Stories Of Survival

Andrew Higgins, Brigid Schulte and Joel Achenbach (thanks, Mark): Hiroshi Kameyama, the mayor of Ishinomaki, put on a formal business suit that morning, March 11, and drove 35 miles down the coast to Sendai to attend a symposium on the commercialization of algae.

The mayor, a former engineering professor, enjoyed talking about science and saw an opportunity to speak to potential investors about his city's overlooked charms. Ishinomaki was not glamorous, but it had fine roads, a university and a lovely, meandering coastline dotted with bays and beaches.

His city had excellent access to the sea.