is a
village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...
located in
Kunigami District,
Okinawa Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi).
Naha is the capital and largest city o ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
.
As of 2016, the village has an estimated
population
Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...
of 1,683 and a
population density
Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
of 21 persons per km². The total area is 81.79 km².
Ecotourism
The village of Higashi is one of the most remote places on Okinawa island and has become a hotspot of
ecotourism
Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds ...
. Okinawa's first ecotourism association was established in Higashi in 1998, with various associations eventually combined in 2005 to become the Higashi Village Tourism Promotion Association. One major project was the building of a ten-hectare
mangrove forest
Mangrove forests, also called mangrove swamps, mangrove thickets or mangals, are productive wetlands that occur in coastal intertidal zones. Mangrove forests grow mainly at tropical and subtropical latitudes because mangroves cannot withstand fr ...
called Hirugi Park, built around Gesashi Bay, the largest such forest on the island. The mangroves had been designated as a
natural Monument of Japan
To protect Japan's cultural heritage, the country's government selects through the Agency for Cultural Affairs important items and designates them as Cultural Properties under the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties. Designated items are ...
in 1972 and were eventually incorporated into
Yambaru National Park
is a national park in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Established in 2016, it is located in and around the forested region of Yanbaru at the northern end of Okinawa Island. The park comprises a land area of in the villages of Kunigami, Ōgimi, and H ...
in 2016.
Education
Schools are: Higashi Combined Kindergarten, Elementary, and Junior High School (東幼小中学校), Arume Kindergarten and Elementary School (有銘幼小学校), and Takae Elementary School (高江小学校).
Notable residents
*
Ai Miyazato
is a former Japanese professional golfer who competed on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour and the LPGA of Japan Tour (JLPGA). She was the top-ranked golfer in the Women's World Golf Rankings on three occasions in 2010.
Early life, family and amateur ca ...
, golfer
*
Yūsaku Miyazato
is a Japanese professional golfer. In 2006 he became the first modern-era golfer to make two hole in one shots in the same round of a PGA Tour event, at the Reno-Tahoe Open in Nevada.
Early life and amateur career
Miyazato was born in Higashi, ...
, golfer
See also
*
Yambaru
References
External links
*
Higashi official website
Villages in Okinawa Prefecture
{{Okinawa-geo-stub