[Background]
The objective of this project was to bring new awareness to environmental issues and climate change. There have been an increasing number of news reports in the last few years about the encroachment of dangerous invasive species in Japan that threaten our lives. These dangerous invasive species have arrived in Japan from other countries and are steadily expanding their habitats. The irony is that the root cause of these invasions is our own lifestyles. The environmental destruction caused by how we live has accelerated climate change, which in turn has provided hospitable living conditions for invasive species. To put it another way, the dangerous invasive species should thank us humans for the wonderful circumstances we have created for them.
[Execution]
To bring attention to these facts, we posted a massive thank you letter from a fire ant — the most widely known toxic invasive species in Japan — at Shibuya’s scramble intersection — one of the most crowded places in Japan. The letter is written in Spanish, the language of the fire ant’s native region (a language most Japanese people cannot read). It expresses the fire ant’s appreciation to people leading environmentally unfriendly lives, which has made it easy for fire ants to thrive in Japan. A QR code in the message directs viewers to a website hosting a Japanese translation of the letter. In this way, viewers can understand the message contained in the letter.
Message from a fire ant [Translated from original Spanish]
Hi, Japan. Nice to meet you. I’m your friendly fire ant from South America. I usually spend my days in parks and lawns, stinging people and pets with my venomous stinger. I’m particularly fond of places where people have picnics and BBQs. I travelled a great distance aboard a shipping container to get here, but this country seems to really suit me. So, I plan to set down roots here. None of this would be possible without you. Thank you so much. Please continue to disregard the environment so we fire ants can keep living here in luxury.
Thanks again,
Your friendly fire ant