Multi-functionality was listed in the agricultural policy agenda three decades ago. Although farmlands and agricultural water-supply systems have been studied by many researchers, topics related to the maintenance and demonstration of local agricultural multi-functionality, including landscape and biodiversity, have not yet been analyzed in detail with statistics. Therefore, in this study, the factors which promote the collective action of communal organizations to sustain the agro-environmental resources were scrutinized quantitatively. The study also focused on the Measures to Conserve and Improve Land, Water and the Environment case, which was executed in Japan's Yamagata Prefecture, and identified factors to amplify and increase actions that would benefit local agro-environments. The analysis took into account the characteristics of not only the communal organizations themselves, but also the local area where the organizations were established and currently existed. To examine the influence organizations may mutually have on and by the others in the neighborhood, known as the peer effects, spatial econometric analysis was conducted. It resulted in the following conclusions about actions. Impacts of the existing peer effects appeared differently among the actions. Effective actions to preserve landscapes or to enhance biodiversity were likely to depend upon the characteristics of the organizations studied. More attention should be paid to the demographic characteristics of the local community when examining their choice of actions.

Rural community has the characteristics in lower level of transportation services, facilities in commerce and medical services, and dispersed residential locations. Therefore, most residents use their private vehicles as the daily transportation mode to travel with long distance to go to commodity shops and hospitals, because public transportation services are poor. Thus, elder residents who cannot drive by themselves tend to depend on pick-up service provided by household members. However, the drivers who provide the pick-up transportation are also old, so that the sustainable service provision are not expected. It is necessary to consider new transportation services such as a cooperative transportation services by community members, and a consolidated transportation services of passengers and cargos. In introducing the cooperative transportation services or consolidated transportation, additional waiting and travel times for both drivers and passengers are created because of an increasing frequency of passengers and collecting and delivering cargo. As a result, the users have to accelerate their departure time or risk delay in their arrival time. The aim of this study is to clarify how long they can change their time schedule if the new transportation systems are introduced. Using the dataset collected in November 2018 from households living in Iwami town, Tottori prefecture, this study applies hazard-based duration models to analyze allowance of changing their departure time. The estimated model showed that residents lived in Iwami town allows around 15.6 minutes changing of their departure time.

Income of land improvement districts (LIDs)—spent on the operation, maintenance, and management of irrigation and drainage facilities—has depended on an annual membership fee. However, this income has decreased as LIDs have undergone reduction in farmland and farmland areas. The maintenance and financial management of LIDs warrants improvement, and therefore, LIDs have taken two main measures: to acquire various financial sources other than an annual membership fee and to improve the financial basis for reorganizing LIDs. However, if the area reduction is large, it may cause dissolution of organization. To take measures for suppressing area reduction, we investigated the actual situation of district exclusion and settlement money income, which is paid by the members who applied for district exclusion. We first understood the reason for district exclusion in LIDs and how settlement money is collected. Next, we counted the number of district exclusions in 10 years and examined its relationship with urbanization areas. The main findings were as follows: (1) In LIDs, 0.5-7% of areas was excluded. (2) The primary reason of LID exclusion is farmland converted into residential land and for public works. (3) In urbanization areas, small areas of LIDs are continuously converted into residential land; in other areas, a large number of large areas of LIDs were converted for public works in a short period. (4) Finally, although there are LIDs with large settlement money income, there are also those where settlement money is exempted.

This case study explores rural culture preserved within the backyard villages among metropolitan suburb. It also examines the movement of local community formation, that is, evolving rurbanization over the traditional village system. A survey had been carried out in Kani City located in Nagoya Urban Area during 2 and a half years since August 2016.

Rural culture has been preserved under rurbanization as enjoyable opportunities for social contacts among the residents. However, it also tends to dissolve due to the disappearance of communal management of local resources, which is the nucleus of rural culture.

