Hashima Island, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan

A non-profit organization, “The Way to World Heritage Gunkanjima” (represented by Doutoku Sakamoto), is proposing the designation of the Gunkanjima island as a UNESCO World Heritage site in conjunction with other “Modern Industrial Heritage Sites in Kyushu and Yamaguchi”. (This was broadcasted by TV Asahi on May 23, 2008)
The representatives of 6 prefectures and 11 cities, including Yuichiro Ito, Governor of Kagoshima Prefecture, and Genjiro Kaneko, Governor of Nagasaki Prefecture, jointly submitted to the Agency for Cultural Affairs a proposal for addition of “the Modern Industrial Heritage Sites in Kyushu and Yamaguchi” to the Japan’s tentative candidate list for World Heritage nomination.
In August 2006, the Ministry of Economics, Trade and Industry decided to support the World Heritage designation proposal in an attempt to promote the utilization of the Meiji-Era industrial heritage, including Hashima (Gunkanjima), as tourism resources in the Kyushu and Yamaguchi region.
On September 26, 2008, the Agency for Cultural Affairs added the “Modern Industrial Heritage Sites in Kyushu and Yamaguchi” to the tentative lists.