Stone lanterns are important components in Japanese gardens. The stone lanterns made by the three generations of stonemasons Nishimura Kahei from Meiji to the early Showa periods were well-known in Shiga and Kyoto prefectures, but no systematic research was found. This study aimed to clarify the characteristics of Kahei’s lanterns and evaluate the masonry techniques with qualitative and quantitative data. We investigated Kahei’s 20 Rengeji and 9 Okunoin lanterns by studying the historical sales records, interviews, and measurements surveys. Besides examining the stone materials, shape features of each part, size, proportion, and carving design and patterns were analyzed based on technical drawings. It was found that all the Rengeji were 6 Shaku with featured Kasa, Hibukuro, and Nuki, while Okunoin were in six different sizes from 5.5 Shaku to 10 Shaku with featured Hoju, Kasa, Warabite, and Hibukuro. Most Rengeji and all the Okunoin lanterns have used brownish fine granite with various designed patterns. The component proportions were highly similar within each type despite the various sizes of Okunoin. It is concluded that Kahei’s lanterns were created by the pursuit of originality and high craftsmanship made possible by stone quality, a balance of proportion of each part, and exquisite carving.

In this study, we sampled 45 cases of perspective landscapes, composed of vistas of monumental buildings in Paris and, based on the findings of a measurement survey, verified their characteristics using indices for landscape analysis. In addition, we examined the characteristics of the areas where, and the times when, many of those buildings were built. The results revealed the following: monumental buildings, which may play the role of an eyestop, look too large and their sight distance too short to view from an open space spreading to the fore; thus, when one steps away from the open space and views a monumental building from a road with a vista, its size looks better, giving a nice, pleasing view; none of the roads with a vista landscape looks too far extended that one would have trouble identifying eyestops; vista-induced effects help sharpen the sense of eyestop presence in the distance; many cases are observed in the western suburbs of Paris; most of the buildings were built in the nineteenth century;and the composition of these vista-eyestops is applied not only to wide streets but also to ordinary streets, contributing to the formation of intimate street spaces that is considered to be the charm of Paris.

The Hira Mountains located in the northern part of Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture, Japan used to be a granite producing area and it was widely used for “torii gates” and lanterns of shrines, basement stone of the houses, stone walls, and garden stones. The purpose of this study is to analyze the stone lanterns made by Kahei Nishimura, a well-known master mason in Minamikomatsu village, using 24 units of old documents related to his masonry found in this study. Based on these documents, a field survey to identify the Kahei’s lanterns, and interviews to local stonemason and gardeners, the major types of lantern produced, namely Rengeji, Kasuga lanterns or Okunoin followed by Rikyu and Yukimi from 1912-1948. These lanterns were sold mainly in the east side of Lake Biwa, such as Hikone, Notogawa, and Kosai areas, as well as the east side of the lake and Kyoto, and the distribution changed over time expanding to Konan-cho and Moriyama. By comparing the drawings in the old documents and actual lanterns made by Kahei, many patterns were engraved on the lanterns. This study results help to understand the conditions of the masonry that was flourished in the area, and the values of their work from the Meiji to the early Showa era.

This study aims to understand the current status and issues of viewpoint fields in the Setonaikai National Park by clarifying the relationship between the actual condition of the view from them and the establishment and management of them, and to consider the management of the viewpoint fields from the standpoint of the appreciation of the archipelago landscape.The methodology was field survey and analyze the pictures from all viewpoint fields, and literature survey such as national park management plan and so on. As a result, Setonaikai National Park can be divided into three areas, and the actual condition of the view in each was different from each other including the artificial structures such as towns, bridges, and industries. Especially the view from each viewpoint field in the Geiyo Islands, many artificial structures were seen in visually essential areas. The establishment and management of viewpoint fields were different among each management district. All the management plan was focused on the islands. It can be said that the management plan was made not concerning the characteristics of the archipelago landscapes, so the establishment and management of the viewpoint fields are not appreciated to enjoy the archipelago landscapes.

