Preservation Society of Japan

Preservation Society of Japan
Name	Preservation Society of Japan
Formation	1960
Type	Nonprofit
Headquarters	Tokyo
Region served	Japan
Leader title	President

Preservation Society of Japan is a Japanese nonprofit organization focused on conserving cultural properties, historic buildings, and landscapes across Japan. Founded amid postwar redevelopment debates, the Society engages with conservation policy, restoration practice, and public education, collaborating with municipal authorities, academic institutions, and international agencies. Its efforts intersect with a wide array of heritage sites, legal frameworks, and professional communities in Tokyo, Kyoto, Nara, and beyond.

History

The Society emerged in the 1960s during tensions over redevelopment initiatives near Ueno Park, Asakusa, and the Kanda River corridor, responding to controversies like the demolition of traditional machiya cited in debates involving Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Ministry of Education, and urban planners from University of Tokyo. Early figures included conservationists influenced by studies at Tokyo University of the Arts, Kyoto University, and practitioners trained under restoration programs connected to ICOMOS, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The Society campaigned on cases such as the protection of Edo-period structures adjacent to Meiji Shrine and documented threats to heritage in prefectures including Hokkaido, Aomori Prefecture, Iwate Prefecture, Miyagi Prefecture, Fukushima Prefecture, Ibaraki Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, Kanagawa Prefecture, Niigata Prefecture, Toyama Prefecture, Ishikawa Prefecture, Fukui Prefecture, Yamanashi Prefecture, Nagano Prefecture, Gifu Prefecture, Shizuoka Prefecture, Aichi Prefecture, Mie Prefecture, Shiga Prefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, Osaka Prefecture, Hyōgo Prefecture, Nara Prefecture, Wakayama Prefecture, Tottori Prefecture, Shimane Prefecture, Okayama Prefecture, Hiroshima Prefecture, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Tokushima Prefecture, Kagawa Prefecture, Ehime Prefecture, Kōchi Prefecture, Fukuoka Prefecture, Saga Prefecture, Nagasaki Prefecture, Kumamoto Prefecture, Ōita Prefecture, Miyazaki Prefecture, Kagoshima Prefecture, and Okinawa Prefecture.

Mission and Activities

The Society's mission aligns with principles championed by ICOMOS charters and protection frameworks exemplified by the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties (Japan), advocating for the safeguarding of tangible heritage like Himeji Castle, Itsukushima Shrine, Kiyomizu-dera, and vernacular architecture such as machiya in Kyoto. Activities include site surveys in collaboration with academics from Waseda University, conservation training with craftsmen associated with the Japan Arts Council, and advisory roles for municipal boards like the Cultural Affairs Agency (Japan). The Society also intervenes in planning disputes involving developers such as large firms headquartered in Shinjuku and transportation projects by East Japan Railway Company.

Organizational Structure

Governance comprises a board drawn from professionals at institutions including National Museum of Japanese History, Tokyo National Museum, Kyoto National Museum, National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, Tokyo, and universities such as Keio University and Osaka University. Committees address restoration, legal advocacy, education, and international cooperation with partners like UNESCO, Asia-Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO, and the World Monuments Fund. Regional chapters operate in prefectural capitals such as Sapporo, Sendai, Nagoya, Hiroshima, Fukuoka, and Naha.

Preservation Projects and Sites

The Society has been active on projects affecting landmarks including Gunkanjima, Nikko Toshogu, Shirakawa-go, Takayama Old Town, and coastal landscapes like the Seto Inland Sea islands. It has advocated for the conservation of modernist works by architects such as Toyo Ito, Kenzo Tange, Tadao Ando, Arata Endo, Kunio Maekawa, Fumihiko Maki, Antonin Raymond, and public housing estates influenced by Le Corbusier. The Society has intervened in cases involving railway stations like Tokyo Station and industrial heritage at former sites of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and the Yubari Coal Mine. Rural projects include preservation of traditional farmsteads in Biei and irrigation landscapes associated with historic rice terraces near Shirakawa Village.

Publications and Education Programs

The Society publishes journals and bulletins featuring research from scholars affiliated with International Council on Monuments and Sites, College of Humanities and Social Sciences (Ritsumeikan University), and conservationists trained at the Architectural Institute of Japan. It runs workshops with master carpenters from guilds tied to Sumiyoshi Taisha and apprenticeships referencing techniques recorded in archives at the National Diet Library. Educational outreach includes lectures at venues like Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, school programs coordinated with the Ministry of Education (Japan), and exhibitions in partnership with museums such as the Edo-Tokyo Museum.

Funding and Partnerships

Funding sources include membership dues, donations from foundations such as the Japan Foundation, grants via the Cultural Affairs Agency (Japan), and project support from international bodies like UNESCO and the Asian Development Bank on heritage-related urban regeneration. Strategic partnerships exist with municipal governments of Kyoto City, Nara City, and Hiroshima City, academic partners including Tokyo Institute of Technology, and conservation NGOs like the World Monuments Fund and National Trust for Scotland through exchange programs.

Impact and Criticism

The Society has influenced designation decisions under the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties (Japan), contributed expertise to nominations for UNESCO World Heritage List, and helped save numerous machiya and historic shrines from demolition. Criticism includes debates with developers and politicians in Tokyo Metropolitan Government over property rights, disputes with tourism stakeholders in Kyoto about visitor pressure, and tensions with pro-modernist architects associated with institutions like Tokyo Institute of Technology. Scholars from Keio University and Kyoto University have published both praise and critique regarding the Society's approaches to adaptive reuse, authenticity debates traceable to discussions in ICOMOS and heritage conservation literature.

Category:Heritage conservation organizations in Japan