Addressing yesterday’s opening of the biodiversity summit in Nagoya, the 10th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the CBD, Achim Steiner, the United Nations Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), noted something very significant and, I believe, right on target: Japan’s ancient culture and legendary technological innovation has [...]
Archive for the ‘Musings’ Category
5 Oct
Ecosystem Services – A transitional concept?
One of my favorite webzines, Our World 2.0, recently posted an article exploring the merits of developed countries paying developing countries to protect their so-called “ecosystem services.” The concept of ecosystems providing a valuable service to humanity, and thus being worthy of protection, is a key proposition in the Satoyama Initiative’s quest to protect biodiversity. [...]
14 Sep
Village Simplicity – Ideal or Real?
The following excerpt is from Duane Elgin’s classic book, Voluntary Simplicity. In it, Ram Dass wisely speaks to the topic of a previous blog post in which I discuss “the simplicity which lies on the other side of complexity,” except that he does so in terms specific to village life and our tendency to idealize [...]
24 Jul
A Taste of Living Oneness
Earlier this month I had the great pleasure of visiting Jeffrey Irish, a fascinating fellow in southern Japan who, as an American expatriate, is garnering considerable regional renown for his twelve years of residency in a tiny rural Japanese farming village, including two years as village head. Jeff came to his current position in [...]
12 Jun
How important is worldview?
Given its centuries of success in Japan, the satoyama socio-ecological production landscape appears in many ways to be an inspiring example of how a community of people can live sustainably on the land while enjoying a meaningful and rewarding lifestyle. As we move into a new world of energy descent and relocalization, it certainly seems [...]
12 Jun
Where is the spirit?
In reflecting about the Japanese government’s highly admirable pursuit of the Satoyama Initiative, I am wondering where is the discussion about culture, about community, about the underlying spiritual worldview of the satoyama and satoumi cultures. The underlying worldview of embeddedness in nature, of oneness with the environment, is clearly what undergirded and made possible the [...]
28 May
Finding simplicity on the other side of complexity
Oliver Wendall Holmes quipped, “I wouldn’t give a fig for the simplicity on this side of complexity, but I’d give my life for the simplicity on the other side of complexity.” What does this have to do with satoyama? It speaks directly to the nature of the change we’re facing as a humanity. And it [...]
21 May
When nature is an abstraction it’s easy to take it for granted
Yesterday, after reading Our World 2.0′s excellent article, Biodiversity, the world’s economic backbone, it occurred to me that we humans are being confronted by an entirely new challenge: How NOT to take nature for granted. After lunch I took a moment to watch from our deck as the rain fell lightly onto the leaves of [...]
15 May
A classic documentary, NHK’s Satoyama: Japan’s Secret Watergarden, narrated by David Attenborough
Filmed in 2004 by NHK, Satoyama: Japan’s Secret Watergarden is a gorgeously filmed sixty minute documentary, narrated by David Attenborough. Broadcast a few years later on BBC, the full film is available to view here on Google. [UPDATE: A four-apart HD version is now available on YouTube. The first part is available here. The remaining [...]
11 May
Japan’s strength, and future, is rooted in their ancient connection to nature
In last Sunday’s Japan Times article, To realize its cultural potential, Japan must celebrate its strengths, Kyoto-resident Roger Pulvers hits a positive chord when he asserts that Japan must celebrate its strengths, but says that they’ve already missed the opportunity to capitalize on manga, anime, sushi and karaoke. (See my published letter to the editor here.)
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