This study analyzed 1889-1894 (Meiji period) lumber sales books recorded by forestry workers of Hachiyado, a village on the western shore of Lake Biwa in Otsu, Shiga Prefecture, and clarified the commercial distribution of forest resources and their uses. Seventeen tree species were found to have been used as commodities for sales. They included Zelkova serrata, Thujopsis dolabrata and Quercus serrata. 63% of all sales were for use as timber, while 18% were for use as fuel. We found twenty product categories. They included raw lumber, bark, firewood, and leaves. The largest distribution destination was neighboring villages, followed by Otsu City, areas on the eastern shore of Lake Biwa, and Kyoto City. Timber was shipped by overland route or by boat to the nearby urban areas when possible. On the other hand, fuel tended to be distributed and used in nearby villages. An analysis of the various uses of the local forest resources and of the commercial distribution at the time (Meiji period) showed that sales of Pinus densiflora, Pinus thunbergia and Cryptomeria japonica played a central role.

Ikenobo is considered the origin of Japanese Ikebana. Rikka is considered one of the major flower arrangement styles of Japanese Ikebana. This style first appeared in the 16th century (late Muromachi period) and underwent major developments during the 17th century, illustrating and reflecting the views of the landscape. This research references the ideas and various terminology of the landscape expression techniques in Landscape Architecture, which classified the approaches of landscape expression in Rikka works into four categories: "Symbolic Analogy", "Borrowed Landscape", "Miniaturized Landscape", and "Other techniques". Landscape expression techniques in Rikka work were analyzed according to these categories, based on the study of records in Kadensho and Kasho from Muromachi-period till present. This research also delved into the records of Hanagatae paintings and photos of typical Rikka works from early Edo period until present for the analyzation. In addition, this research discusses the connections and differences in landscape expression techniques of Landscape Architecture, which is based on real land, while Rikka is not. To further dive into the research of landscape expression techniques of Rikka, it is necessary for the research to be based on comparing Rikka with Landscape Architecture. This is a topic for future research and discussion.

Shoto-en Garden was designated as a National Site of Scenic Beauty and located in Yanagawa City, Fukuoka Prefecture, was renovated in 1910. In this study, the author clarified the appearance of the Shoto-en Garden before 1910, with reference to “Articles of visiting Shoto-en Garden” written in 1899. It was found that the garden was located to the south of Goin-tei and designed for visitors enjoy scenic beauty while sauntering around a pond. In the pond, there were many scenic stones. There was also a sandy shore. The landscape of the pond was recognized as Matsushima, one of the Three Views of Japan. The pond was surrounded by small hills, where about 200 pine trees were planted. Accordingly, it can be inferred that the then Shoto-en was very similar to the current one. As buildings, there used to be the two arbors: “Tsuki-no-kage (Shadow of the Moon)” and “Yuki-no-akebono (Dawn of Snow)” and Mihashira Shrine in the garden. The arbor "Tsuki-no-kage" was located on the west side of the pond, the arbor "Yuki-no-akebono" was located on the northeast side shore of the pond, and The Mihashira Shrine was located on the artificial hill on the southeast side of the garden. It was also found that the arbor “Tsuki-no-kage” was relocated to the adjoining east garden in the renovation 1910.

The purpose of this study is to clarify the awareness structure of local governments the use of urban parks in the new era, and to discuss the possibility of developing and changing this awareness structure. In this study, we used the "guidelines" presented by the local governments to the private sector during the sounding market research of urban parks as a source of information, and organized and summarized the keywords expressing the awareness of the government and analyzed them by multivariate analysis. The results are as follows. 1) Local governments focus on three basic aspects of public-private partnerships "management and operation of urban parks," "projects with the private sector," and "attractiveness of parks," and has little awareness of "improving local values," "solving administrative problems," "sports and recreation," and "health. 2) The awareness structure of local governments of sounding market research of urban parks toward urban parks consist of four axes of awareness: "issue recognition," "citizens and government," "economy and society," and "use space. 3) Based on the awareness structure of local governments of sounding market research of urban parks, local governments can be classified into 6 types. 4) There is a possibility of changing the mindset of local governments toward solving local issues while utilizing urban parks.

