Developing a Municipal Biodiversity Plan through Multi-Stakeholder Co-creation: A Case Study from Lake Toya, Hokkaido, Japan

15.06.2026

SUBMITTING ORGANIZATION

Rakuno Gakuen University, Department of Environmental Sciences 

DATE OF SUBMISSION

March 2026

REGION

Asia

COUNTRY

Japan

KEYWORDS

biodiversity local strategy; nature positive; multi-stakeholder workshop; invasive alien species; socio-ecological production landscape 

AUTHORS

Atsuhiro Yoshinaka, Department of Environmental Sciences, Rakuno Gakuen University 

Thumbnail image: trengarasu, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Summary Sheet

The summary sheet for this case study is available here.

1. Background

Lake Toya (洞爺湖) is a caldera lake in southwestern Hokkaido, Japan, formed by a massive volcanic eruption approximately 110,000 years ago. Together with the still-active Mt. Usu and the Showa-Shinzan lava dome, it forms the core of the Toya-Usu UNESCO Global Geopark (certified 2009), and has been designated as part of the Shikotsu-Toya National Park since 1949. The Toyako Town administrative area (population approximately 8,000) surrounds the lake and extends to the coastal area of Uchiura Bay (Funka Bay), encompassing diverse ecosystems from volcanic highlands and forests to agricultural lands, the caldera lake, rivers, and coastal marine environments. 

The landscape bears testimony to over 10,000 years of human interaction with a volcanically active environment. The Irie Site and Takasago Burial Site—constituent components of the ‘Jomon Prehistoric Sites in Northern Japan’, inscribed as UNESCO World Cultural Heritage in 2021—testify to the deep continuity of human–nature relationships in this SEPLS. Today, hot-spring tourism centred on the southern lakeshore, agriculture (vegetables, dairy farming, fruit cultivation on volcanic soils), and fisheries (scallop aquaculture in Uchiura Bay, smelt fishing in Lake Toya) continue to depend directly on the health of the surrounding ecosystems. 

Rakuno Gakuen University (RGU), based in Ebetsu, Hokkaido, entered into a Regional Comprehensive Exchange Agreement with Toyako Town in 2009. Over the subsequent 17 years, the partnership has generated sustained research on water quality, invasive species, entomology, and wildlife management in the area, while also providing environmental education programmes for local schools and supporting community-based conservation activities together with the Lake Toya Biodiversity Conservation Council (a local NPO). 

Against this backdrop, the municipality recognized the need for a formal, locally tailored biodiversity strategy consistent with Japan’s National Biodiversity Strategy 2023–2030 (which incorporates the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework 30×30 target) and the Ministry of the Environment’s revised Guidelines for Formulating Local Biodiversity Strategies (2023). The 17-year university–community partnership provided both the scientific knowledge base and the trusted relationships necessary to co-create such a plan. 

2. Socioeconomic and Environmental Characteristics

2.1 Biodiversity values and ecosystem services 

Lake Toya harbours nationally and globally significant biodiversity. The lake supports several species of aquatic plants classified as Critically Endangered or Endangered on the Japanese Red List, including Chara corallina (CR+EN), Nitella flexilis (CR+EN), and Potamogeton praelongus (VU), which serve as indicators of water quality and benthic habitat integrity. Takanenohanawarabi (Botrychium takanense), a fern considered nationally extinct, was rediscovered on Mt. Usu slopes, underscoring the area’s value as a refuge for relict species. The forests of the area also support Sapporo Maimai (Euhadra brandtii var. sapporo, NT), a land snail indicative of high-quality forest ecosystems. 

The socio-ecological production landscape provides multiple ecosystem services: volcanic soils support agriculture (Toyako Town ranks among Hokkaido’s top producers of celeriac and red shiso); the lake and bay sustain fisheries; forests protect watersheds and store carbon; hot springs and scenery underpin a tourism economy that annually receives over two million visitors; and the Geopark’s ‘volcano classroom’ draws learners from across Japan and overseas.

