In 1992, The first Green Map was originated by a New York based environmental designer, Wendy Brawer. Today, The non-profit Green Map System organization is active all over the world - with locally-led projects in 180 cities in 37 countries. One unique characteristic is that every Green Mapmaker uses universal Green Map Icons to record significant ecological and cultural sites in their city or town. By creating a Green Map, people in a community can refocus attention on its environment, promote sustainability and create a new space for community-based activities. There are 125 standardized icons and they represent nature, culture, Eco-agriculture, Green business, alternative transportation, renewable energy, pollution, and so on. The lively icons are simply designed so they can be understood by many people - regardless of the age, language and nationality (they are a font that can be used with any computer program, too). In Japan, Green Maps have been published in many cities - Kyoto, Kiyotake Town in Miyazaki, Okayama, Takamatsu, and Setagaya-Ward, more in progress
(see http://www.greenmap.jp/).