In order to make tree management more efficient, it is necessary to make conventional visual diagnosis objective. The NDVI can be calculated by using near-infrared images, and that NDVI is likely to objectively show the decline diagnosis for trees diagnosis that changes depending on the subjectivity. Near-infrared images were acquired by taking image from the ground, and taken from the air using UAV. The near-infrared image was imported into ArcGIS, and the NDVI image was calculated. Arbitrary 15 points were created at the leaves of the tree and numerical information was extracted. The degree of decline has an integer value of 0 to 4, and a larger value indicates a decline. NDVI is an index indicating the vegetation activity, and has a range of 1 to -1 and the closer to 1, the higher the activity. Therefore, correlation analysis process confirms that NDVI is correlated with the decline diagnosis visually assessed on the ground. As a result, NDVI decreases when the degree of decline is high and increases when the degree of decline is low. The correlation coefficient between ground NDVI and decline was -0.769, and the correlation coefficient between airborne NDVI and decline was -0.678. Both results were confirmed to be statistically significant negative correlations. In the future, as the accuracy improves, it can be used as an indicator to understand the condition of trees in the decline diagnosis.

In the 77th year of the end of the war, “war-damaged trees” are the solution how can we pass on the memories of the war to future generations. Externally, war-damaged trees are characterized by damages, such as burning, hollowing, and leaning. However, there is still no information on the extent of how these damages affect the health of the trees and how to treat them. Therefore, the internal decay state and effects of damages specific to war-damaged trees were investigated using sonic tomography on 11 remaining war-damaged ginkgo trees (35 cross-sections) at Tobiki Inari Shrine in Sumida-ku, Tokyo. The decay and hollowing rate in 10 sections were calculated. By looking at the characteristics of the cross-sections only and not the whole tree, the cross-sections at each measurement height were classified into five types. This survey made it possible to capture the condition of the war-damaged trees’ cross-sections in images. Results showed that war-damaged trees that have lived for more than 77 years after the war have been strengthened by the self-recovery growth of the tree body. In relatively young trees, it was confirmed that almost 100% of damaged areas were covered, and the restoration process was complete due to wrapping by self-recovery growth.

In this study, we focused on people resting on benches in the park, and observed the behavior of bench users and measured the thermal environment at Hamadera Park in Osaka Prefecture. WBGT, bench surface temperature, and wind speed were measured as thermal environment indicators. We conducted a hearing survey of bench users and asked them why they chose a shaded or sunny bench and the feeling of warmth and coldness on the spot. The survey was conducted for eight days in the summer and two days in the fall of 2020, and the behavior of a total of 630 people was investigated. Regression analysis between bench selectivity and WBGT revealed a significant relationship between shade selectivity and WBGT. As a result of regression analysis, it was found that the shade selectivity increased by about 10% as the WBGT increased by 1 ° C. In addition, it was found that there are people who actively choose the sun spot even when it is hot, and in the summer, it was appropriate to set the ratio of shaded benches to 87.5% and that of the sun spot benches to 12.5%.

The goal of universal design on parks is to go beyond mere compliance with the accessibility regulations to provide access, as well as increased opportunities for recreation and participation, by improving parks environments and through strategic partnerships. Especially, parks and outdoor recreation sites in Japan are experiencing a demand to provide access from the rising population of older disabled people. For making parks and outdoor recreation sites wholly accessible, performance improvement of staff is essential. However, educational program of universal access for staff of parks and outdoor recreation sites is still developing. The purpose of research is to discuss an effective educational program for staff of parks and outdoor recreation sites. This research had two objectives: (a) identify requirements of training course suit for staff of parks and outdoor recreation sites, (b) test feasibility of educational program. First, surveys of parks and outdoor recreation sites staff explored preferences and experiences of training course using questionnaire approach. Then, we developed and test the training programs, and discussed feasibility of this program. Training program conducted as the courses of online-seminars was almost success. Future research emphasis should be placed on sharing the innovative knowledges conducted by parks and outdoor recreation sites.

This paper examines the effects of the exhibition methods used in the renovated Mito botanical park on visitors’ viewing behavior. We conducted a visual monitoring survey of visitors’ viewing and photographing behavior (supplemented by video), a sticker sticking survey to identify the spaces that visitors found impressive, and a questionnaire survey asking visitors about their attributes and purpose in visiting the park. To analyze the spaces, we selected the main exhibits in each of the 13 zones in the greenhouse, which were divided by theme, and categorized them into “simple planting exhibits,” “plastic plant exhibits,” and “artifact exhibits.” The results showed that in this botanical garden, visitors were more interested in “surprise and healing” than “learning,” and that among the three categories, the “plastic plant exhibit” was the most attractive element. Additionally, considering the increasing number of greenhouses that will require future renovation, we showed some new possibilities for the balance of planting and display methods.

