Between November 27th and December 3rd 2023, we held a seven-day tour/conference spanning five regions of Kagoshima Prefecture under the theme ‘Futures of place-based circular ecosystems’. More than 80 circular design practitioners and researchers from over 11 countries such as Australia, Thailand and Taiwan, gathered to explore the transition to a more pluriversal and sustainable world, through learning from the vernacular practices rooted in the various lands of Kagoshima Prefecture.

On the first five days, we co-organised ‘Circular Design Tours and Workshops’ with local practitioners, touring five different regions of Kagoshima where circular design is practised. This time, we toured Kirishima City, Osaki Town, Satsuma-sendai City, Hioki City and Minami-Kyushu City. Participants experienced and learned from the different interrelations of people and the land in each region, with themes raging from “Tasty Lo-Tek – Local Traditional Ecological Knowledge” in Kirishima City, “Circular Citizens – recycling almost everything” in Osaki Town, and “Soil, Life, and Circulation” in Hioki City.

During the last two days, ‘Circular Design Conference’ was held as a place for participants to reflect on their experiences, share knowledge, and build networks with national and international researchers, designers and practitioners in and around circular design. We conducted panel sessions and discussions with practitioners, workshops on making dango for a taste of the Kagoshima region, and concluded with a Giga Map-making session to digest the insights and freely delve into exploration.