Kimiko Hirata

Despite the fact that more than 150 units of coal-fired power plants are in operation in Japan, that fact was just unknown and invisible to people, kind of like CO2.

So we started to create a nationwide map to track every coal project and made it public.

Also, we visited communities where projects are located and spoke with people.

But on many occasions, people didn't care much about the climate and new coal projects.

People cared more about their daily issues, such as jobs, income or childcare.

So we talked not only about climate change, but also about economic and financial risks and health impact from air pollution.

Everything I tried was new to me.

So I reached out to experts, lawyers, professors and NGOs both in Japan and abroad.

I didn't hesitate to ask for help.

And eventually, we developed networks.

With a combination of citizen engagement, data tracking, strategic communication, gradually, people started to act.

In 2020, I took another action.

We submitted a shareholder proposal to Mizuho, one of Japan's largest banks and the biggest coal financier globally at that time.

We asked the company to disclose its business plan aligned with the Paris Agreement.

That means there's no room to finance new coal.

In Western countries, shareholder activism on climate had already gained momentum, but in Japan, it was very first of its kind.

I spent months studying best practices overseas,

I still remember the conversation I had with my friend in Australia on the day before the shareholder meeting.

He said, you will probably get 17 percent support, so I'm betting.

And I said, oh no, if we get 10 percent, that will already be a miracle.