TEACHING TOURISM
Walking Conference - TeToWaCo 2024

Kumi Kato
Dr. Kumi Kato (PhD, Queensland; Ms, Griffith; BA, Tohoku) is a professor at the Faculty of Tourism, Wakayama University, and Happiness Institute, Musashino University, Japan. She is a member of CTS (Critical Tourism Studies) research network, Co-president, ISA RC50 (International tourism), PATA Board member, Research fellow, EarthCheck Research Institute, and Advisor, Global Himalayan Expeditions (recipient of UNFCCC Climate Action Award 2020).

She specialises in sustainable destination management focusing on local community initiatives and empowerment, taking a number of advisory roles at the national an d local governments and destination communities. She led Japan’s national project to develop a sustainable tourism standard, JSTS-D, and advice a number of destinations and communities on sustainability. Publications include Sharpley, R., & Kato, K. (2020). Tourism development in Japan (Routledge); Kato, K. (2019). Gender and Sustainability – exploring ways of knowing: an ecohumanities perspective, Journal of Sustainable Tourism, Vol. 27(7), 939-956; A radio documentary featuring environmental perspectives of Ama divers in Japan, Waiting for the Tide.


Chiaki Shimoyasuba
My name is Chiaki Shimoyasuba, Representative Director of Walklabo Sapporo. As a faculty member, I have been involved in education and research on ecotourism, regional planning, and African ethnic culture for 30 years at Osaka University of Arts and 5 years at Hokkaido University. After retiring three years ago, I now enjoy walking and cycling to maintain my health.

How I got involved in this activity
I got to know people who enjoy walking activities such as Footpath and Long Trail in Sapporo, and I organized a study group on " "Extended Stay and Interactions with Locals in Walking Tourism" at Hokkaido university.

“Walking” for me
Born and raised in an environment rich in nature, the roads, fields, reservoirs, streams, and forest around my home were my daily playground. However, as urban development and infrastructure development progressed in the 1970s, and a full-fledged automobile society emerged, places where children could play safely and roads where people could walk safely rapidly disappeared. My interest in environmental assessment, ecological thought, and ethnic cultures led me to question lifestyles based on mass consumption of resources and energy through academic research on lifestyles and cultures in the Republic of Cameroon and other Central African countries.

For me, "walking" is the basis of a humane and physically and mentally healthy lifestyle. Walking also allows me to rediscover the local natural environment and the historical culture built by our ancestors. I strongly feel that there is now a need for community development that aims to revive the culture of walking.

To all participants
The course of the "Sapporo Round Walk" that we are proposing roughly follows the "Circular Green Belt," which is the framework of the green network in the Sapporo City Green Master Plan. Discover a new charm of Sapporo by walking along this course and experiencing the hidden and charming landscapes, nature, flora and fauna, history, and culture that are scattered throughout Sapporo. Through this walking activity, please join us in building a community that will restore the healthy and humane lifestyles we have lost.

Keeping to the conference multimodal and multiliteracies theme, please note that your abstract can be submitted as a text file which should be 250-300 words in length. Alternatively, it can be a 30-second-long audio or video file. The abstract can also be a visual file with one or several images encapsulating the essence of the submission.

Please include also (for all types of submissions) 3-5 keywords, author name(s), affiliation(s) and email(s).

Abstract submission by: 5 June 2024, JST

Extended abstract (up to 1000 words) and/or full paper submission by: 1 July 2024, JST

Registrations: click here, payment due by 5 July 2024

Email title: Tetowaco2024_abstract
Email to: tetowaco@elms.hokudai.ac.jp

We will strive to provide all necessary support to ensure that all participants can enjoy a safe and comfortable hiking journey, but before submitting the abstract, please carefully consider your physical fitness to ensure that you can complete the hike.

The hiking routes for this conference are part of the Sapporo Round Walk, a hiking trail where participants can experience the natural, cultural, and historical aspects of Sapporo. For this conference, Routes 7 and 8 have been selected.


Route 7 spans 14.5 kilometers and passes through Hokkaido Museum, Nopporo Forest Park, and Momijidai Ryokuchi Park. This route is relatively gentle with no steep slopes but some undulations. Along the way, there are many secluded paths, hot springs, and several historical museums.

Route 8 is 14.7 kilometers long, passes through Tobu Ryokuchi Park, Hiraoka Park, and Hassamu Riverside Park. Similarly, this route is also relatively gentle but offers more facilities compared to Route 7, such as more comfortable pathways and restaurants.

Conference Proceedings
A set of proceedings will be produced based on the papers and outcomes from the walking conference.

Journal Special Issue
We are also negotiating with publishers to produce a journal special issue (SI) as well as an edited book on the topic. Participants will be invited to contribute to these publications if their papers meet the SI guidelines.