The purpose of this study is to clarify the method of empowerment based on changes in consciousness in park creation and management activities with public participation. Empowerment is defined as the process of changing participants’ consciousness about a series of events and its external factors. As a result of using Trajectory Equifinality Model, it was important to create a process from the enjoyment of activities to fostering independence such as motivation and sense of responsibility, to higher consciousness such as introspection on activities. In addition, it was important to raise awareness from understanding the park and the area to expectations, and to support for building relationships with people such as activity members and experts.

This study examined the historical significance of Muroran Park in Hokkaido, Japan, from a sociocultural perspective, based on related literature. The study focused on the following five aspects: (1) effect of urban areas, terrain, and park ideas on park establishment; (2) background to getting permission for free loan of the park site; (3) features of Seiroku Honda’s Muroran Park Plan and comparison with Kushiro Park; (4) efforts of the Muroran municipal administration and citizens to improve the park up until World War II; and (5) the desolation and disappearance of the park during and after the war. The factors that influenced the opening of the park were social opinions about an urban park, administrative policies related to urban parks, topographic features of the city, governance of Hokkaido over Muroran town, and the urban area of the industrial port city. Park improvements by the municipality (which was positively influenced by the Muroran Park Plan), donations by citizens, and the national policy promoting physical fitness contributed to the renovation of the park. Confiscation of the park by the Ministry of the Army at the World War II, changes in social conditions surrounding park administration after the war, and the enactment of the Urban Park Law led to the regenerated Muroran Park abandoned.

The movement to make visitors to natural areas contribute to the costs of managing resources and maintaining facilities has been gaining momentum. This study aimed to examine the nature of the donation system by focusing on a case where different routes could be used. The donation system at Mount Ibuki, which is a part of the Biwako Quasi-National Park, was studied. There are two types of visitor routes to the summit: the mountain trail and the Ibukiyama-driveway. The Nature Restoration Council introduced donations at Mount Ibuki in 2015. The basic amount was set at JPY 300 per person and has been collected voluntarily. Questionnaire surveys were used to investigate visitors’ attitudes on October 31 and November 1, 2020. We distributed 1907 questionnaire sheets and received 536 responses. It was found that donations rates varied greatly depending upon the route used. Considering that driveway users feel a sense of responsibility for environmental impact and want to enjoy nature, there is a significant difference in the average donation per person by each route. The fairness of the system is debatable. It is necessary to promote and educate the public about the usage characteristics of different routes.

The Visitor Center (VC) is a facility that provides information to natural park users. The purpose of this study is to classify the location environment and obtain basic knowledge for VC awareness improvement and functional improvement. The target is 200 VC facilities in national parks. Data collection and generation were carried out, and finally spatial coupling using GIS was carried out. In classification,1) Inside or outside the park;2) Less than 500m or more in the park world; 3) What is the land type, Classified from three viewpoints. The results show that it was classified it into six types. I. Entrance location type in the park:27%; II. Core location type 11%; III. Use base location type 37%; and IV. Edge location type 9% V. Out-of-park entrance type 8%; VI. Non-adjacent 9%. From this result, it was revealed that the VC facility was located in line with the park plan. The entrance type occupies 34% and is near the entrance of the park. The base type is 37% and the second special area locations in the whole are 54%. In this study, the classification of national park VC was arranged, and the present state of the location characteristics was clarified.

As the population continues to decline in Japan, local governments need to consider the reorganization and maintenance of urban parks. The purpose of this study is to clarify the actual conditions of urban park services, maintenance costs, awareness of reorganization and maintenance for local governments nationwide, and the relationship between them and the characteristics of cities such as vital statistics.In fact, we conducted a questionnaire survey of local governments nationwide (valid responses: 392) and analyzed the survey data. As a result, the following became clear. 1) The average park area per person in the surveyed cities is about 11 m² per person, the average maintenance cost per person is about 1,821 yen per a person, and the average maintenance cost per unit area is about 195-yen square meter. 2) The basic services and maintenance costs of urban parks vary greatly from city to city. 3) In terms of awareness of the reorganization of urban parks, the largest number of cities, about half, answered "Neither". On the other hand, a certain number of cities are considering the abolition of urban parks. 4) There is a difference in the basic services and awareness of the reorganization of urban parks between large cities and regional cities. In particular, the quality of maintenance and management tends to be low in regional cities, because the park area per capita is large, while the maintenance cost per unit area is low.

