Abstract
A decade has passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake. Did Japan get over the damages caused by the catastrophic quake and is actualizing the recovery that people expected? What lessons have we learned from the insufficient preparedness for tsunami, earthquake, and nuclear accident to better prepare for large-scale disasters? To find the answers to them, the NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute conducted a public opinion survey on people's attitudes towards post-disaster recovery and disaster risk reduction (DRR). The findings from the survey were presented at the “BUNKEN FORUM 2021 Presentations of Research Reports” held in March this year. The presentation was followed by a symposium with panelists Prof. Kawata Yoshiaki and Prof. Katada Toshitaka—academic experts on disaster/DRR who have been involved in post-Great East Japan Earthquake recovery efforts—and Mr. Noda Takenori, Mayor of Kamaishi City, Iwate Prefecture, who has been working on the recovery and reconstruction of disaster-affected areas as head of municipality. The panel discussion focused on what would be needed for the reconstruction of disaster-stricken areas and how to confront possible major disasters in the future.
This paper aims to provide the gist of arguments made at the 90-minute symposium so that local communities can use them as a useful reference to their DRR and reconstructive measures. Panelists' opinions are presented according to the following five issues: 1) why the recovery is not felt, 2) why reconstruction took a long time, 3) recovery of local economy, 4) lasting impacts of the nuclear accident, and 5) how to prepare for large-scale disasters.