Residents have a different social relationship with the village, according to the age and familial status (local or non-local) as follows. 1) Elderly locals make the social base, bringing up village leaders. They seem to be ridden by the traditional norm of family succession. 2) Elderly non-locals could be partners with the elderly village leaders for the most part. Agricultural life is worth maintaining for the majority of them. 3) Young and middle-aged locals are prone to lack social positiveness. They seem to be affected by the bonds of family life. 4) Young and middle-aged non-locals tend to consider the neighborhood companionship to be a burden.

Among elderly residents, fellow making is likely to progress along with rural cultural preservation. However, as the communality in local resource management is deteriorating, they are not so active as to develop an agriculturally connected community. Regarding young and middle-aged residents, it is conceivable that few networks extend between them in the village. Although there exist talented younger persons who have potential as village leader, they have not yet been mobilized for local community formation. To create a favorable situation, this study proposes an environmental event that reflects the essential structure of rural culture.

In this study, an investigation of the rural community plan based on the People and Nature Coexistence Zones in Kobe City is conducted. The study area is the Oka rural village, which is a suburban rural village, in Kita Ward, Kobe City. This study aims to clarify the situation and characteristics of the succession of a family and agriculture focusing on generation change, as well as the characteristics and relationship between succession and rural management. The results of a questionnaire answered by the officials of a residents’ association, representatives of current generation, and the next-generation successors are analyzed, resulting in three findings: (1) The succession from the current generation to the next generation is diversified in comparison with the succession of the family and agriculture from the previous generation to the present generation. (2) Differences in generations and stability regarding the continuance of the family affect the residents’ intentions in rural farming and management. (3) The residents are trying to lay the foundation for the maintenance and management of the rural villages without burdening the next generation, with the farming association as the central figure.

In recent years, foreign tourists have increased in Japan. This research carried out a questionnaire survey for residents in Ine-town, Kyoto Prefecture, with focuses on the local resident's awareness, to determine factors affecting acceptance of foreign visitors and the potential impact of ‘over-tourism’. As a result, "positive evaluation for inbound tourism" and "inter-cultural acceptance" directly had a positive impact on acceptance of foreign visitors. The higher the evaluation on the economic and social effects of inbound tourism is, the more foreign tourists are accepted. The more the local residents accept the foreign culture, the more favorable it is for foreign tourists and the more they are welcomed. The evaluation on ‘over-tourism’ has indirectly and negatively influenced the "acceptance of visitors" through "positive effects of inbound tourism" and "inter-cultural acceptance". It is necessary to consider the attributes of local residents when planning and implementing efforts to improve the local residents' acceptance of visitors and lower the negative evaluation for ‘over-tourism’. This study has a significant contribution to establishment of the social system for inbound tourism in rural areas, from the viewpoint of understanding of local residents' awareness. Sustainable inbound tourism can be expected by clarifying the factors contributing to acceptance of visiting guests and potential impacts of ‘over-tourism’.

Improving rice yield for feed use has been an ongoing subject of policy-making, although the scientific findings are debatable. In particular, it is essential to reconsider the socio-economic importance of raising the unit yields of rice for feed and point of contact with rural planning. The present study revaluates the characteristics of “feed rice theory” and the point of contact with rural planning based on the study by Dr. Shigesaburo Tsunoda (1919–2001), who introduced the concept of feed rice. In addition, the results of the study provide suggestions for the current policy. The primary results are as follows. First, Dr. Tsunoda’s theory on feed rice proposes concrete policies for rural planning on the premise of effective use of farmland where a single crop improved the yield of crops that cannot be planted, such as converted rice fields. Second, the current policy reduces the production cost per unit volume. Third, Dr. Tsunoda posits that the demand for feed rice is infinite; therefore, the examination of rural plan that assumed the use of paddy field which cannot be utilized by the unit yield improvement of feed rice is excluded from the purpose of his study.

This study got two knowledge which considered as spatial and social factors for harmonizing with a variety of residents in Shiraho of Ishigaki island in Okinawa.

1. Spatial factors to build relationships between convention inhabitants and immigrant; Each regional division of Shiraho community is a residential area that contains a variety of residents. The residential land in Shiraho is limited. Therefore, to possibility of the land acquisition of the times, residential land is enlarged flexibly. Several plots for a house were developed simultaneously. For the reasons, it goes ahead mixing a variety residents. It is connected to the spatial harmony of the residents that the group as the base unit of the community center is changed depending on expansion of the residence area flexibly.