2.2 Threats 

The signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus, designated as an Invasive Alien Species under Japanese law) was first detected in Lake Toya in 2005 and has since expanded across the entire lake. An omnivorous and highly fecund species, it devastates native aquatic plant communities and benthic invertebrates. The Conservation Council has conducted continuous trapping since 2007, but the population remains large. The crayfish represents the single greatest acute threat to the lake’s biodiversity, functioning as a ‘negative keystone species’ capable of restructuring the entire benthic ecosystem. 

Ezo deer (Cervus nippon yesoensis) colonised Nakajima Island—the largest island in a freshwater lake in Japan—and caused severe forest degradation through overgrazing. Under the Lake Toya Nakajima Deer Management Plan (2021), the Nakajima Deer Management Council (including the Ministry of the Environment and RGU) is working toward the goal of complete eradication, now within sight. However, a long-term ecological restoration vision for Nakajima post-eradication has yet to be agreed upon. Additional threats include raccoon (Procyon lotor) expansion, climate-change-driven shifts in agricultural suitability (e.g., the emergence of sweet potato cultivation while scallop harvests decline due to sea warming and shellfish toxin), over-tourism pressure, and long-term fireworks displays causing water quality concerns.

3. Objectives and Rationale 

The primary objective of this case study is to document the process and outcomes of formulating the Toyako Town Biodiversity Basic Plan (洞爺湖町生物多様性基本計画, 2026–2030), specifically focusing on the participatory co-creation process, and to identify lessons that may be transferable to other municipalities facing similar challenges. 

Three subsidiary objectives were pursued: (1) to synthesise 17 years of scientific knowledge generated through the RGU–Toyako Town partnership into an evidence base for the plan; (2) to engage diverse stakeholders—residents, farmers, fishers, hoteliers, students, conservation practitioners, and municipal officials—in identifying the values, challenges, and aspirations they hold for the landscape; and (3) to align the resulting plan with global frameworks (CBD Kunming-Montreal GBF, SDGs, UNESCO Geopark Programme) while grounding it in local ecological and cultural reality.

4. Activities 

4.1 Plan formulation process 

The plan formulation followed a structured, multi-stage process over approximately 18 months (April 2025–March 2026): 

Step 1 – Expert Review Meeting I (September 2025): Representatives of relevant government agencies, the national park administration, local fisheries and agricultural cooperatives, the tourism association, the Conservation Council, and RGU faculty convened to review the draft structure of the plan and provide expert input on the socio-ecological characteristics, threats, and strategic priorities of the area. 

Step 2 – Community Workshop (December 6, 2025): A 54-participant multi-stakeholder workshop was held at Toyako Town Hall. Participants included 15 local residents, 5 municipal officials, 1 Ministry of the Environment officer, and 33 RGU-affiliated participants (7 faculty, 2 staff, 3 graduate students, 14 undergraduate students, 2 alumni, and 3 high-school students from Towanomori San-ai High School). This broad participation was designed to reflect the spirit of the Satoyama Initiative’s emphasis on multi-stakeholder collaboration and the ‘commons’ concept. 

The workshop employed a satellite-photo map-based participatory method. The full group first identified the town’s cherished values and assets, challenges, and visions for an ideal future, categorised into ‘nature/ecology’, ‘culture/livelihoods’, ‘industry’, and ‘other’. Participants then self-selected into seven theme-based groups—(i) Invasive species, (ii) Disaster preparedness, (iii) Climate change, (iv) Agriculture, forestry and fisheries, (v) Natural environment, (vi) Tourism, and (vii) Community life and culture—and engaged in in-depth map-based discussions, posting ideas on sticky notes directly onto satellite imagery of the lake and its surroundings. Each group then presented their findings to the full assembly. 

Step 3 – Expert Review Meeting II (January 2026): The draft plan, incorporating workshop findings, was reviewed and refined with expert input. 

