatogawa Sake Brewery and converting it into NFTs.

This is a unique project in which the finished digital art changes depending on information such as "where" the renewable energy was generated, "when" and "how much" it was used, and by combining it with the NFT mechanism, "one-of-a-kind digital art that proves the use of renewable energy" will be issued.

According to the press release, this demonstration will not only issue "renewable energy digital art," but will also verify how it can be used, such as "how much value it can be gained in the NFT trading market" and "whether it can be used as added value for customers who purchase sake."

In addition, "carbon footprinting (CFP)," one of the initiatives aimed at realizing a carbon-free society, has issues such as the difficulty of making it visible and appealing to consumers, but ENERES believes that by turning renewable energy usage records into NFTs and incorporating them into individual products and services in the future, it will be able to solve these CFP issues.

Furthermore, by realizing the "ownership of environmental contribution value," the company hopes to change consumers' awareness of environmental contribution value and use this as an opportunity to develop new businesses based on this.

Sponsored NFT of "Bread Workshop Hidamari"

In May 2022, the Fukushima Prefecture-based bakery Hidamari Bakery in Kagamiishi Town launched a sponsored NFT for a product featuring the bakery's mascot "Kobo", created by comedian Seki Atsushi, on the NFT marketplace HEXA, which is relatively early for a Web 3.0 project in the prefecture.

A sponsored NFT is something that allows you to declare and prove that you are a sponsor.

The sponsored NFT for Hidamari Bakery may rise in value if the demand for purchasing sponsorship slots increases due to the popularity of Hidamari Bakery.

After the NFT is issued, the QR code on the "NFT Sponsor Introduction Flyer" installed in the bakery's store will be linked to the sponsored NFT page, making it possible to check the owner in real time and buy and sell sponsored NFTs.

Sponsored NFTs can be resold at any time, and up to 10% of the resale amount will be returned to the issuer as royalties, so reselling = supporting.

Sponsored NFTs are NFTs that bring the idea of ​​Web 3.0, which expands product sales together with consumers and allows both parties to make profits, into reality.

Rakuto Koriyama Dance Fes

In addition to Web 3.0 projects rooted in local specialties and companies like this, Fukushima Prefecture is also actively hosting Web 3.0 projects in the form of festivals and events.

Like the case of Bakery Hidamari, Fukushima Prefecture is already running projects that combine sponsor NFTs with events. Sponsor NFTs that individuals can sponsor were issued for the performance event "Rakuto Koriyama Dance FES" held in Koriyama City, Fukushima Prefecture.

This event started in 2021 and features Yosakoi and other dances.

As with the case of Bakery Hidamari, sponsor NFT holders for Rakuto Koriyama Dance FES will have their names displayed on a page accessible from the QR code in the Rakuto Koriyama Dance FES pamphlet, the sponsor page on the official Rakuto Koriyama Dance FES page, the Lit link on Rakuto Koriyama Official X, YouTube, or a link in the description section of the after-movie, and they can buy and sell at any time from the sponsor NFT page.

Lula NFT Festival in Iizaka

In addition, Lura Co., Ltd., which offers the tourism-focused digital currencies "Lula Coin" and "Lula NFT," held the "Lula NFT Festival in Iizaka" in Iizaka Onsen, Fukushima Prefecture in September 2022.

Lula NFT is a tourism-focused NFT that converts tourist resources such as hot springs, sake breweries, and castles from all over Japan into NFTs. By utilizing the user's location information, it can only be purchased locally, making it an NFT optimized for local areas.

At this event, 17 new NFTs were sold in collaboration with "Onsen Musume," a local revitalization project popular among fans of subcultures such as anime and manga, and nine local businesses including the Iizaka Onsen Tourism Association.

In addition, a campaign was launched for Lura NFT buyers, where if you purchase 10 or more of the sold Lura NFTs, you will be given free participation in an online fan meeting featuring the voice actors of the Onsen Musume characters as guests.

In connection with the event, in March 2024, the "Exciting! Creative Digital Art Festival in YABUKI" was held in Yabuki Town, Fukushima Prefecture, featuring talk sessions on local Web 3.0 and smart cities, as well as creative experiences with digital artists.

According to Futurism Inc., which organized the event, the purpose was to explore the possibility of forming a locally-originated autonomous, decentralized, and mutual aid society through talk sessions on Web 3.0 and smart cities, as well as digital art and participatory project mapping, based on the results of the Digital Garden City State concept.

In this way, in addition to projects related to local specialties, Fukushima Prefecture is actively working on Web 3.0 projects through events and other means.

In addition, since Fukushima Prefecture is originally a land rich in tourist resources surrounded by nature and history, it is expected that more initiatives related to the prefecture's specialties and history will be held in the future.

For example, the Byakkotai, a famous group from Aizu-Wakamatsu, Fukushima Prefecture, may move forward with some kind of project in the form of "Byakkotai x NFT/Web 3.0".

The Byakkotai is known as one of the tragedies of the Boshin War, but there is a possibility that such projects will be developed in Fukushima Prefecture in the future, such as using NFTs to pass on historical documents and materials to future generations, and building a metaverse space to trace the footsteps of the Byakkotai.

In addition, Fukushima Prefecture is home to DASH Village, which was planned for the TV program "The! Iron-Armed! DASH!!," and Spa Resort Hawaiians, the setting for the aforementioned movie "Hula Girls."

It is possible that stages and facilities that have become famous through TV programs and movies will work on Web 3.0 projects in some way.

In addition, Fukushima Prefecture has many famous flower spots such as Miharu Takizakura and Hanamiyama, and you can feel the old Edo culture at Tsuruga Castle and Ouchi-juku.

In addition, the Soma Nomaoi and Aizu-Tajima Gion Festivals, which are important intangible folk cultural properties of the country, continue to pass down old traditions. Fukushima Prefecture, which has a wealth of tourism resources that seem to be compatible with Web 3.0 projects, is a prefecture to keep an eye on in the future.

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