2. Knowledge to build relationships of variety of residents socially; The harmony with the area promotes it by making a new festival together as the opportunity when a variety of residents collaborate. In addition, in the place of the learning, an immigrant from the outside the prefecture understands an area, and it is an opportunity to grope for a method of participation, the contribution. It functions as a device of the social harmony to show the significance of existence of the immigrant for the area concerned to a public hall officer or a group leader definitely by appointing an immigrant positively.

Agricultural damage caused by macaques is serious in rural areas. In particular, emotional damage is large. Emotions to macaques are getting worse in affected rural areas. So. Public administration needs to improve residents' emotions. It is necessary to prove that resident's emotion improves with the progress of appropriate management.

We have been promoting appropriate management of macaques in Iga City, Mie Prefecture. We interviewed residents of villages where agricultural damage caused by macaques occurred frequently. We interviewed before and after management of macaques (H23 and H28). We classified the opinions of the residents and compared. The remarks that they felt the tolerance of the existence of macaques and the reduction of damage have increased. The remarks denying measures against macaques have decreased. Therefore, We could prove that the emotions against macaques improves with the progress of appropriate management.

In this study, we traced the change of a marsh as a local resource in "Ukiya no sato". We considered the resident’s cognitive process in the continuation of the rural landscape conservation activity undertaken by them. We identified 3 sites which had a marsh for about 70 years—from 1948 to the present day. These marshes had been an inefficient use of land for the local community as they yielded high food produce. This has resulted from the natural condition of over-humidity due to the poor drainage. On the other hand, residents have initiated conservation activities for these marsh landscapes as the spring water from the buried valley helps in the formation of a rare wetland plant community, turning the marsh into a natural monument. These marshes have now been transformed into local attractions. Iris ensata var. ensata and Euphorbia Adenochlora were viewed as a distinctive characteristic of these marshes. In our questionnaire survey, about 75% of the respondents recognized that the marsh landscape has been preserved by their activities for 20 years. Though they have done various trouble and hard work in landscape conservation work, about 87% of the respondents felt satisfied with their efforts. The results of a cross tabulation indicated that communication between the residents and pride in their hometown are the factors that affect participation in landscape conservation work. The residents continued landscape conservation work as they recognized that growing of E. Adenochlora involved traditional marsh management techniques such as open burning.

In recent years, domestic wood is gaining attention from all over Japan. “Regional Housing” utilizes local wood, thus making original culture and landscape and having various influences on each mountain village. In Kaneyama town, Yamagata prefecture, they started the clean-up campaign (beautiful movement) in 1963, and have continued it since, and the rural landscape in Kaneyama is regarded as one of the most unique in Japan. One key element of this is “the Kaneyama House”. The Kaneyama House design which has continued from the Meiji period, has three main characteristics, the gabled roof, the white wall, and the Shin-kabe wall style. The people maintain their traditional townscape while also rebuilding and improving the Kaneyama hauses. This project, which is increasing in popularity, utilizes the local forestry industry, and continues to create new living environments and historical landscapes by using local resources. In this research, 170 newly-built examples of the Kaneyama Houses, built since the 1980's were studied. Each architectural plan and design was examined and the transition of living spaces and the townscape was analyzed. The following results were obtained: 1) the revival of the trend of the traditional style in facade design, 2) the discrepancy between modern housing plans and the traditional facade design, 3) the distribution difference of the Kaneyama Houses in each settlement. Finally, future assignments were considered.

