Flower, Bird, Wind, Moon

Published 08/08/2023 in Scholar Travel Stipend

Written by Haesung Jee | 08/08/2023

花鳥風月 (kachou fuugetsu) is a traditional Japanese proverb that translates literally to "flower, bird, wind, moon" and means to experience the beauty of nature. Implicit in the phrase is the idea that you learn more about yourself through your experience of nature. While the meaning of this proverb is a bit nebulous, I was able to understand it during my time in Tokyo this past May.

While I explored Tokyo, it was easy for me to take its green spaces for granted, reaping their benefits without much immediate thought given to the political and economic factors behind their existence. However, upon further reflection, especially in comparison to the comparative lack of green spaces in American urban centers, I realized that the preservation of nature in cities takes a lot of political will and effort. People in Tokyo not only had to value nature, but also needed to implement effective policies to preserve and expand green spaces in an ever-expanding, ever-developing city. 

The devastating 1923 Kanto earthquake and subsequent fires made city-planners and officials aware of the public health value of green spaces as firebreaks and evacuation centers. As such, the mayor of Tokyo at the time, Gotō Shinpei, implemented several policies during the rebuilding of the city that preserved, improved, and created green spaces. In addition, large park building and expansion projects were funded by a mix of national, city, and private funding — a significant portion of the land converted to parks during the first half of the 20^th century were private land donations. Though not immediately implemented due to World War II, the Green Space Plan of 1939 played an important role during Tokyo’s post-war recovery by outlining an informal master plan for the establishment of green spaces throughout the city. Much of it was implemented after 1945. The National Diet of Japan also passed several laws post-1945 to protect historical sites and monuments, many of which were or were located in parks.

The legacies of these policies were readily apparent to me as I walked through Tokyo. Though Tokyo is an incredibly large and dense city, it did not always feel like it because of the plethora of parks, gardens, urban creeks, and promenades that I could duck into when I wanted to escape its noise and crowds. I was guaranteed to find a green space to rest in at every block. Not only did they provide physical respite, these natural spaces made me feel calmer and peaceful. The simple act of strolling through a park, sitting under the cool shade of a tree, and observing people walking by or small birds pecking at the ground had an incredible restorative effect on me. I could feel myself breathing deeper and slower, relaxing my muscles, and forgetting the little things that had stressed me out. The mental health benefits of green spaces is not just anecdotal, however. In recent years, there has been more public attention paid to the subject, as well as increased research efforts to understand the connection between the experience of nature and health — both mental and physical. For example, Dacher Keltner, a professor of psychology at UC Berkeley, has studied the effects of "awe" on mental and physical wellbeing. Dr. Keltner describes awe as a feeling that people experience when they encounter or experience something so vast and complex that is overwhelms their sense of self. Realizing the beauty and wonder of nature is a common way that many people can feel awe. Dr. Keltner’s research has suggested that feeling awe regularly not only makes people feel more optimistic and hopeful, but also calms the nervous system and reduces inflammation in the body. In 2015, the World Health Organization called for an increase in urban green spaces, reporting that green spaces were linked to lower morbidity, increased feelings of social cohesion, improved cognitive function and mental health, reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, and more. 

I realized that I was able to enjoy these green spaces as a result of purposeful urban planning policies. I could not help but feel the comparative lack of green spaces in American urban centers. I believe that American cities can take lessons away from the success of Tokyo’s urban planning by pursuing policies of active green space expansion, historical site protection, and increased public awareness of the mental and physical health benefits of nature. For example, private and public land developers might be required to allocate a certain percentage of the land they develop to a public green space. I felt that walking around a city makes it much more likely that I will actually stop and smell the roses (literally) than if I rode around in a car.  Access to green spaces can also be improved by making cities more walkable in general — making streets car-free on some days or building bike lanes and pedestrian walkways. Furthermore, green spaces can be a valuable opportunity to teach people about the history of their cities by either providing space to experience a monument, or commemorating significant historical figures through their location or name. Finally, cities should implement ways to encourage their citizens to visit their local green spaces. This can include public information campaigns about the health benefits of experiencing nature, holding free concerts or fairs at parks, or hosting local businesses inside or near them. In this way, green spaces not only improve the quality of life for individuals, but also encourage social capital and cohesion in a local community. This, in turn, makes people feel more connected to the cities they live in and is more likely to make them more active civic participants. 

Even though my short time in Tokyo was only a glimpse into a greener way of urban living, I still deeply felt the restorative effects of green spaces on my physical and mental state as well as its positive effects on the city. As I meandered through the gardens of Tokyo, I felt little moments of awe at the beauty of nature and found myself wanting to connect more with it. I feel hopeful that good policies have the potential to make a positive difference in people’s quality of life. Many of Tokyo’s green spaces arose from sites of destruction due to natural disasters or war; they did not just spring into existence from nothingness. They were the direct result of policies that sought to improve people’s health and safety and are a testament to the power of policy to imagine a better future in the face of lack and devastation.