Blue Planet Prize Story

Professor Daily has focused on the countryside in her studies. Let's look at some examples. Most of the nature we see is in the countryside. However, here we focus on the countryside where human's involvement has played an important role in conservation.
Let's take a look at Germany and Japan. The concept of nature in these two countries is slightly different, yet both have a unique respect for nature.
Christianity, which is prevalent in Germany, holds that God created nature and that humans are considered a distinctive element in it. This belief led to the concept that people hold responsibility for both management and betterment of nature.
Meanwhile, Japan's indigenous religion, Shinto, deems that gods and goddesses reside in nature and that humans are not unparalleled. Because of the belief, Japanese have treated nature with reverence and closeness.
Although their backgrounds are different, people in both countries cherish nature. If people around the world recognize these different values, they can work together for environmental conservation.

Forests in Germany

Professor Daily spent her childhood in Germany. Forests cover one-third of the country. The majority of these are not virgin forests. They are under the influence of human activities.
As we explained in the text, forests in Germany have been managed by people over an extended period. Traditionally, forestry has been an ordinary practice throughout Germany. In the late 19th century, the search for fuel during the industrial revolution caused excessive deforestation. People planted needle-leaf trees such as fast-growing spruce and pine, and this resulted in the creation of monoculture forests, a loss of biodiversity. (In those areas, broad-leaf trees such as beech and water oak grow naturally.)
This experience helped Germany develop the concept of sustainable use. Despite the damage caused by acid rain in the 1970s and 1980s, Germany achieved a sustainable industry in beautiful forests with a wide range of trees, including both needle- and broad-leaf varieties. People enjoy the beautiful scenery as they hike through the forests that are such an essential part of their lives, and forester is a job that people in Germany admire. It requires specialized education over a wide range of subjects to ensure the long-term care and conservation of forests throughout the nation. Individual foresters work in specific areas for long periods of time.
Such closeness to nature developed a culture deeply associated with forests. Grimm Fairy Tales such as "Hansel and Gretel" and "Sleeping Beauty" took place in the forests of Germany.

Satoyama, the countryside influenced by humans

Forests cover two-thirds of the territory of Japan. Most of these are in mountainous areas with diverse geographical features such as hills and valleys that extend north and south that result in a wide range of weather and ecosystems. Being an island, it has robust biological diversity. At the same time, however, urban development has become a severe threat to its ecosystems, and the entire nation is included in the list of world biodiversity hotspots.
The precious pristine nature rarely remains in Japan; most have been under the influence of human activities. We call nature Satoyama that locates between the cities and mountains and has been managed through traditional Japanese farming techniques. Japanese farmers built rice paddies, developing reservoirs and water channels for irrigation, and maintaining copse to collect fallen leaves to use as fertilizer and fuel for fire. People worked close to nature to develop unique ecosystems around them.
The benefits reaped from satoyama were essential for daily living. However, we needed to be careful not to take too much. Since the Edo Period (1602-1868), the government had laws against overuse, and people in villages worked together to realize sustainable satoyama.
In modern times, the economic development that has grown around the world reached Japan as well. This growth, however, created a threat to satoyama. Besides, the number of people engaged in agriculture has decreased, making it difficult to manage and maintain satoyama ecosystems.
Recently, a wide range of approaches has been taken to seek a sustainable relationship between people and the natural environment to conserve satoyama. One of these is Satoyama Initiatives. Professor Daily is also interested in satoyama. When she visited Japan in 2017, she found time in her busy schedule to visit one near Tokyo.