As a result of the farmland consolidation project implemented from the 1990s to the early 2010s, farmland has been progressively accumulated by a core group of farmers. Coupled with rural depopulation and aging, this has led to a significant decrease in the number of farmers as well as the scaled expansion of farming. The number of non-farm households has also increased, resulting in changes in the village structure. The activities of community organizations that support agriculture have decreased through the accelerated retirement of village farmers. For instance, facilities that have been improved by irrigation and drainage projects have to be maintained by the water users’ organization, which consists of regional farmers. However, the changes in village structure have weakened the function of the organization responsible for irrigation water management. Using a case study of Sanwa-ku, Joetsu City, Niigata Prefecture, we clarified the problems that were occurring in the irrigation water management organization in a highly consolidated farmland accumulation area, and identified measures to maintain appropriate water management. In this study area, at present, two older water managers are in charge of the water control for a total of 60ha of paddy fields, but this framework of management cannot be maintained in the future. We identified several measures for future water management, including land use adjustment, the use of diverse human resources, and the implementation of "smart agriculture." To apply these measures, the establishment of an organization that can handle the various demands on local resource management in the rural area is urgently needed.

The purpose of this research is to study the extraction of potential local activity themes using social network analysis. The intention behind this approach is to share interesting themes that local human resources view as parts of the social network structure. To solve such regional issues, this study highlights the importance of using social network analysis as an auxiliary tool. The procedure comprises two main steps. In Step 1, a two-mode graph (individual and theme) is drawn up based on questionnaire data. The point of interest here is searching before and after the edge increases. Since it is a complex social network having two modes (individual and theme), we use a matrix operation (calculation to convert the two-mode social network of “Question 1” and “Question 1 + Question 2” into a one-mode structure), to calculate the social network index after conversion into a structure having a connection between themes. Step 2 is an analysis of added connections (edges of increase). We can understand what potential human relationships exist within an unpopular theme by using a two-mode graph. At this point, it is cut out as an ego network to simplify the relationship with related nodes (themes and individuals). However, there are personal situations that cannot be measured by social network analysis. Therefore, we use the question items in the questionnaire data to examine barriers in the current connections. A series of exploratory analysis frames like this can serve as the basis for implementing social network analysis as a diagnostic tool.

The purpose of this study was to clarify the current states and issues of production and consumption of roofing materials and substitute products for preservation of roof landscape. A questionnaire survey was distributed to 97 local municipalities that manage preservation districts and 76 agencies replied. Also, interview surveys were conducted with five industry groups and ten production companies. The result of the questionnaire survey shows a remarkable increase and decrease of the amount of traditional and current roofing materials as well as a decrease of cement tiles the roof scenery of those districts. The result of interview surveys shows that kawara is widely used from housing to cultural properties; the location of the soil used for baked kawara has changed to another prefecture; kawara manufacturers are decreasing; and contractors have a decisive influence on kawara consumption. Based on the above, this study examine substitute roofing products of kawara as necessary materials to preserve roof landscape. Glazed kawara imitating a smoked kawara and smoked kawara that looks old-fashioned, prioritizes roof landscape over other manufacturing methods and performance. Substitute products related to shape and construction work are kawara that combines two pieces used for hon-gawarabuki. Manufacturing substitute products for san-gawarabuki, and san-gawara that has made either right or left side sharp are examined as well. In addition, the role of mold making for keeping the shape of the kawara and its maintenance is important.

About 70% of the total population live in rural areas of South Asia, 70% of whom are landless or marginal farmers. Livestock production fulfills diverse roles in the social and economic development of the rural poor in South Asia. It is difficult for poor people to get expensive milk bovine (mainly, cattle in Bangladesh and buffalo in India) to enter dairy farming. As a potential solution, I focused on the mechanism of consignment rearing of domestic animals and investigated this mechanism in India and Bangladesh. We interviewed 246 rural households in India(141) and Bangladesh(105) about the number of cattle and buffaloes reared and their access routes. Fourteen out of the 246 households were found to rear milk bovines owned by others. These were divided into three types of consignment rearing: traditional, with purchase rights, and commercial dairy. The second and third mechanisms were constructed in each area according to the market specifically faced by livestock-raising households.

These is a possibility that the development of the milk market and the milk livestock market is promoting a change in the consignment mechanism. A traditional consignment rearing system that does not involve the transfer of money may have changed into a mechanism with a view to obtain cash income through the sale of consigned livestock.