Step 4 – Public Comment (February–March 2026): The draft plan was publicly disclosed on the town website for a 30-day public comment period, coinciding with the annual Biodiversity Symposium (March 14, 2026), where the plan was formally presented to the public and final input was solicited. Following the public comment period, the plan was formally adopted by Toyako Town in March 2026. The adopted plan is available at: http://www.town.toyako.hokkaido.jp/person_guide/sangyou_shinko/

4.2 Structure of the Biodiversity Basic Plan 

The adopted plan is structured around a 2030 vision statement—’A Nature-Positive Geo-Town Toya where volcanoes, the lake, and people co-exist and nature’s gifts endure for generations’—underpinned by three founding principles aligned with the three-fold approach of the Satoyama Initiative: 

Principle 1: Co-existence with volcanoes and the lake (Protect and Restore) — reflecting the Satoyama Initiative’s emphasis on securing diverse ecosystem services from this geologically unique SEPLS. 

Principle 2: Solving social challenges through nature (Conserve and Utilise Natural Capital) — reflecting the integration of traditional and scientific knowledge and Nature-based Solutions (NbS) as innovations for contemporary challenges. 

Principle 3: Making biodiversity everyone’s concern (Connect) — reflecting the Satoyama Initiative’s emphasis on new forms of co-management and collaborative stewardship that transcend traditional institutional boundaries. 

Against these three principles, nine strategic action areas were defined, each with a suite of action plans: 

Strategies 1–3 (Principle 1): (1) Rare species protection and management, including establishing protection zones for critically endangered aquatic plants and ex-situ conservation; (2) Invasive alien species control, including data-driven, GIS-based trapping intensification for signal crayfish and community monitoring networks; and (3) Nakajima ecosystem restoration vision—developing a long-term participatory vision for post-eradication island recovery, including eco-tourism and educational use. 

Strategies 4–6 (Principle 2): (4) Integrating natural capital into disaster preparedness and recovery, applying Eco-DRR and Green Infrastructure principles to volcanic disaster response; (5) Nature-based solutions for education, industry and livelihoods, including school curricula using Geopark features and invasive-species management as teaching material, community nature-experience programmes, and adventure travel product development; and (6) Strengthening alignment with the national park plan, including expanding the special zone boundaries and regulating motorised watercraft. 

Strategies 7–9 (Principle 3): (7) Biodiversity information platform (Toya Biodiversity ATLAS)—a GIS-based open platform integrating data from research institutions, government, and citizen science; (8) Citizen science and intergenerational knowledge transfer, including a gamified species-recording programme (‘Toya Nature Quest’) and strengthened university–community joint research; and (9) International networking through the UNESCO Global Geopark network and a proposed ‘Volcano and Caldera Lake Biodiversity Alliance’ linking geoparks worldwide that share this ecosystem type. 

5. Results and Lessons Learned 

5.1 Results 

The plan formulation process yielded a comprehensive, publicly available Biodiversity Basic Plan (formally adopted March 2026) that: (i) documents the biodiversity values and threats of the area based on 17 years of scientific research; (ii) articulates a locally meaningful vision and strategic framework aligned with global biodiversity commitments; and (iii) embeds a suite of concrete, time-bound action plans covering ecosystem restoration, invasive-species management, climate adaptation, education, citizen science, and international networking. 

The December 2025 workshop demonstrated that satellite-map-based participatory methods effectively engaged participants across a wide range of ages (high-school students to elderly residents) and backgrounds (fishers, farmers, hoteliers, students, academics, government officials). The seven theme groups produced rich, locally grounded ideas—many of which were directly incorporated into the plan’s action sections—including the proposal to use signal crayfish and Ezo deer as locally sourced ‘jibier’ (wild game food), linking invasive-species control with cultural and culinary heritage; the proposal to link blue carbon (seagrass and macroalgae restoration in Uchiura Bay) to climate mitigation; and the idea of a ‘Volcano Master’ system for building community disaster-preparedness expertise. 

