Aiming for a sustainable society, the Ministry of the Environment establishes the "Good Life Award" ~ With cooperation from Iine! JAPAN

On December 12, the Ministry of the Environment announced the creation of the "Good Life Award" to discover "good living" for the environment and society. Recognizing that while environmentally conscious products have created new markets in recent years, Japan's carbon dioxide emissions continue to rise, contributing to global warming and environmental destruction, the award aims to promote "sustainable living" – a good life – that simultaneously addresses environmental and social issues. The initiative will be supported by the "Like! JAPAN Project," launched in 2012 by Dentsu Inc. and others, which aims to revitalize Japan using Facebook as a driving force.

Eligible applicants include companies, local governments, civic groups, schools, and individuals. Initiatives supporting "lifestyles beneficial to the environment and society" (volunteer activities, services, technologies, etc.) are being solicited on a special website [currently closed] until January 10, 2014. Selection involves narrowing down outstanding initiatives to about 10 entries, followed by an online public vote to determine the Grand Prize winner and other awards. An awards ceremony is scheduled for February next year in Tokyo. For the Grand Prize winner, a 5-minute promotional video will be produced and widely shared online. Additionally, "Project Deepening Meetings" will be held with experts to discuss further development of the winning initiatives, with the discussions later published online.