Japan’s ‘Gentle Power’ Aids Conservation

Why this is here: Traditional irrigation practices, called Alternate Wetting and Drying, observed in the study may help reduce methane emissions from rice cultivation.

Professor Mikiko Sugiura from Sophia University in Japan presents “gentle power” as a conservation approach. This framework blends government regulation with community involvement, stemming from a 40-year study of the Zushi-Onoji satoyama landscape near Tokyo. Sugiura examined how local farmers, government agencies, and volunteers sustained wetlands, rice paddies, and forests.

The research shows biodiversity thrives not in untouched nature, but through ongoing human interaction with the land. Over time, the area shifted from conflict over land use to a collaborative system where farmers secured tax relief and managed conservation directly. Local expertise in water control and habitat maintenance gained recognition as valuable ecological knowledge.

The Zushi-Onoji area still supports endangered amphibians like the Tokyo Daruma Frog. The study acknowledges that its findings may not apply universally and calls for further research in different regions. Sugiura emphasizes the risk of losing vital ecological knowledge as traditional landscapes disappear, requiring continued efforts to nurture human-nature relationships.