Handbook of Environmental History in Japan / / ed. by Fujihara Tatsushi.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Amsterdam University Press Complete eBook-Package 2023
• MitwirkendeR: Hayashi, John,; Kazuhiro, Uesugi,; Kōji, Nakashima,; MHM Limited,; Maika, Nakao,; Michinori, Hashimoto,; Moriguchi, Yuka Tsuchiya,; Noriko, Yuzawa,; Pitteloud, Cyrian,; Reiko, Seki,; Satoru, Kobori,; Soko, Aoki,; Taisaku, Komeie,; Takahiro, Nishimura,; Tarō, Takemoto,; Tatsushi, Fujihara,; Toyoko, Kozai,
• HerausgeberIn: Tatsushi, Fujihara,
• Place / Publishing House: Amsterdam : : Amsterdam University Press, , [2023]; ©2023
• Year of Publication: 2023
• Language: English
• Series: Handbooks on Japanese Studies
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (304 p.)

Japan: a land plagued by volcanoes, earthquakes and typhoons, yet blessed with a climate suitable for all manner of agriculture and forestry, and positioned where ocean currents collide and bring an abundance of the ocean’s resources to its people; a country which moved quickly from an agrarian pre-industrial society to become one of the world’s great economic powerhouses in only a few decades, spoiling water, air and land in the process, bringing misery to many of its people; a country with expansionist desires, colonizing neighboring lands, leading to war, defeat, destruction and, for the first time in history, nuclear devastation and its aftermath; a land and its people which share a remarkable resilience and ability to evaluate and correct their mistakes and renew their trajectory towards a better future. The sixteen chapters of the Handbook of Environmental History in Japan‹/cite) take a critical look at the environmental history of Japan, reviewing lessons learned and offering ideas that may provide solutions to at least some of the existential environmental problems faced by people all around the globe. Divided into five sections which examine topology, pollution, the relationship shared by humans and nature, water resources and forestry, this handbook is a valuable resource for students and scholars who want to discover and understand the role humans play not just in the destruction of resources but also in their preservation.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Table of Contents -- Contributors -- Preface -- Introduction: Perspectives of Environmental History in Japan -- Part 1: Topology of Environmental History -- 1 Cultural Landscapes in Japan: Case Studies in Shiga, Ehime and Okinawa Prefectures -- 2 Japan’s Colonial Environments -- 3 National Parks, Nature Conservation, War: The Development of the National Parks System in Japan, 1907–1945 -- Part 2: Pollution Incidents/Disasters -- 4 The Ashio Affair: The Emergence of Industrial Pollution as a Social, Political and Environmental Issue (19th–20th Centuries) -- 5 Two Outbreaks of Minamata Disease and the Struggle for Human Rights -- 6 Black Rain, Lawsuits and Compensation: Radiation in the Environment and Human Exposure in Hiroshima and Nagasaki -- 7 Environmental Problems Caused by the Shinkansen in Nagoya City -- Part 3: Between Nature and Human -- 8 Epidemiological Landscape and Medical Theories: Focusing on a History of Smallpox in Early Modern Japan -- 9 Between Nature and Human: History of the Use of “Night Soil” in Japan -- 10 Agricultural Technology and the Environment in Modern Japan -- Part 4: Seas, Lakes and Shores -- 11 Regional Environmental History: The Lake Biwa Region -- 12 The 20th Century around Tokyo Bay: Life, Production, and Environment -- 13 Tuna Fisheries and Thermonuclear Tests, 1954–1963 -- Part 5: Forestry -- 14 Japanese Swidden Agriculture (yakihata): Environmental History of Grassland, Forest and Fire -- 15 A History of Tree Planting in Modern Japan: Resource Utilization and Environment Conservation -- 16 Empire Forestry Endures: The Development and Continuity of Japanese Forestry in Southeast Asia, 1930–1970 -- Index