Season 5

1. Waste Fabric, New Material

2025-01-31 · 15m

Substandard fabric from Himei Akira's dye works is now being made into a new composite material. With its wood-grain pattern, it's useful in everything from furniture to small accessories.

2. The Recycle Bar

2025-02-21 · 15m

Kojima Sachiyo runs a different sort of bar. Customers make small items out of scrap material. Finding new appreciation for things once seen as disposable, all while enjoying a drink with friends.

3. The Time Maker

2025-03-14 · 15m

Clockmaker Takumi Ada spends his days repairing clocks damaged in a massive earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula in 2024. He also helps the clocks' owners recover some of the time they've lost.

4. Zero Waste Family

2025-03-21 · 15m

Nearly everything the Sakamoto family eats they produce themselves, collecting local food waste to feed their pigs, and using solar power. A zero waste life cycle that also makes for a happy family.

5. Pottery Island

2025-03-28 · 15m

Potters Matsubara Emi and Matsushita Ryohei use waste from their island home, bean pods, seashells, and even animal bones, in their work. A deep respect for the island helps them convey its beauty.

6. Sea Ice Glass

2025-04-27 · 15m

Abashiri is known for drift ice. Local Glass artisan Gunji Noboru uses recycled fluorescent bulbs to make eco-friendly art inspired by the natural environment while striving to reduce his energy use.

7. Milk Carton Magic

2025-05-18 · 15m

Taoda Ayane does amazing things with milk cartons, transforming them into accessories, bags, and even clothing. The cartons are also strong and water-resistant, so her creations are practical, too.

8. No Stone Wasted

2025-05-25 · 15m

Inagaki Ryota, who runs a stone carving business, and his partner, stone artisan Inoue Koji, use stone castoffs to make beautiful tableware that also helps keep food at the optimal temperature.

9. Essence of the Forest

2025-06-22 · 15m

Branches from trees culled to thin the forest, once of no value, are the ideal material for Ishibashi Tetsushi. Extracting the essential oils, he transforms them into forest fragrances and hand soaps.

10. Sails Unfurled Again

2025-06-29 · 15m

If even slightly damaged, yacht sails can no longer be used. Inspired by her love of the sport, former pro yacht racer Tagami Amiko takes such sails and makes them into bags and other products.

11. Pineapple Power

2025-08-31 · 15m

Uda Etsuko turns fiber from hard-to-process waste pineapple leaves into yarn and fabric for textiles in Okinawa. Expanding her operation to Indonesia, she hopes to take this untapped resource global.

12. Bamboo Lights the Way

2025-09-28 · 15m

Forester Omura Daisuke transforms harmful overgrown bamboo in the mountains of Japan into distinctive lights. Instead of seeing it as a nuisance he seeks ways for bamboo and humans to coexist.