Beautiful Rice | For a Sustainable Future

“Beautiful Rice: For a Sustainable Future” is a fun and educational exploration of rice cultivation traditions in Asia over the last thousand years. Visitors learn how the flow of materials and resources connect humans with nature, and they are then asked to think about questions of sustainability in the future.

The round centerpiece of the exhibit is an interactive guide through the stages of rice production. It shows how rice cultivation traditions throughout Asia including Japan have created bonds between people and nature via the four stages of “receive,” “produce,” “eat,” and “return.” Various activities involved in rice cultivation, such as irrigating a rice paddy, or growing legume plants and mixing them with soil, are illustrated through models. Behind that, the flow of materials and resources is explained from a scientific perspective.

”Beautiful Rice” also illustrates various folk customs, such as typical table settings from around Asia including Japan. The side panels provide in-depth information and invite visitors to think about how we can employ technology to carry on the tradition of delicious rice into the future.

Planning and production for this exhibition was provided by Miraikan - the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation. Originally produced at Miraikan in November 2017, “Beautiful Rice” was conceived to coincide with the 2017 Science Center World Summit, held for the first time in Asia that year.

Exhibition Related Event

Koda Farms Presentation & Sonoko Sakai Onigiri Workshop is scheduled to be held on Saturday, October 6.
Check Event.