Promotional Event Held for ‘UMIGOMI Zero Week 2025’Roughly 380 cosplayers and other participants raise awareness of issues related to ocean debris

The promotional event was held to raise awareness of UMIGOMI Zero Week 2025, with roughly 380 people participating. In addition to cosplayers (people dressing as their favorite characters from anime films, manga comics, video games, etc.), many of whom have large numbers of social media followers and regularly pick up trash in areas where they film and photograph, participants included representatives of McDonald’s Japan and other cooperating companies, the Japan Soft Drink Association, and the Japan Coast Guard. Despite the threat of rain, 98.1 kilograms of trash was collected during the SPOGOMI event held in Tokyo’s Ariake area (home to the Tokyo Big Site international exhibition center and the Ariake Arena sports facility).

SPOGOMI is a trash-collecting competition that originated in Japan. Trash-collecting events at six locations across Japan were video-linked to the opening ceremony to raise awareness and generate enthusiasm for the activity across Japan. A variety of events were held during the day taking different approaches to creating interest in and promoting understanding of the problem of ocean debris, including a quiz contest to deepen participants’ knowledge and an original kabuki production themed on ocean environmental issues.

The UMIGOMI Zero Week campaign was first held in 2019, and this is the ninth time it is being held, with more than 320,000 people (as of May 31) from across Japan having registered to participate in this year’s events. The event in Ariake was facilitated through assistance to an organization that is promoting cosplay culture around the world, to help spread the word to a wide audience including young people that roughly 80% of ocean debris originates on land and flows through rivers into the ocean, making it important to address the issue of ocean debris through cleanup activities on land.