5.2 Lessons Learned 

Long-term, trust-based university–community partnerships are essential infrastructure for evidence-based local biodiversity planning. The credibility of RGU’s long-standing field presence—including continuous invasive-species monitoring and school-based environmental education—was foundational to the willingness of diverse stakeholders to engage with the planning process. 

Multi-stakeholder participatory workshops, when designed with accessible and visually engaging methods (such as satellite-map-based sticky-note exercises), can generate biodiversity-relevant insights from stakeholders who would not normally engage with formal conservation planning. The inclusion of university students—who participated both as learners and as facilitators—added energy and a forward-looking perspective to the process. 

Embedding local biodiversity planning within established international frameworks (UNESCO Global Geopark, UNESCO World Cultural Heritage, Shikotsu-Toya National Park) provides both narrative coherence and practical leverage for resource mobilisation and policy alignment. The concept of Toyako as a ‘Nature Positive Geo-Town’ bridges local identity and global ambition in a way that resonated with diverse local stakeholders. 

The plan’s explicit adoption of ‘making biodiversity everyone’s own concern (じぶんごと化)’ as a founding principle signals a shift from expert-led to community-owned conservation—consistent with the Satoyama Initiative’s vision of new forms of co-management that respect diverse knowledge systems and community agency. 

6. Key Messages 

  • Long-term university–municipality partnerships provide the scientific credibility and social trust needed to co-create locally legitimate biodiversity plans.
  • Satellite-map-based participatory workshops are an effective tool for engaging diverse, non-specialist stakeholders in SEPLS planning and for generating actionable, place-based ideas.
  • Embedding local biodiversity strategies within established international frameworks (UNESCO Geopark, World Heritage,national park) strengthens their coherence, visibility, and resource-mobilisationpotential. 
  • TheSatoyamaInitiative’s three-fold approach and six perspectives provide a comprehensive and practically applicable framework for structuring a municipal biodiversity plan that connects ecological restoration with social and economic resilience. 

7. References and Bibliography 

Convention on Biological Diversity (2022). Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. CBD/COP/DEC/15/4. Montreal: CBD Secretariat. 

Ministry of the Environment, Japan (2023). National Biodiversity Strategy of Japan 2023–2030. Tokyo: Ministry of the Environment. 

Ministry of the Environment, Japan (2023). Guidelines for Formulating Local Biodiversity Strategies (Revised). Tokyo: Ministry of the Environment. 

Toyako Town (2026). Toyako Town Biodiversity Basic Plan, 2026–2030. Toyako: Toyako Town Economic Department. [in Japanese] Available at: http://www.town.toyako.hokkaido.jp/person_guide/sangyou_shinko/ 

Toya-Usu UNESCO Global Geopark Promotion Council. Toya-Usu UNESCO Global Geopark. Available at: https://www.toya-usu-geopark.org/ 

IPSI Secretariat (2021). Contributions of the Satoyama Initiative to mainstreaming sustainable use of biodiversity in production landscapes and seascapes. UNU-IAS/IPSI, Tokyo. 

8. Web Links 

Toyako Town official website: http://www.town.toyako.hokkaido.jp/ 

Adopted Biodiversity Basic Plan: http://www.town.toyako.hokkaido.jp/person_guide/sangyou_shinko/ 

Toya-Usu UNESCO Global Geopark: https://www.toya-usu-geopark.org/ 

Rakuno Gakuen University, Department of Environmental Sciences: https://www.rakuno.ac.jp/ 

IPSI case studies: https://satoyamainitiative.org/case_study/ 

9. Author Profiles 

Atsuhiro Yoshinaka is Professor of the Department of Environmental Sciences, Rakuno Gakuen University, Japan. His research focuses on global environmental policy, biodiversity conservation, and university–community partnerships for sustainable landscape management.