• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.431-440
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• 2006

In many countries of the world, cultural activities are introduced as a popular means of promoting local economies and identities. In many places of Japan, a traditional cultural activity, "Machtskuri" (meaning "Vilige Making," literally) has been practiced in the past several decades. A small town, Nagahama of Shiga Prefecture, with 50,000 people, started restoring an old castle and historical build, art exibition, traditional fashion festivals, etc. Based on the successful experience from the cultural activities, community leaders of Nagahama made success in creating other projects, such as construction of a baseball stadium, a hotel and a community college. It can be concluded that Nagahama has been successful in creating making the place famious and the people confident.