Stories about people.

Stories about life.

Hometown Stories.

I used to think Japanese washi paper
was only used in times of peace.

I was surprised to find that's not so.

Awa washi paper from Tokushima, western Japan, is renowned for its almost transparent beauty.

It's also durable and said to maintain its quality for at least 1,000 years.

In 2023, it traveled across the ocean to help a country in need.

The destination - war-torn Ukraine.

The paper was needed to help repair historical documents.

With the ongoing war putting the country's very identity in peril, it was an urgent matter.

Thank you, everyone, in Tokushima.

If we fail to protect our archives,
we'll be erased from the past and future.

But the artisans in Tokushima were a bit puzzled

when they received urgent pleas for Awa washi paper from a distant country.

What possible use can we be?

In this day and age
with bombs falling everywhere...

What does it mean to continue the tradition of making washi-paper in today's world?

We really can't do much.
But we're hoping for peace.

Yamakawa Town in Yoshinogawa City is the home of Awa washi - Awa being the old name of Tokushima Prefecture.

In its heyday, around 200 families made a living producing this traditional paper.

Its history goes back 1,300 years.

It was here that the Inbe clan, who served the Imperial Court,

planted a type of mulberry and hemp, the raw materials of washi paper

...with the wish to live and prosper together.

With appreciation for tomorrow's culture
and our local traditions...

we'll do our utmost to make paper
and offer it to the world.

There's now only one factory that keeps the tradition going.

It employs 46 workers.

Awa washi is made from long, thin, strong fibers

taken from the bark of the paper mulberry after it's been boiled.

Working by hand, the artisans painstakingly remove one impurity after another.

They spread out the fibers evenly to form a thin sheet of paper.

The paper can be as thin as just 0.02 millimeters.

The technique has been passed down through the generations in this area to create paper like no other in the world.

But it's not just about preserving the tradition.

"Hi, I'm Logan from Washington D.C."

"I've come to one of the country's leading fine art photographic print studios in the Washington D.C. area."

In the United States, Awa washi is establishing a reputation as high-quality paper for printing.

For 40 years, Awagami Factory in Tokushima has been inviting overseas artists

to experience the appeal of Awa washi paper at first hand.

Logan learned about Awa washi paper through his hobby, photography.

He heard Ukraine's archives urgently needed paper for repairs.

So, he asked a professor he knew at the University of Shizuoka if Awa washi was suitable.

The main brand that I see of Japanese papers here in the United States is Awagami Factory.

Now, I do the cutting.

Through American and Japanese scholars, the plant manager, Nakashima Shigeyuki, received a request from Ukraine.

He wanted to use this opportunity to re-evaluate what washi paper has to offer.

Some paper turns out well, some doesn't.
I check that in this final step.

In July 2022, an order came in from Ukraine via the Japanese Foreign Ministry.

Japan provided 8,500 sheets free of charge, enough for a year's worth of repair work.

The total cost was about 18,000 dollars.

The company covered more than half of that, with the rest paid by the Tokushima prefectural government.

We replied right away that
we wanted to help.

It's a surprising way of using washi.

Shigeyuki has been the factory manager for three years.

His challenge is finding ways to make the next generation aware of the appeal of washi.

Some young people develop an interest in this traditional industry

and come from other parts of Japan to work at the factory.

But not many stay the course, with only a few deciding to stick with it.

- It must be hard living on your own.
- I guess so.

I think I'm finally getting used to
my life and work here.

I hope the young staff are having fun.
I still have a way to go myself.

Shigeyuki was facing struggles of his own.

Is washi paper really needed?

When I asked myself that question,
I felt it's not all that useful.

His doubts began when the COVID-19 pandemic struck just after he took over as plant manager.

Orders dried up both domestically and internationally.

Until then, the plant had never been affected by events in the wider world.

Shigeyuki took whatever measures he could to cope with this first-ever crisis, including giving workers time off.

He was desperately looking around for new ways to use washi paper.

We decided to make origami cranes.

People in Japan often make paper cranes to pray for peace.

Shigeyuki and his staff thought this might also help end the pandemic,

so they launched an effort to make cranes using Awa washi paper with a famous origami artist.

With a prayer in their hearts, all the workers at the plant spent the first workday of 2022 folding cranes together.

But...

Amid the pandemic, a war broke out.

I asked myself, "What value does my work
have to offer the world?"

But I was at a loss.
I felt I couldn't do anything.

The request for Awa washi paper came from the western Ukrainian city of Lviv.

Even though the area is a long way from the country's battlefields,

air-raid sirens go off every few days.

In March, a missile fell on a suburb of Lviv, causing casualties.

The city is home to Ukraine's oldest archives of official documents.

The facility houses more than 1 million historical records, a testament to events of the past 900 years.

This letter from the early 12th century
is written in the old Ukrainian language.