In mountainous areas in Japan, depopulation and aging issues are being serious. But there is not enough power and willpower to reactivate by themselves. Therefore, new collaborative activities towards reactivating these areas with supporters from outside such as Community-Reactivating Cooperators have been started as national policy. On the other hand, cooperative activities with outsiders have some issues such as depend on cooperators and losing independence of inhabitants and deteriorating relationship between the two attribute. Therefore, process design of acceptance and cooperation is important in these supporting activities. This study aims to clarify the change of social role of outsiders, and process of acceptance and cooperation in hilly and mountainous areas. Firstly, we understood the outline of theory of Community-Reactivating Cooperators on local government and supporter's activities. Secondly, we clarified the process of gaining acceptance by inhabitants, through communication with cooperators. Thirdly, we clarified the role transfer process of supporters. And finally, We clarified the acceptance process and role transfer of supporters in depopulating and aging local region. This study is identified as understanding detailed process of acceptance and cooperation, and change of social role of outsiders in the new cooperative activities in hilly and mountainous areas in Japan.

The aim of the project named “Local Vitalization Cooperators”, which was created by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in 2009, is for the members to perform their activities that contribute to regional revitalization during a maximum term of three years. However, numerous members are worried regarding the implementation of these activities, and it is a problem because they quit their job during their term. To solve this problem, the importance of cooperation among the members has been considered. In addition, cooperation among the members is affected by their work schedules (fixed and flextime). Therefore, this study investigates the effects of cooperation among members on the various activities of the project by focusing on the differences in their work schedules. A survey was conducted in Naka town, Tokushima prefecture, Japan clarifying the transition of the members’ activities. Additionally, the structural analysis of the cooperation among members based on social network analysis and index calculation of the effects of the cooperation on their activities were performed. The key observations of this study are as follows. (1) We classified the members' activities into five categories. Regardless of the differences in their work schedules, they continued and developed the activities. (2) The contents of the cooperation were classified into four categories: people, skill, goods, and information. The cooperation among members was higher in the flextime members than the fixed members. (3) Irrespective of the differences in their work schedules, the cooperation among members affected the implementation of their activities. The indexes of the effects of the members’ cooperation on their activities were higher in the flextime members than the fixed members.

In recent years, local products have sometimes been used in hospital meals in an effort to promote the concept of “local production for local consumption.” The purposes of using local products for hospital meals are as follows: improvement in the quality of hospital meals, improvement in the degree of satisfaction of the eaters (patients), and contribution to the revitalization of regional agriculture. However, there are a few reports on the actual conditions of food procurement in cases of using local products. Four issues regarding the utilization of local products for hospital meals were found: food procurement, distribution system, low recognition of local products, and promotion of outsourcing. A question arises about how hospitals that used local produce for hospital meals confronted these issues. To understand the actual situation and to consider the advantages and disadvantages of utilizing local agricultural products for hospital meals, we conducted a case study of hospitals that use local products for meals. As a result, we found issues that need to be dealt with such as the establishment of a distribution system and the progress of outsourcing. However, we believe that there are many advantages of using local products for hospital meals and there is potential for development.

In recent years, the “farm stay” has become a popular avenue for rural development in Japan. The number of areas that engage in this kind of tourism are expected to grow in the future. The purpose of this study is to examine the prospects and problems of farm stays by reviewing the genealogy of Green Tourism (GT) and clarifying its current state. By organizing the flow of literature and related measures, the progression from GT to farm stays became clear. Additionally, our case study details the actual factors that currently relate to farm stays. These include: 1) the unstable demand from educational travel, which accounts for the majority of users, compared to the past demand; 2) an expectation that the demand from individual tourists and corporate training will increase; 3) rural experience programs, such as harvesting experience, not always being necessary; 4) the management of farm stays as a side business by managers; 5) a requirement of a certain amount of capital investment in order to win inbound customers; 6) the management of farm stays by rural residents who, in many cases, are not farmers; 7) young people finding it difficult to manage farm stays; and 8) a discussion as to whether hotels should be included in farm stays’ accommodation facilities. Based on these facts, we can state that there is a difference between the farm stay’s promotion measures implemented by the government and the actual situation.