PEOPLE
Representative Director of Egawa Bunko non-profit incorporated foundation
The 42nd head of the Egawa Family
■The 
historical value of Egawa Bunko being comparable to Satsuma’s Former Shuseikan Machinery Factory (current Shoko Shuseikan Museum)
---Earlier, you told me that you are not well-known. Nonetheless, the other day when I went out with my junior reporter--from my time as a newspaper reporter--for a drink, we end up discussing theories of Japanese cultural or racial uniqueness. “There is a person also in Bakufu who made a cannon on his own and installed it in Odaiba,” I was surprised to hear him talk regarding the achievements so passionately. In other words, I think it is well-known among history lovers. It would be great if it can be spread to the general public as well.
Mr. Egawa: It is true that as they say, “those in the know, know it very well” is the actuality, and it is a bit frustrating for us.
Ms. Kato: For example, in the case of the Shimadzu family of Satsuma, the valuable historical heritage of Former Shuseikan Machinery Factory (current Shoko Shuseikan Museum) has been preserved carefully at Shimadzu Kogyo for generations. The locals are proud of it and there was this natural swell of sentiment across the whole region to support the movement. That is why we were able to promote the concept of this World Heritage Site. Even if there are various challenges that come with it, I feel that they were in a climate in which the Shimadzu family, local citizens, and the administration face it head-on and strive to somehow find a solution. As for the Egawa Bunko in Nirayama, it is the pride of the locals, so local power should be brought together further to promote the preservation and utilization of valuable historical materials. The value of Egawa Bunko is something that is close to equal to that of the Shuseikan.
Mr. Egawa: Many tourists who come to see the Nirayama reverberatory furnace do not know that there is the Egawa manor in the immediate vicinity. Our employees have to go to the reverberatory furnace and advertise that “there is a historical heritage as such” for people to actually visit the house. Izunokuni-shi also tries their best to advertise it, but…
Ms. Kato: Nirayama reverberatory furnace is an iconic and well-preserved asset out of all the “Industrial Revolution Heritage of Meiji Japan.” However, amidst the process of registration, historically Nirayama reverberatory furnace was added later. First of all, former Governor Ito of Kagoshima Prefecture proposed at the Kyushu Governors Association and in the entire Kyushu region that: he was drawing up a plan to register in the Modernization Industrial Heritage Group in the Kyushu-Yamaguchi area. There was also an issue of timing and the fact that the Egawa residence was separated from the Nirayama reverberatory furnace. There was also an argument that “should houses that are not part of industrial and production-related facilities be considered a constituent asset” to begin with? The debate was divided, and as a result, the Egawa residence could not be added as one of the constituent assets. To think of it now, this is very disappointing.
Mr. Egawa: It is undeniable that there was a slight delay in our initiatives. The first time I met Ms. Kato was at a symposium held in Nirayama about three years prior to the registration as the World Heritage Site. From there on, I began to consult her regarding how Egawa Bunko could contribute to the issue of World Heritage.
Former Mayor of Omuta City
Archaeologist and Heritage Conservation Specialist
A fellow of the Japan Federation of Engineering Societies
Team Member of the Industrial Project Team Office for the Promotion of World Heritage Listing under Cabinet Secretariat
Governor of Kagoshima Prefecture
Mayor of Hagi City
Mayor of Uki City, Kumamoto Prefecture
The Former Employee of Nippon Steel Corporation
An Associate Professor of the Faculty of Science and Engineering in Iwate University
Chairman of the Tourist Guide Association of Misumi West Port
President of Kuraya Narusawa Co., Ltd.
Chairman of Izunokuni City Tourism Association
Director and General Manager of Gunkanjima Concierge
Producer of the Gunkanjima Digital Museum
Owner at Tōge Chaya
Chairman: Mr. Hidenori Date
President: Mr. Masahiro Date
Proprietor, Houraikan Inn
Representative Director of Egawa Bunko non-profit incorporated foundation
The 42nd head of the Egawa Family
Democratic Party for the People (DPP) Representative for Nagasaki Prefecture
President of the NPO, Way to World Heritage Gunkanjima
Representative Director
MI Consulting Group
President of Watanabe Production Group and Honorary Chair of Watanabe Productions Co., Ltd.
Member of the House of Councillors
Governor
Kagoshima Prefecture
World Heritage Consultant
Director and Dean, The Kyushu-Asia Institute of Leadership
Representative Director, SUMIDA, Inc.
Journalist, founder of the Shimomura Mitsuko Ikikata Juku School
Representative, Rally Nippon
Chairman, Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution World Heritage Route Promotion Council Director, National Congress of Industrial Heritage
Representative Director, General Incorporated Foundation National Congress of Industrial Heritage (Advisor, Public Interest Incorporated Foundation Capital Markets Research Institute）
Mayor of Nagasaki City
Policy Director at Heritage Montreal
World Heritage Consultant
Executive Director of Kogakuin University
Heritage Architect and International Consultant
Head of Data Acquisition at The Glasgow School of Art’s School of Simulation and Visualisation
Head of Industrial Heritage, Historic Environment Scotland, Edinburgh
Scottish Ten Project Manager, Historic Environment Scotland, Edinburgh
Mayor of Izunokuni City, Shizuoka Prefecture
Pro-Provost and Chairman of Council of the Royal College of Art. Heritage advisor of Canal & River Trust for England and Wales.
Dean of Tokyo Rissho Junior College
Professor emeritus of Keio University
Mayor of Kitakyushu City
At the 39th session of the World Heritage Committee convened in Bonn, Germany, from June 28 to July 8, 2015, the decision was approved to inscribe the Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution on the World Heritage list.
At a celebratory party held to mark the occasion, some of the primary promoters of the project spoke of their joy in achieving their goal and of the trials and tribulations to getting there.
Director and Managing Executive Officer, Hanshin Expressway Company Limited
Member, Board of Directors, National Congress of Industrial Heritage
Vice-Governor of Shizuoka Prefecture
Mayor of Hagi City
Chairman, Tokyo Metro Co., Ltd.
Mayor of Omuta City
Deputy Director-General, Lifelong Learning Policy Bureau, MEXT
Former Counsellor, Cabinet Secretariat
Mayor of Kamaishi City
Member, Board of Directors, National Congress of Industrial Heritage Counselor, Shimadzu Limited
Chairman of the Consortium for the World Heritage Inscription of Modern Industrial Heritage (Kyushu-Yamaguchi) and governor of Kagoshima Prefecture (as of 2015)