Events dealing with flowers and greenery are held mainly in parks and green spaces, and are carried out in a variety of ways and on a variety of scales, from the National Urban Greenery Fair (hereinafter referred to as the Urban Greenery Fair) held at the national level to events held at the local city level. This study focuses on Gunma Prefecture's " Gunma Making of Flower and Green" a policy that focuses on flower and greenery events. First, we summarize the outline of the " Gunma Making of Flower and Green" and how the flower and greenery events have been implemented in each municipality in Gunma Prefecture. Next, we focus on the relationship between flower and greenery events and regional cooperation and analyze its e results of the " Gunma Making of Flower and Green" project will be evaluated through an interview survey. The results will be summarized and the future of flower and greenery events will be discussed.

Previous research indicated that many mountain bikers in Japan, as new recreational users, recently engaged in contribution projects to local communities to overcome conflicts with forest landowners, trail managers, and other users to secure their outdoor fields. To verify this movement, this paper conducted a related questionnaire survey among 1,765 mountain bikers. The result showed that Japanese mountain bikers found the best value in riding freely in unpaved forests and trails with a certain distance and scale, and participation in competitive mountain bike (MTB) races was not recognized as primary interest. Additionally, the majority of mountain bikers strongly recognized the need for contribution projects to local communities to secure and maintain these attractive outdoor fields. However, mountain bikers who engage in the projects tend to belong to local mountain bikers’ organizations that collaborate with local communities. Therefore, these local organizations can be the key to developing MTB as a popular outdoor recreation, and promoting local revitalization through the participation of mountain bikers.

In recent years, there has been a growth in the number of urban parks managed by public-private partnerships. It is generally agreed upon that such parks enhance the value of the areas in which they are located. However, the existence of for-profit facilities carries the possibility of counteracting an essential aspect of parks, “publicness.” The purpose of this paper is to clarify the relationship between buying behavior at for-profit facilities and preference of seating location of individuals in a park with for-profit facilities. A behavior observation survey was conducted in Kitaya Park to analyze the relationship between whether a visitor purchases anything at the for-profit facility and opts to take a seat in the park. Furthermore, the factors affecting this relationship were also analyzed. The results show that whether the seating place was visible from the for-profit facility was related to the visitor’s purchase at the for-profit facility in the park. This relationship appeared when a food truck was not present in the park or when the park was crowded. This study suggests that visitors who have not purchased anything at the for-profit facility may be relegated to the confined spaces of a park under certain conditions.

In this study, the evaluation structure of a linearly symmetrical landscape that can be seen from the surrounding embankment of a reclaimed land in lagoon reclaimed lands clarified, and the influence of the landscape composition and the difference of the components on the evaluation of the landscape was clarified. Photos were taken at lagoon reclaimed lands, and the area of landscape components in the images was calculated. Next, we conducted a psychological evaluation experiment using the SD method, and extracted the factors related to the evaluation of the landscape of lagoon reclaimed land by factor analysis. The relationship between the psychological evaluation and the landscape components was clarified. As a result, four factor axes of comfort, impression, quietness, and change were shown, and the influence of comfort and impression on the attractiveness of the landscape was found to be large. In addition, the evaluation was affected by the characteristics specific to lagoon reclaimed land, such as the gradient of the axis elements and the symmetry of the landscape, as well as differences in landscape composition and components. It was also suggested that there may be a method to enhance the evaluation of the landscape even when it is modified.

