Kazuyoshi Fujita, the leader of the Daichi group discussing the plan at the dinner table with his Russian counterparts in Vladivostok during February, 2000

(1) The Primorsky Region of the Russian Far East welcomes Japanese ecotourists

During the 3-day conference held on February 28, 29, and March 1, 2000, the Daichi consumer/producer cooperative groups of Japan have met with the Udege Indigenous Peoples Association of Agzu in Vladivostok to discuss the feasibility of ecotourism in the Samarga valley.

We are very excited about the great accomplishments made possible by the combined effort of all of us, both on the Russian and the Japanese sides. I for one believe we acted prudently and wisely by deciding to start our overall and long-term project by agreeing to implement the ecotourism project this summer.

Yutaka Okamoto, the Executive Director of the VFJ chairing a discussion session on the general strategy and the significance of ecotourism in the Samarga valley

I honestly believe that this is the right way to begin because this way we can first establish direct people-to-people ties between Japan and Russia in general, and, the Japanese consumers in and around Tokyo and the people of Agzu in the Samarga valley in particular.

For, from then on, to the extent our joint ecotourism project will succeed, all other related projects such as the building and operating of a small fish-processing plant in Agzu specializing in custom smoking and canning, first for the ecotourists, and then, in between the tours for other markets as well. And, once the Udege Indigenous Peoples Association becomes competent in handling such a custom processing operation for the visiting ecotourists, they can also naturally extend their activities to include the commercial processing and packaging of many NTFP products for outside market.

This communication system will be able to handle Japanese, English and Russian so that no one has to speak in "foreign languages" to one another

As the first step toward achieving these objectives, the Virtual Foundation will soon arrange to have a computer communication system put in place between Tokyo and the Udege Indigenous Peoples Association in Agzu via its office in Vladivostok. The priority agenda items awaiting action are (1) to discuss and consummate the ecotourism agreement between the Daichi group and the Udege Indigenous Peoples Association, (2) to finalize the actual components of the June ecotour program consisting of about 20 tourists from Japan, and (3) put together a special skill-training program contained in a CD Rom so that the Udege Indigenous Peoples Association can get the basic idea and practical knowledge on how best the ecotour can be planned and executed, and the fish caught by the visitors on sport fishing licenses should be custom-processed into smoked products so that they can take them home to Japan as personal souvenirs. This way, they can tell their friends in Japan about their exciting ecotour experience with a telling evidence of their own.

I am asking the FoE-Japan to participate in this project by paying for the computer hardware while the Virtual Foundation Japan will develop and execute all of the communication software and vocational/skill training course materials necessary for both the Russian and the Japanese participants in this projects. As the first move, I am planning on making a special trip to the salmon-producing areas in northern Japan in mid-March to make preparations for documenting the small-lot fish custom-processing and -packing technology as part of the above-mentioned CD Rom production.

(2) Is an adventurous ecotour sailing across the Sea of Japan a future possibility?

The Vladivostok port remains open during the coldest winter month of February.

The hub of sea transportation along the Primorsky coast lines is Vladivostok, but the future possibilities are being examined for a charter boat to connect northern Japan with the mouth of the Samarga river.
We visited the head office of the TRANSFES, the largest maritime agency in the Russian Far East, to discuss such possibilities. Even though difficult at present, it was agreed that we should continue our effort to explore the ways and means of opening up the Sea of Japan for more mutually profitable surface transportation.

At the TRANSFES headquarters. From left to right: D. Kurdakov, V. Uliskin, O. Svistunov, V. Arkadii, Y. Okamoto and V. Nosov

At present, after arriving from Niigata, Japan, the quickest way one can travel from Vladivostok to Agzu Village is to fly a small single engine jet to Plastun , an hour-and-a-half flight and about half way toward the destination, and then drive one hour to Terney City to take a helicopter to Agzu spending another hour and a half. For ecotourists who wish to spend up to a week out of Japan, this roundabout travelling takes 4 to 5 days away from them just for transportation to and from Agzu. Some improvements are a dire necessity.

(3) Rural people's needs are pretty much the same everywhere up and down the Primorsky Krei

K. Fujita explaining his ecotourism plan to Nanai and Udege leaders during the February, 2000 meeting

We also met with the leaders of other community and ethnic group leaders during our stay. Although it was no surprise to hear the same story of lack of jobs and prolonged underemployment in the rural areas, it still struck us with sadness that there seems to be no reliable future outlook in sight clearly pointing to specific community-based sustainable growth goals.
From after the Perestroika reforms, the successive waves of decentralization and privatization of economic activities in Russia eliminated much of the government subsidies long enjoyed by the indigenous peoples in the Russian Far East during the 1990s. In the meantime, the markets for pelts and furs also collapsed, leaving the local communities like Agzu of the Samarga valley high and dry with no or little market for their traditional products. Besides, given today's community life-style, it is obviously impossible for them to go back to the old way of life of as hunters and fishers.

TINRO experts sat down with us to express their views on the feasibility of a cherry salmon hatchery

Although it is true that Samarga River is still rich in salmon resource, the Russian and Japanese open-sea gillnet commercial fisheries have progressively taken tolls of the wild salmon stocks all along the shores of Japan Sea including those of Primorsky Region.
Thus, we have been asked to provide information on the cost and operating performance data of the Japanese cherry salmon hatcheries so that the weaker runs can be rehabilitated in the Primorsky and Khabarovsk Kreis. We discussed the matter with Dr. Anatoly Semenchenko and his research biologists from TINRO, and came to the conclusion that it would be worthwhile to further examine the feasibility and desirability of cherry salmon hatchery operation in spite of the biological and environmental concerns expressed by some experts.

Udege and Nanai leaders of women's volunteers reported on their activities in children's rehabilitation and rural community education

We agreed to work together, and for now, try to provide whatever information we can gather in Japan that will be of use to the planning of the future community development projects.
Making the use of the proposed Internet/PC two-way communication system, we told them we can provide any and all such information useful to these rural communities in identifying and developing sustainable and environment-friendly local small businesses.

(4) The challenge of the onslaught of market economy and free competition

Fish are often improperly dressed by the outside standards, and so carelessly packed that much of the value is destroyed by deformation and spoilage

The feasibility of small-scale local fishery and medicinal herb processing businesses aimed at the outside market was at the center of the concern of the representatives of the local communities.
From the last year's feasibility study trip, we knew that there was a very serious gap between what is really marketable in Japan and what is commonly accepted as locally processed products not only in rural communities, but also even in the major population centers like Vladivostok. In order to make a dramatic visual presentation of this gap, we visited the open-air fish market one afternoon and took pictures of the fish retail counters, where most of the frozen products displayed are not at all marketable if brought into the open competitive market like that of Japan.

Mr. Fujita discussing the plan at the dinner table with his Russian counterparts in Vladivostok during February, 2000

All this can be improved, however, if the people who catch, process, transport, store, and market the fish are made aware of what is needed and how the changes can be made. As a result, we became more than ever aware of the acute need to provide information on the fish-handling and -processing technology that must be adopted before the local communities in the Primorsky Krei can ever compete effectively in the international market including the Japanese fish market.

We will place our top priority on the establishment of the Internet/PC communication system between Japan and the communities of the Primorsky Krei so that we can begin providing the vitally needed technical and management information needed if the Russian rural communities are to succeed in developing their own small businesses making the sustainable use of their local resources.

Those who are interested in this communication system can obtain further information by e-mailing your message to yokamoto@sbpark.com