Although Seibutsu no Sekai (The World of Living Things), the seminal 1941 work of Kinji Imanishi, had an enormous impact in Japan, both on scholars and on the general public, very little is known about it in the English-speaking world. This book makes the complete text available in English for the first time and provides an extensive introduction and notes to set the work in context. Imanishi's work, based on a very wide knowledge of science and the natural world, puts forward a distinctive view of nature and how it should be studied. Imanishi's work is particularly important as a background to ecology, primatology and human social evolution theory in Japan. Imanishi's views on these subjects are extremely interesting because he formulated an approach to viewing nature which challenged the usual international ideas of the time, and which foreshadow approaches that have currency today.

Although Seibutsu no Sekai (The World of Living Things), the seminal 1941 work of Kinji Imanishi, had an enormous impact in Japan, both on scholars and on the general public, very little is known about it in the English-speaking world. This book makes the complete text available in English for the first time and provides an extensive introduction and notes to set the work in context. Imanishi's work, based on a very wide knowledge of science and the natural world, puts forward a distinctive view of nature and how it should be studied. Imanishi's work is particularly important as a background to ecology, primatology and human social evolution theory in Japan. Imanishi's views on these subjects are extremely interesting because he formulated an approach to viewing nature which challenged the usual international ideas of the time, and which foreshadow approaches that have currency today.

Nature and Identity in Cross-Cultural Perspective presents 20 essays which explore diverse cultural interpretations of the earth's surface. Contrasted with each other and with the potentially cosmopolitan culture of science, these detailed studies of ways in which different cultures conceptualise nature appear in the context of global environmental change. Understanding across cultural lines has never been more important. This book shows how individual cultures see their own histories as offering protection for nature, while often viewing others as lacking such ethical restraints. Through such writing a discourse of understanding and common action becomes possible. The authors come from the places they discuss, and offer passionate as well as scholarly visions of nature within their cultural homes. Audience: This volume is of interest to academics and professionals working in the fields of cultural geography, environmental history, environmental studies, history of environmental ideas, environmental education, landscape and literature, nature and culture. It can be used for courses in the above-mentioned areas and seminars in comparative literature. It can also be used as a complimentary text to provide cultural context to literary readings, and for seminars on cultural aspects of the environment.

The title of this book, Traditional Wisdom and Modern Knowledge for the Earth’s Future, is from the theme of the 2013 Kyoto Regional Conference of the International Geographical Union. Over the past few decades, globalization has strengthened connections among countries and regions of the world and has greatly changed existing geographies. However, this trend has also fostered various problems on a regional or global scale, such as economic imbalance, social fragmentation, political conflicts, and environmental crises. While acknowledging the world’s diversity, geography as a discipline must endeavor to resolve these problems by devising plans for cooperation and symbiotic existence of the different peoples of the world. An old Japanese proverb, On-ko chi-shin, taken from a Chinese one, Wengu Zhixin, says that only by exploring the old can one understand the new. People should first understand how traditional ideas, linked to interaction between society/culture and the environment, were formed in different countries and regions. Traditional wisdom, in harmony with the environment, remains prevalent. This book examines how we can mold the earth’s future through such traditional wisdom and modern knowledge from the nine keynote speeches of the Kyoto Regional Conference focusing on three topics: traditional wisdom, the environment, and the Great East Japan Earthquake.

Comparative Literature: Sharing Knowledges for Preserving Cultural Diversity theme is a component of Encyclopedia of Social Sciences and Humanities in the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), which is an integrated compendium of twenty one Encyclopedias. The Theme on Comparative Literature: Sharing Knowledge's for Preserving Cultural Diversity provides six different topics: 1. Language, literature and human sustainability; 2. Relationships among literature and other artistic activities and discourses ; 3. Comparative literature and other fields of knowledge; 4. Comparative literature, criticism and media ; 5. Comparative literature in the age of global change; 6. Translatio studii and cross-cultural movements or Weltverkehr. These three volumes are aimed at a wide spectrum of audiences: University and College Students, Educators and Research Personnel.

Area Studies - Regional Sustainable Development Review: Japan is a component of Encyclopedia of Area Studies - Regional Sustainable Development Review in the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), which is an integrated compendium of twenty one Encyclopedias. This volume on Area Studies - Regional Sustainable Development Review: Japan reviews initiatives and activities towards sustainable development in Japan such as: Perspectives on Sustainable Development in Japan; Changing Consumption Patterns in Japan; Demographic Dynamics in Japan; Protection and Promotion of Human Health in Japan; Promoting Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development; Environmentally Sound Management of Biotechnology in Japan; Protection of Oceans and Their Living Resources-Japan; Soil And Groundwater Contamination And Remediation In Japan; Education, Public Awareness and Training; National Mechanisms and International Cooperation for Capacity Building - Japan; International Legal Instruments and Mechanisms in Japan; Information for Decision Making; Forestry Principles in Japan; Agreements: Rio Declaration; Global Forum NGO Treaties: Linking Japan to the World; The View of Nature in Japanese Literature; Towards A Sustainable Civilization and Society: A Socio-cultural Ecological Perspective from Japan; Future Scenarios: Predicting Our Environmental Future. Although these presentations are with specific reference to Japan, they provide potentially useful lessons for other regions as well. This volume is aimed at the following five major target audiences: University and College students Educators, Professional practitioners, Research personnel and Policy analysts, managers, and decision makers and NGOs.