Tomioka Town, Fukushima Prefecture, "Koho Tomioka" Wins First National Public Relations Contest Award
Tomioka Town, Fukushima Prefecture, has won its first award at the National Public Relations Contest for its public relations magazine "Koho Tomioka" (August 2025 issue). The winning photographic series, titled "Early Summer 2025," captures the changing natural beauty and the children of Tomioka Town, signifying national recognition for the town's efforts to convey its charm.
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National Public Relations Contest Award-Winning Work "Early Summer 2025"
Mayor Ikuo Yamamoto (center left) and members of the Planning Division's Public Relations Section.
Tomioka Town, Fukushima Prefecture (Mayor: Ikuo Yamamoto), has received an award in the "Photo Series Category" at the 2026 National Public Relations Contest, organized by the Japan Association of Public Relations, for its publication "Koho Tomioka" (August 2025 issue / pages 32-33, titled "Early Summer 2025").
This work had previously won the Grand Prize in the "Photo Series Category" at the 71st Fukushima Prefecture Municipal Public Relations Contest and was then submitted to the national contest with Fukushima Prefecture's recommendation. Out of 36 entries submitted from across the nation (number of entries for the Photo Series Category only), all representing the finest public relations magazines from their respective prefectures, this marks the town's first-ever national award.
* National Public Relations Contest Award-Winning Works: https://www.koho.or.jp/contest/result
* Fukushima Prefecture Public Relations Contest Results: https://www.pref.fukushima.lg.jp/sec/01010d/contest71.html
■ Work Overview
The award-winning work "Early Summer 2025" is a photographic series that focuses on the natural beauty of Tomioka Town, including the changing colors of the sky over time, and the children living there.
The soft light and shifting colors displayed by the boundless sky. The green swaying in the wind and landscapes hinting at the seasons. And within these scenes, children innocently laughing and running around—
This work carefully captured such fleeting moments, weaving them into a single story of "irreplaceable time in everyday life."
It aims to deliver scenes that quietly resonate in the hearts of viewers, showcasing the richness and preciousness found not in special events, but in ordinary days, through landscapes where nature and human activities gently overlap.
* Award-Winning Issue: Koho Tomioka, August 2025 issue, Public Relations Magazine Data (relevant pages are P32-33)
Town Official Website: https://www.tomioka-town.jp/uploaded/attachment/6805.pdf
■ Concept
The concept of this work is "Tomioka Town's present, woven by light, sky, and smiles."
By overlapping the changing expressions of the sky, the colors of the earth, and the genuine brilliance of the children living there, it expresses the gentle flow of time in the town and the steady breath of its future.
■ Impressions on Winning
This award is thanks to the understanding and cooperation of everyone who regularly reads our public relations materials, and all those who collaborated in our interviews and photography. We express our heartfelt gratitude.
■ Future Developments
Tomioka Town has been committed to disseminating information through its public relations magazine, social media, and other channels. Taking this award as an opportunity, we will further strive for "communicative public relations" and carefully convey the town's charm, daily scenery, and human warmth.
To the people who live in this town every day, and to those who, though living away from the town, continue to cherish their hometown—so that they may feel connected under the same sky, even when apart.
And so that the appearance of Tomioka Town, slowly but surely moving forward, can be delivered as a steady progress.
From now on, "Koho Tomioka" will continue to passionately convey the town's "present" and "future."
■ Comment from the Representative
"It is an immense honor to receive such a prestigious award. We extend our sincerest gratitude to all involved parties and to everyone who kindly cooperated with our daily interviews. We will continue to carefully capture the beauty and preciousness found in everyday life and disseminate it as the town's journey. We ask for your continued understanding and cooperation." (Hideki Igari, Public Relations Section, Planning Division)
Mayor Ikuo Yamamoto (center left) and members of the Planning Division's Public Relations Section.
Tomioka Town, Fukushima Prefecture (Mayor: Ikuo Yamamoto), has received an award in the "Photo Series Category" at the 2026 National Public Relations Contest, organized by the Japan Association of Public Relations, for its publication "Koho Tomioka" (August 2025 issue / pages 32-33, titled "Early Summer 2025").
This work had previously won the Grand Prize in the "Photo Series Category" at the 71st Fukushima Prefecture Municipal Public Relations Contest and was then submitted to the national contest with Fukushima Prefecture's recommendation. Out of 36 entries submitted from across the nation (number of entries for the Photo Series Category only), all representing the finest public relations magazines from their respective prefectures, this marks the town's first-ever national award.
* National Public Relations Contest Award-Winning Works: https://www.koho.or.jp/contest/result
* Fukushima Prefecture Public Relations Contest Results: https://www.pref.fukushima.lg.jp/sec/01010d/contest71.html
■ Work Overview
The award-winning work "Early Summer 2025" is a photographic series that focuses on the natural beauty of Tomioka Town, including the changing colors of the sky over time, and the children living there.
The soft light and shifting colors displayed by the boundless sky. The green swaying in the wind and landscapes hinting at the seasons. And within these scenes, children innocently laughing and running around—
This work carefully captured such fleeting moments, weaving them into a single story of "irreplaceable time in everyday life."
It aims to deliver scenes that quietly resonate in the hearts of viewers, showcasing the richness and preciousness found not in special events, but in ordinary days, through landscapes where nature and human activities gently overlap.
* Award-Winning Issue: Koho Tomioka, August 2025 issue, Public Relations Magazine Data (relevant pages are P32-33)
Town Official Website: https://www.tomioka-town.jp/uploaded/attachment/6805.pdf
■ Concept
The concept of this work is "Tomioka Town's present, woven by light, sky, and smiles."
By overlapping the changing expressions of the sky, the colors of the earth, and the genuine brilliance of the children living there, it expresses the gentle flow of time in the town and the steady breath of its future.
■ Impressions on Winning
This award is thanks to the understanding and cooperation of everyone who regularly reads our public relations materials, and all those who collaborated in our interviews and photography. We express our heartfelt gratitude.
■ Future Developments
Tomioka Town has been committed to disseminating information through its public relations magazine, social media, and other channels. Taking this award as an opportunity, we will further strive for "communicative public relations" and carefully convey the town's charm, daily scenery, and human warmth.
To the people who live in this town every day, and to those who, though living away from the town, continue to cherish their hometown—so that they may feel connected under the same sky, even when apart.
And so that the appearance of Tomioka Town, slowly but surely moving forward, can be delivered as a steady progress.
From now on, "Koho Tomioka" will continue to passionately convey the town's "present" and "future."
■ Comment from the Representative
"It is an immense honor to receive such a prestigious award. We extend our sincerest gratitude to all involved parties and to everyone who kindly cooperated with our daily interviews. We will continue to carefully capture the beauty and preciousness found in everyday life and disseminate it as the town's journey. We ask for your continued understanding and cooperation." (Hideki Igari, Public Relations Section, Planning Division)