Finished paper is displayed at Uchimura Kobo, one of the Hosokawa-shi paper making workshops, on April 9, 2018 in Higashichichibu, Japan. (Carl Court/Getty Images)

There are only three places in Japan where you can find the traditional craft of hand-made paper called Washi: Misumi-cho in Hamada City, Mino City in Gifu Prefecture and Higashi-chichibu Village in Saitama Prefecture.

Washi was inscribed on UNESCO’s in 2014, implying that the heritage could disappear without special efforts to retain the technique. Because of the sturdy, thick quality of the paper, it has various uses. Not only is it used for books and calligraphy, but also is a commonly found element in side homes. They’re made into paper screens, room dividers and sliding doors.

Washi is made from the pulp of a mulberry tree, which creates its durability. “In fact, the paper is so sturdy that it was common practice (in the Edo period) for people to throw their account books in nearby ponds in the event of a fire. once the fire subsided, they would retrieve the book from the water and find they were still usable,” Eiji Fukushima, general manager of the Village of Japanese Paper theme park, .

The mulberry tree goes through a long process of refining that requires more than 20 steps. It is cut, separated, thoroughly cleaned of impurities and eventuallydried outdoors. Even in its final process, not all sheets that made can be used. Anything that is uneven or has a bad surface texture will be .

There are currently only seven national registered technicians who can produce the paper. Residents of the three communities are working to raise awareness of the craft by cultivating the mulberry, training others in the technique and producing new products to promote Washi.