We feel it is important to spread the traditional culture of Tokachi, which is based on Ainu culture, not only to other parts of Japan but to the world. It is also necessary to introduce excellent cultural programs from other areas of Japan and overseas to Tokachi. In addition, we have been trying to create new type of culture and an example was the DemeterDTokachi International Contem-porary Art Exhi-bition held in 2002. This exhibition was extremely popular because there were many works of art that were only exhibited in Tokachi.

Kachimai Fireworks Display started in 1929 and has become a special summer event for people in Tokachi. Today twenty thousand fireworks are set off making it the biggest fireworks display in Hokkaido and one of the biggest in Japan. On August 13 every year, tens of thousands of spectators gather from around Hokkaido and Japan at the Tokachi riverside to enjoy this feast of light and sound that covers the sky.

Tokachi Mainichi Newspaper, Inc. has encouraged people living in large metropolitan areas around Japan to come and live in Tokachi. In 1990, we published a guidebook, Living in a Northern Land D Tokachi Version, and introduced the lives of 25 families who had moved to Tokachi. As a business connected with this project, we planned a tour so people could experience life in Tokachi. Over one thousand people have actually started living in Tokachi. We will continue to support people who want to begin new lives here.

Temperatures reach 30 in summer and go to -30 in winter. For people living in a region with such a severe climate, Tokachi Mainichi Newspaper, Inc. developed the Kachimai Home Center in 1982 to display model homes incorporating the latest technology and materials to build more comfortable houses. We have displayed and sold around 500 model houses. Residential construction companies in Tokachi display houses suitable for the climate of the north. People in the community have come to rely on the Center for information.

In Tokachi, which is blessed with beautiful natural surroundings, tourism has become an indispensable part of the region's economy. Tokachi Mainichi Newspaper, Inc. has several affiliated companies involved in tourism. We have two hotels, one is Japanese style and the other is Western, and a craft beer restaurant. We offer a warm welcome to people from around Hokkaido, Japan and the world. The ideas of hospitality promoted by Hoshu Hayashi, the founder of the company and who also discovered and developed Tokachigawa Spa, in addition to pushing for the establishment of Daisetsuzan National Park, are alive and well.