- Edahiro:
- When I talk about Half Farmer, Half X in front of a crowd, especially for corporations or people in industry, I also often get questions like, "I understand what you mean, but if everybody quit working hard in corporations or stopped buying stuff, wouldn't the Japanese economy come to a halt?" How do you reply to questions like that?
- Shiomi:
- As you say, there are many people who still hold onto old views. Still, it is our last chance right now to drastically change things, such as the way farming really should be. I want to keep improving the design of the concept so that it will be easier to accept for as many people as possible.
- I also hope that more people living the Half Farmer, Half X lifestyle will become the next wave of farmers. The number of people who have experienced rice cropping is still very low, so I want to increase that number even by a little.
- The percentage of the Japanese population willing to consider agricultural issues is very important, and yet very low, and therefore it would be good to start through the Half Farmer, Half X lifestyle. By mixing farming and X in a positive way, new ideas arise too.
- For example, a Half Farming, Half Art Exhibition was held in East Hiroshima in 2011 and there was a Half Farming, Half Crafts Exhibition in Ibaragi as well. If we combine farmers and artists, we can probably do something like the "Daichi no Geijutsu-sai" (a festival of the arts and the land) in Niigata. There are infinite possibilities here, and maybe this could even have a new economic impact.
Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale
left : Some rights reserved by tata_aka_T / right : Some rights reserved by Tomomi Sasaki
- Edahiro:
- When you look at the entire population of Japan, how many people do you think live the Half Farmer, Half X lifestyle or actively support the concept?
- Shiomi:
- About 3 percent or so, I think. The concept is spreading through newspapers and radio shows, but I think there are still very few people who live the Half Farmer, Half X lifestyle.
- This 3 percent is probably close to the percentage of the population who cares about food and agriculture or those who seriously think about nuclear energy. The majority is still heading in a different direction.
- Edahiro:
- About 3 percent. But there also seems to be many people who accept the concept of Half Farmer, Half X when they hear about it for the first time.
"Lifestyle of Half Farmer and Half X" (Japanese edition) by Naoki Shiomi, 2008 (Sony Magazines Inc.)
- Shiomi:
-
Yes. I put out my book eight years ago, but most people just haven't heard about the concept yet. There are so many things that have not been communicated to the people, like nuclear energy issues. We can't give up after trying ten times. We have to try and communicate it for the eleventh time or the millionth time, and to do so we have to come up with different and effective means of expression, like bringing in visual elements and so forth. We too need to change our old ways.
- Edahiro:
- Like you said earlier, I think that the concept is what is important and although there are probably things that need to be communicated by you, the concept itself will also spread on its own.
- Shiomi:
- Thank you very much. I feel that I don’t "own" the Half Farmer, Half X idea and will always say that it is open source, an open concept. Right now I feel that more and more people are talking about it.
- Edahiro:
- You said that the concept of Half Farmer /Half X is very simple and anything is possible, but for people who come from very rigid societies where things must be a certain way, the freedom this concept suggests must be very unique. Is this intentional from your past experiences?
- Shiomi:
- This is my tactic to eliminate as many excuses as possible. Counting myself as well, we all make excuses for not doing something. So I say, "Could you do it if it were this easy?" and then let people make their own choices after that.
- The equation of Half Farmer, Half X must be created and completed by yourself. Kenji Miyazawa said something like "incompleteness is complete." Likewise, the equation Half Farmer, Half X is to be completed by the person in the equation, so you can create your own original concept.
- Edahiro:
- My last question. What would you like to do next?
- Shiomi:
- I want to spread the Half Farmer, Half X concept to the English-speaking world, which is about 1.7 billion in population. I also want to somehow spread the concept to India, France, and other countries in Northern Europe, and to Chinese-speaking regions.
- I've turned 46, so I must do something appropriate for my age. I'd like to continue small-scale farming, to be diligent and keep working up a sweat in the field. While cherishing that work, I'd like to be involved in societal activities.
- Edahiro:
- What do you envision, after spreading the Half Farmer, Half X concept to the world?
- Shiomi:
- I would have to say a self-sustainable world where every individual shines. I hope for a world where seniors and anybody walking on the streets will be able to shine their light.
- Edahiro:
- I feel that Japan and the world are at an intersection point, and we must all work on slowing down the pace of our societies. If the concept of Half Farmer, Half X spreads, the pace will slow down for sure. This is another reason I want it to spread, and I think it would be good to talk about how we could create more global networks as well.
- This was very fun. Thank you so much.
Naoki Shiomi
Representative, Half Farmer, Half X Institute
Born in Ayabe, Kyoto in 1965. After working for Felissimo, established Half Farmer, Half X Research Center in 2000. Began spreading the concept of Half Farmer, Half X (X=True Calling) as a lifestyle concept for the twenty-first century in 1995. Also, works on the Ayabe Satoyama Interaction College project as a staff member at NPO Satoyama Net, Ayabe. Publications include Ayabe-hatsu Han-nou Han X na Jinsei no Arukikata 88 (From Ayabe, 88 Ways to Walk through Life as Half Farmer, Half X), Han-nou Han X no Tane o Maku, (Planting the Seeds of Half Farmer, Half X) and more. First published book, Han-nou Han-X To Iu Ikikata (The Half Farmer, Half X Lifestyle) has been translated into Chinese and published in Taiwan (currently in its eighth printing) and spreading in China as well.