The rural landscape is a significant pull motivation in green tourism (GT). It is necessary to make efforts in each area to continue to improve policies for the formation and conservation of rural landscapes that contribute to GT. This study clarified the actual conditions of descriptions in landscape plans from the viewpoint of the formation and conservation of such landscapes. Our analysis focused on the orchard landscape. We reviewed the papers on GT and landscapes, and classified the viewpoints of landscape plans that considered GT. We examined the landscape plans of municipalities in Japan and extracted descriptions of orchard landscapes. We analyzed the correspondence between the sentences regarding orchard landscape and the GT items. A total of 132 local governments included descriptions of orchard landscapes in their landscape plans. Many municipalities tended to adopt policies on improving the quality of the rural landscape and on considering the characteristics of the rural landscape. Not only the policy on the formation of landscapes but also that on encouraging agriculture was written about extensively in landscape plans.

This study aims to identify the spatial transformation of tree structures by a traditional way of pruning called Skashi-pruning in Japanese garden. Sukashi-pruning has been recognized as the significant and professional skills in Japanese garden maintenance, while the spatial and structural change has not been proved by the quantitative analysis. The goal of this study is to record the quantitative data of the spatial change by using of the 3D cloud point survey in the traditional garden. In order to know the effect of on-ground visual experience, the study gets the 3D data before and after the garden maintenance, and compares two data in terms how much visual depth is changed in the panorama view perspective. The 3D data was transformed on 360 degrees panorama screen and analyzed by the application of GIS calculation. Followings are known; 1) Sukashi-pruning is to be classified in three different types through 360°panorama image analysis and also three different types through the directive view analysis using radar chart. 2) Each type of Sukashi-pruning is observed in each zone of the garden; one type is around the pond area and another type is particularly in the grove area.

There are many heritage sites related to modern wars (hereinafter referred to as "war heritage sites") in many regions of Japan that are in danger of disappearing. War heritage sites are valuable actual objects and places that tell the history of a special past that will never happen again. However, they are difficult to evaluate from both historic and cultural aspects, and there are concerns that their disappearance will be accelerated the fading away of their history. In this study, we first organized the debate on the definition and scope of “war heritage sites” through the document investigation and described changes in protection. Next, we acquired data from local public bodies with “war heritage sites” via questionnaire, to understand the scope of the term and the trend of conservation. As a result, we clarified the diversity of “war heritage sites", thus allowing us to take a broad view of the target scope, and the "diversity of evaluation perspectives" to overcome the difficulty of evaluation, which is a bottleneck in preservation. In addition we made proposals to overcome difficulties of preservation and succession that are due to regional and financial circumstances.

The purpose of this study was to understand the management, dissemination of the information through the Internet, and activities of the visitor centers in national parks, with the aim to identify differences between managers and issues for future management improvement. Data were mainly collected from published materials of the Ministry of the Environment and websites of the visitor centers. In total, 111 visitor centers and 12,011 activities conducted during 2019–2020 were assessed. The results of the survey revealed that visitor centers managed by the private sector and councils consisting of administration and private sectors disseminate information through a wider range of media on the Internet and have more extensive websites than those managed by public, such as the Ministry of the Environment and local authorities. In addition, differences were observed in the types of activities performed by different managers, with private sector- and council-managed visitor centers conducting activities that seemed to require more expertise than public-managed visitor centers. The participation fee for the activities was higher in private sector- and council-managed visitor centers than in public-managed visitor centers. Private sector-managed visitor centers tended to require the contribution of the beneficiary to support their activities.

Eco-tours and other guided tours are expected to expand further, both economically and in terms of enriching the travel experience. Therefore, in order to promote the expanded use of guided tours, we conducted a survey to clarify participation and intent to participate for each guided tour type, characteristics of guided tour participants, and requirements for guided tours by type and by degree of participation experience. The results indicated that the greater the experience of participation, the higher the intent to participate; participation experience and intent to participate were high for "industrial facility tours" and "visiting cultural assets, historical sites, shrines and temples," but low for "environmental conservation activities." Additionally, increased involvement in solely one tour type was found among only a small segment of tour participants; in many cases, participants increased their involvement in various guided tour types. It was further found that the requirements for guided tours can be categorized as "safety, enjoyment, and interaction," "deepening understanding of the region and subject," "efficiency," "effective use of free time," and "leave it to me." These requirements were observed to differ by tour type, but not by participation experience.