This is the 1596 declaration of
the "Union of Brest."

We have documents from the birth of
the Eastern Catholic Church in Ukraine.

We have a much bigger responsibility
on our shoulders than before the war.

Amid the ongoing war, it's an urgent task to repair historical documents, which continue to degrade as time goes on.

Officials at the Archives say more people want to check out documents and are asking about history.

In the past, Russian materials had been used for repairing documents.

But because of the war, they were no longer available.

Then, the Archives learned about Awa washi from an associate who's a scholar.

I've never used such
high-quality paper before.

Nobody in Lviv has paper like this.
Probably none in the whole of Ukraine.

Compared with the previous paper, Awa washi is thinner and stronger.

Archive officials say it has helped improve the quality of repairs.

To reinforce the original documents, repair workers attach paper using liquid glue.

Awa washi is water-resistant and maintains its shape in the process.

Historical documents connect Ukrainians'
past, present and future.

If we fail to protect the archives,
we'll be erased from the past and future.

An online conference was held, directly connecting the washi factory and the Archives.

This enabled the two sides to exchange opinions on the product for the first time.

Shigeyuki invited the younger members of staff, who are worried about the future of washi paper.

I've thought hard about
what use we can be.

The world needs peace. Without it,
we can't make a living, either.

I can't imagine what it's like to live
with bombs falling everywhere.

Listen to what they have to say,
and feel free to ask any questions.

- Hello. How do you do?
- Let's get started.

How was the washi paper we sent?
Maybe it was different and hard to use.

Washi helped us make excellent repairs
in a much shorter time.

Washi is high-quality paper.
It's made our work more fun.

Washi is not just paper.

We feel you've given us centuries of
traditional Japanese culture.

Do you have videos of how washi is made?

This is a type of mulberry. It's the raw
material of the paper you're using now.

Words of gratitude from a country gripped by war.

The meeting lasted much longer
than the allotted 1 hour.

Any other questions?

I think you're having a tough time
right now in Ukraine.

What sense of mission do you feel
as you continue your work?

We've been living under stress
for more than a year.

None of us civilians thought
a war would break out.

It's very scary to have missiles
being launched at us.

We've felt fear many times
here in Lviv.

I don't know how to say this.
But we're very glad to be of help.

Shigeyuki reverently took an origami crane in his hand.

In Japan, we have a long tradition of
using paper to pray for peace.

We fold origami cranes like this.

We really can't do much.

Thank you very much.
We're a strong, indestructible nation.

Glory to Ukraine!

Thank you!

I could tell they're eager to repair
and protect their historical documents.

I think it's amazing that they can
work with such a sense of mission.

They're passing on their traditions.
That's sort of like what we do.

I think...

We felt their strength and commitment.
It was good to talk to them today.

- What are you making?
- You want to know?

I won't tell you.

Ever since Shigeyuki became a father, he has hoped that

his daughter will be able to live a peaceful future with Awa washi paper.

When I wonder about the future,
I no longer think about myself.

I think about my child's future now.

During the three years following the COVID-19 outbreak,

Shigeyuki was finding it hard to define his company's mission.

Who's this?

Mom.

What? Let me see.
Thank you, Tao!

Still, his daughter has grown into a child who loves to play with washi paper.

If washi were no longer needed,
it would have vanished from world.

Prayers and hopes
can lead to something.

We sent a video of our town
to Shigeyuki.

Olesia Stefanyk, the director of the Archives, also has hope for the future.

Lviv is a beautiful place.
I spent my childhood and youth here.

I can't imagine living anywhere else.

I was married in this church.

Her husband is a heart specialist,
helping people fight anxiety.

When the war is over, we want to invite
our new Japanese friends to Lviv...

so we can show them around.

They've sent us a video,
saying Lviv is a beautiful place.

For the Awa washi craftspeople, the voices from Ukraine have become a signpost to the future.

Ito Tomoko is one of the people who attended the meeting with the staff of the Archives.

She's taken on a new challenge.

She's learning how to do indigo-dying on Awa washi.

She's become an apprentice to one of the few experts in this traditional technique.

I felt that the people at the Archives
are determined to preserve history.

I've realized we must also
preserve our precious traditions.

I want to do my work with passion, too.

As the pandemic subsided,
the factory became lively again.

Washi-making workshop.

She brought a new friend.

"Is this your first time here?"

It's fun.

Let's make something at home.

Bye-bye!

The circle of Awa washi keeps expanding.

More visitors are coming
to talk about business.

We apply something to the surface,
so the paper doesn't dissolve in the dye.

- What do you think it is?
- I'm not sure.

- It's used in "oden" stew.
- Daikon radish?

- Tofu?
- Not quite.

- "Konnyaku?"
- That's right.

Using washi paper to pray for peace is
somehow part of Japanese people's identity.

I think it's our mission to
preserve this identity in tangible form.