Natural Heritage of Japan

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xii

   PDF

2. Introduction

   • Abhik Chakraborty

   Pages 1-7

3. Geology of the Japanese Islands: An Outline

   • Koji Wakita

   Pages 9-17

4. Volcanic Archipelago: Volcanism as a Geoheritage Characteristic of Japan

   • Setsuya Nakada

   Pages 19-28

5. World Heritage Sites (Natural)

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 29-29

      PDF

   2. Shiretoko Peninsula: Dynamic Interaction Between Geology, Geomorphology, and Ecology at The Interface of Terrestrial and Marine Systems

      • Abhik Chakraborty

      Pages 31-48

   3. Shirakami Mountains: Old-Growth Forests of Siebold’s Beech Supporting Biodiversity in a Dynamic Landscape

      • Abhik Chakraborty

      Pages 49-60

   4. Ogasawara Islands World Heritage Area: An Outstanding Ecological Heritage

      • Masahito Yoshida

      Pages 61-72

   5. Yakushima Island: Landscape History, World Heritage Designation, and Conservation Status for Local Society

      • Shigemitsu Shibasaki

      Pages 73-83

6. UNESCO Global Geoparks

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 85-85

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   2. The Origin and Development of Geoparks in Japan: Reflections from a Personal Perspective

      • Mahito Watanabe

      Pages 87-94

   3. San’in-Kaigan UNESCO Global Geopark: Geology and Conservation of the Oriental White Stork

      • Naoki Kikuchi, Kuniyasu Mokudai

      Pages 95-101

   4. Muroto Geopark: Understanding the Moving Earth

      • Yugo Nakamura, Kazuhiro Yuhora

      Pages 103-115

   5. The Interface of Geology, Ecology, and Society: The Case of Aso Volcanic Landscape

      • Shamik Chakraborty

      Pages 117-130

   6. The Mt. Unzen Disaster: A Terrible Learning Experience

      • Malcolm J. M. Cooper

      Pages 131-142

   7. Challenges for Geoconservation in Contemporary Japan

      • Abhik Chakraborty, Kuniyasu Mokudai

      Pages 143-149

7. National Park Sites

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 151-151

      PDF

   2. The Lake Akan Area: A Future Geopark?

      • Malcolm Cooper

      Pages 153-159

   3. Oze Wetland: The Birthplace of the Nature Conservation Movement in Japan

      • Kiyotatsu Yamamoto

      Pages 161-166

   4. Mount Fuji: The Volcano, the Heritage, and the Mountain

      • Abhik Chakraborty, Thomas E. Jones

      Pages 167-175

This volume brings together the geological, geomorphological and ecological aspects of Japan’s natural heritage, arguing for dynamic conservation of such heritage and explaining their key characteristics in an accessible format for general readers. Sites from World Heritage Properties (Natural), UNESCO Global Geoparks, and National Parks of Japan representing key facets of this heritage are analyzed in depth, and the text is supplemented with color photographs and useful information for potential travelers. The volume is divided into thematic sections that help understand the diversity of Japan’s natural heritage, with supplementary information on conservation, tourism trends, local culture and lifestyles. In addition, chapters analyzing nature's mechanisms that engender diverse heritage landscapes and conservation/sustainable management schemes make this volume a valuable resource for both general readers and those with more specialized interests.

• Geoparks of Japan
• Nature Conservation
• Ramsar Sites
• World heritage
• Geomorphology

• Center for Tourism Research (CTR), Wakayama University, Wakayama, Japan

  Abhik Chakraborty

• Japan Geo Service Inc., Tokyo, Japan

  Kuniyasu Mokudai

• College of Asia Pacific Studies, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Beppu, Japan

  Malcolm Cooper

• Geological Survey of Japan, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tsukuba, Japan

  Mahito Watanabe

• Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability, United Nations University, Tokyo, Japan

  Shamik Chakraborty

Abhik Chakraborty is a Lecturer at Center for Tourism Research, Wakayama University. His research interests include complex environmental systems, landscape change, nature conservation and the Anthropocene. 

 

Kuniyasu Mokudai is currently the CEO of Japan Geoservice Inc, a consulting firm for the protection and interpretation of geological heritage. His field of specialization is mountain geomorphology and nature conservation science.

 

Malcolm Cooper is Emeritus Professor at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University. He has held previous appointments at the Universities of New England, Adelaide and Southern Queensland (Australia), and Waiariki Institute of Technology (New Zealand). He has worked in the environmental planning and tourism policy areas for Federal, State and Local Governments in Australia, and as both a private environmental consultant and a tourism education consultant to the Governments of Sri Lanka, China and Vietnam. 

 

Mahito Watanabe is at the Geological Survey of Japan, AIST. His field of specialization is Geology, especially biostratigraphy of the Neogene sediments. He has been instrumental in introducing and disseminating the Geopark concept in Japan. He is also currently involved in evaluation of global geoparks as a Member of the UNESCO Geopark Council and networking of geoparks as Member of the Exective Committee of the Global Geoparks network and the Advisory Committee of the Asia Pacific Geopark Network.

Shamik Chakraborty is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability, United Nations University (UNU-IAS), and a Visiting Research Fellow at the Integrated Research System for Sustainability Science (IR3S), The University of Tokyo. His research interests include socio-ecological systems, particularly, the study of human-environment interactions in coastal and river basin environments. 

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