At the end of May 2014, I retired from the Japanese newspaper company I had worked for after approximately 30 years. After I retired, I had a lot of free time. Initially, I decided to stay in the Philippines for two months to study English, which was something I had planned for many years. This is when I realized there was a lot of litter in the city. The people of the Philippines are extremely friendly and nice. The food is cheap and good, and a magnificent natural environment remains. I became a big fan of this country, except for the fact that litter gives off a negative image to foreigners. I thought about how I could use my experiences in reporting and writing to help improve this issue. After returning to Japan, I began mulling over ideas, and I came to the conclusion of writing a book that could become a reference for people thinking about ways to reduce garbage. “How we can reduce litter from cities” is the theme of this book.I hope that this book can become a reference for young scholars who are interested in the culture of Japan,volunteers involved in cleanup efforts, and administrative officers who are considering measures to address the garbage issue.