Abstract
We have launched a new research and education project at Hitotsubashi University on ‘Natural Resource-based Economies (NRE)’ sponsored by the Norinchukin Bank scince the fiscal year of 2009. The project name is ‘Policy Research for Sustainable Development of the Natural Resource-based Industries and Communities’. In the project we propose to understand so-called ‘primary industries’ such as agriculture and rural communities which are mainly dependent on ‘primary industries’ as the most important one of NRE. The NRE are supported by various kinds of the natural ecosystem services.
According to the above theoretical framework of NER concept, this article examines three basic issues ( 1) the issue of policy priority for agriculture and rural communities, 2) the issue of agricultural land use and management of rural resources, 3) the issue of human resources and their capacity building for agriculture and rural communities) in focussing the recent situation of Japan in order to secure the rural sustainability in the 21th century.
