CHARTER & CERTIFICATION
We did not start by asking for a law.
Before asking Ishigaki City for an ordinance, the community put its own principles in writing and began certifying the operators who share them. Both were already running before the ordinance.
The Hirakubo Peninsula Joint Charter
Agreed jointly by the five community associations in December 2024. It states, in the community's own words, what matters here and how this place should be used. The ordinance is the attempt to give those principles a legal framework.
Article 1 PurposeProtect the natural environment and landscape of the peninsula and pass their beauty to future generations.
Article 2 The night skyWork to add no further light pollution, so that a sky in which the Milky Way arches overhead — rare anywhere in the world — reaches the future.
Article 3 A consistent landscapeEncourage companies coming to the peninsula to keep signage colour, street-lighting colour and building height consistent, protecting the landscape of the whole area and building the Hirakubo name together with those companies.
Article 4 Sustainable local developmentPromote sustainable economic activity in harmony with the natural environment, contributing to the development of this area.
Article 5 Residents' right of useResort development must not shut residents out of the roads and the coast they use in daily life.
Article 6 History and cultureCarry on the history and culture of the peninsula and protect its cultural heritage.
Article 7 NoiseWork to avoid excessive noise, for the environment and for the people who live here.
Article 8 Organised crimeExclude organised crime groups and their associates entirely from this work, in cooperation with the relevant authorities.
Article 9 Certifying operatorsCertify the operators and guides who work with residents to protect the environment, so that businesses rooted in this place are supported and unscrupulous operators are excluded.
Article 10 Water resourcesGroundwater is still used here for daily life alongside mains water. Prevent abnormal extraction of that groundwater by the large-scale development now anticipated.
This is a working English rendering for readers outside Japan. The authoritative text is in Japanese.
The certification scheme
Operators who share the charter's principles and contribute to sustainable local development are certified by the community itself. Nine operators are certified. The mark is intended as a signal for visitors choosing whom to book with.
Certification requires compliance with the standards of the Hirakubo Peninsula ordinance (in preparation). Signing the community agreement makes an operator eligible to apply; certification itself follows a review against the certification criteria. Certified operators are listed on this site with a route through to bookings and enquiries.
