The full text of His Majesty the Emperor's words: The 71st National Tree Planting Festival

The following is the full text of the words of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan on the occasion of the 71st National Arbor Day held in Shimane Prefecture on March 30.

(Read the parent article here)

 

 It is my pleasure to join you in planting trees on the occasion of the 71st National Tree Planting Festival.

 

Due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection, we are now forced to face various restrictions in our daily lives, such as significant limitations in human interaction. Under these circumstances, I would like to express my deepest respect and gratitude again to those who are making great efforts to combat infectious diseases throughout Japan.

 

For the first time in its long history, this year's National Arbor Day will be held online, connecting the site at Sanbe-san in Shimane Prefecture's Ota City with the Akasaka Imperial Palace here in Tokyo. I regret that I will not be able to visit Shimane Prefecture and meet with you in person, but I would like to express my gratitude for the efforts of all those involved in the preparations for the event.

 

In Shimane Prefecture, the National Tree Planting Festival was held fifty years ago in 1971 at Mt. When the 15th National Tree Planting Festival was held at the same site in 1991, I was involved in the pruning of the black pine trees planted by Emperor Showa and Empress Kojun. At that time, I was deeply impressed by the splendid growth of the black pine trees planted at the National Arbor Day 20 years ago, and the beautiful sight of Mt. I heard that the black pine trees are now being used at the site of the National Tree-Planting Festival. I am also happy to hear that today we will be able to harvest the black pine trees planted by Emperor Showa and plant saplings again with you to start a new "green cycle".

 

I am deeply moved when I think about the long years and the hard work of those involved in the creation of the rich forests, from the planting of trees in the Showa era (1926-1989) and the nurturing of trees in the Heisei era (1926-1989) to the harvesting of trees in 2032. Forests have provided mankind with resources such as timber and water, as well as a comfortable environment and soil for nurturing culture. They also play an important role in preserving the global environment by preventing global warming. We believe that it is our important mission to pass on these irreplaceable forests in a healthy state to future generations.

 

I would like to pay my respects to the people who are receiving the awards today, as well as to all the people throughout Japan who are making daily efforts to create forests and greenery in their respective regions. I hope that these activities will continue to grow and be supported by many people in the future.

 

In addition, planting and nurturing saplings again in conjunction with the use of timber has become an important issue now that the forest resources created after the war are reaching the end of their useful life. I hope that the "green cycle" of planting, growing, using, and planting again will be widely realized through the cooperation and collaboration of people from various fields to solve this problem.

 

In closing, I would like to express my hope that the "green cycle" will be passed on from Shimane to the rest of Japan and into the future, in keeping with the theme of this conference, "Connecting People and Forests through Trees.

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