Reviving Japan's once-extinct stork population is not just a story of conservation in the city of Toyooka, Hyogo Prefecture. It is also the tale of a provincial region reinventing itself to prevent its population following the species into endangered status.
In common with many regions nationwide, Toyooka has suffered from emigration and the loss of prosperity to bigger urban areas.
Facing the Sea of Japan and thickly forested, Toyooka boasts a range of tourist spots, including ski slopes and the Kinosaki hot springs. But of its approximately 85,000 residents, over 28 percent are aged 65 or over, it reports on its website.