2025 Volume 55 Issue 2 Pages 237-257
The term “environment” refers to the external world surrounding living organisms, and its object and scope are diverse. This study clarified the image and meaning of “environment” as held by municipalities selected by the government as Environmental Model Cities. Yusuhara in Takaoka-gun, Kochi Prefecture, which was designated as an environmental model city by the government in 2008, was used as a case study of a municipality under investigation. We test the hypothesis that Yusuhara has changed from a negative image town where the geographical conditions and climate used to be harsh for living, and where the town was described as “nothing but nature,” to a positive image of a rich natural environment through activities as an environmental model city, and discuss the factors behind this change.
The results of the analysis indicate that in municipal town histories, the meaning of “environment” is diverse, often referring to “life,” “society,” “sanitation,” “education,” and other similar factors. The proportion of “nature” has increased in recent years, and it is often used as a proper noun in the names of municipal divisions and projects. In older town histories, “nature” often had the connotation of “naturally occurring,” and was often used negatively to describe an environment that was poor in agricultural production or severe enough to cause natural disasters. In recent years, however, it has come to be seen as an energy resource, such as solar power, wind power, hydraulic power and biomass.
In addition, abundant nature is recognized as having a non-depleting use value. Furthermore, it can be a tourist resource as a scenic spot or a famous landmark. Therefore, the idea of diverting resource use arose as a result of the growing reaffirmation of the area as a different kind of local resource when changes occurred in the local community, such as industrial transitions and population changes.
The change in attitude toward reassessing the existence of harsh nature into a positive manner can be attributed to the fact that it is now recognized as a local resource.
JEL Classification:Q2, Q51, R11
