A workshop called "Sustainable Craft Lab," which reuses advertising banners displayed around Shibuya Station, was held on August 8th at the event space on the second basement floor of the underground plaza at the east exit of Shibuya Station. The event was organized by Shibuya Station Area Management and Tokyu Media Communications.

Parents and children participating in the workshop

Instead of discarding the advertising banners that adorned the city, this event aims to give them a new life in a different form. It offers participants the opportunity to experience "upcycling," where used advertising banners are transformed into new products. The event was planned with the aim of raising awareness among residents and visitors about the activities of Shibuya Station Area Management, which is working on urban development around Shibuya Station, as well as about SDGs and resource recycling.

The material used for this project was an advertising banner that was displayed in front of the Hachiko statue in Shibuya in May of this year to raise awareness about the revised ordinance against littering. Made of durable polyester cloth, which is used for outdoor advertising, the banner was cut up and reused after its display period ended. The advertisement, which was once part of the scenery in front of the Hachiko statue where many people pass by, has now been transformed into a palm-sized item.

For this project, you can choose between a triangle coin case (coin purse) or a "cup sleeve".

Participants could choose between a "triangle coin case" that folds into a triangle, or a "cup sleeve" that attaches to coffee cups and other items. They selected their preferred colors and patterns from the fabrics laid out on the table, and then, with instructions from the staff, attached buttons and folded the fabric to complete their creations.

First, we decided what to make, and then selected scraps of advertising banners, each with a different pattern and color. We started making it while listening to explanations from the staff about how to attach the metal fittings and other details.

Using machinery, the metal fittings and buttons are attached with force. Finally, the assembly process is completed, and the coin case or cup sleeve is finished.

The advertising banner used as the material was a large single banner measuring 2.9 meters high and 13.17 meters wide. Because the appearance of the colors, letters, and patterns differed depending on where it was cut, each finished item had a unique look. At the venue, participants, mainly families, compared the fabrics, chose their favorite parts, and created one-of-a-kind items. The production time was set to about 10 to 20 minutes so that even children could easily participate.

Reusing discarded advertising banners for urban development.

Nao Otsuka of Shibuya Station Area Management, who is organizing the project, recalls, "The advertising sheets are changed approximately every two weeks, so large sheets are discarded each time. It's a waste to throw them away every time, so we started talking about whether we could use them through upcycling or recycling."

The street advertising around Shibuya Station, managed by the organization, is a valuable source of revenue that is reinvested in urban development activities. However, the frequent replacement and subsequent disposal of the advertising banners has been identified as a challenge. Consideration of reusing the advertising banners began in fiscal year 2025. In February of this year, pouches were made from advertising banners for the digital art event "DIG SHIBUYA," and used to distribute to participants in cleaning activities and as samples to introduce the initiative to stakeholders.

The "DIG SHIBUYA" advertising banner that was displayed in front of the Hachiko statue in February has been transformed into a pouch. With the words "Koen-dori" (Park Street) written diagonally, it has been reborn as a product unique to Shibuya.

Advertisements that once became part of the city's landscape and have served their purpose are being repurposed as bags and pouches, finding new homes. This time, using an advertisement banner from Shibuya Ward regarding its "Littering Ordinance" that was displayed in May, the project was conducted in a workshop format for the first time, aiming to raise awareness of upcycling among the general public.

In this workshop, we reused the advertising banners that were displayed in front of the Hachiko statue in May as part of our awareness campaign against littering.

"Since this is a workshop for parents and children to participate in together, I thought about creating items that both children and adults could use," says Otsuka. "I chose these two types: a coin case for children to put their pocket money in, and a cup sleeve for adults to use when drinking coffee. I hope that this will also give children an opportunity to think about garbage and environmental issues on their own during their summer vacation," she says.

A parent and child who participated from Suginami Ward

A third-grade boy from Suginami Ward took part in the workshop, trying his hand at making a coin purse. "Attaching the buttons was the most fun part," he said, smiling as he added that he would "take good care of" the finished case. His mother commented, "I think this is a wonderful initiative that utilizes things that would otherwise be thrown away. Since there's a tangible result, I'd like to use it for his summer vacation project."

Completed coin case

Reusing advertising banners requires coordinating rights with advertisers and designers, so currently they are mainly using advertising banners that were displayed by Shibuya Ward to create case studies.

Looking ahead, Otsuka expressed his hopes, saying, "First, we'll use government-run advertising banners to build up a track record, and in the future, we'd like to collaborate with advertising clients who sympathize with this initiative, not just to have them display their advertisements, but to work together to upcycle the advertising sheets." He added, "Ideally, we'd like to turn them into merchandise and sell them as 'Shibuya souvenirs,' and then reinvest the profits back into urban development. Shibuya has a strong ability to communicate, so by publicizing that we are upcycling, we hope to create an opportunity for people to think about environmental issues."

The workshop lasted from 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM, with parents and children joining in one after another.

Advertisements that have served their purpose in the city find new lives in people's hands and return to the city once again. This small cycle, too, may become one of the ever-changing landscapes of Shibuya.

Interview and writing: Takashi Fujii / Photography: Osamu Matsuba

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