Greenness visibility has been used as a useful index in landscape assessment. In this study, we also considered other major visible elements in urban streetscapes, sky and road, in landscape assessment to understand their relative contribution to preferences. We took 18 pictures in residential areas and calculated visibility ratios of greenness, sky and road. Afterwards, we conducted a landscape assessment experiment through web-based survey and conducted statistical analyses. As a result, we identified the threshold value of sky visibility, 15.6%, as a positive impression for sky openness. Similarly, we identified the threshold value of road visibility, 31.4%, as a positive impression for road openness. The thresholds of sky visibility were especially affected by the greenness visibility of the same picture. We also found that respondents’ impressions about the physical size of streets were strongly related to streetscape preferences, and road visibility had a strongly related to them. Therefore, we considered that ensuring the physical size of streets would be a key strategy to improve the visual quality of the streetscape in residential areas. Our results also suggested that personal orientation and residential attributes would be related to streetscape valuation and streetscape assessment based on regional characteristics would be necessary.

The purpose of this study is to clarify the characteristics of spatial spheres and their correspondence with landscape elements that help their recognition. First, the experiment is conducted where the subjects were asked to draw spatial spheres and landscape elements that they find while walking the subject area. Second, cluster analysis using the idea of Jaccard index is carried out to group those samples by similarities, and these groups are categorized into six types that represent different characters of the spatial spheres in their shape, area, and clarity of the outlines. Through the examination of the correspondence between the six types of the spatial spheres derived from the experiment with the landscape elements that help their recognition, it is confirmed that there are some typical tendencies in the correspondence between the characteristics of spatial spheres in their shape, area and the clarity of the outlines, and the visual condition that are created by landscape elements surrounding the place that helps the recognition of the spatial spheres.

It is important to understand the actual behavioural characteristics of visitors to develop management systems in natural parks. In this study, we attempted to understand the dynamics of visitors in mountainous areas of natural parks using a beacon system. Specifically, in Mount Nasu where traffic congestion is caused during autumn, the following objectives were achieved: (1) to classify the routes of visitors based on beacon data, (2) to relatively identify the points where visitors concentrate and the sections where the distance between them narrows, (3) to consider the usage dynamics data for park management by beacon systems. The results showed that, first, visitors hiked a variety of routes, second, most visitors stayed at the summit from morning to noon, and third the routes near the points where most of them stayed tended to be crowded. Therefore, it is necessary to take measures to avoid congestion for management purposes.

The market of woodland burial is rapidly expanding since the last 20 years, and the needs are expected to be diversified. This study aimed to grasp the whole variation in appearance of urban-type woodland burials. Internet survey was conducted to get whole picture of the current situation of woodland burials focusing on shape of tomb, burial system, and supplier types. As results, the following status were revealed. (1) About 1000 woodland burials were confirmed on the internet. Most of them are run by temples, and more than half of them are operated by for-profit companies. Therefore, we could see a certain convergence rather than diversification regarding the shape. (2) The most common form of woodland burials is garden type, which is divided small and indicated clearly by a stone plate. The newly popular form of woodland burial undermines the original characteristics as nature burial. (3) The time limited small form of woodland burial can be regarded as a minimal family grave, which suits the current graveyards needs and family structure. It is indispensable to consider a new design to perform the function of open space in urban area as a green infrastructure.

In order to plan policies and measures to maintain urban farmland, it is important to understand the actual conditions of farmland conversion. In particular, the postwar agrarian reform, which allowed many tenant farmers to own farmland, is thought to have had a significant impact on the subsequent conversion of farmland. Therefore, the purpose of this study was set to clarify the conversion of agricultural land ownership after the World War II, focusing on whether the land was owned by former landowners or by former tenant farmers. In this study, using the register and official maps, the change in agricultural land ownership in one district of Edogawa Ward, Tokyo was investigated. As a result, it was found that the currently maintained farmland was the land owned by former landowners after WWII. The former landowners tended to sell or convert some of the farmland to residential land while maintaining the main farmland. On the other hand, former tenant farmers sold their land at an early stage or gave it away upon inheritance. And most of the originally owned farmland was converted to residential land and now much of it is owned by new residents.

In this paper, the authors examine the characteristics of Tone River mulberry fields in the Sawa District after the introduction of rail transport during the Meiji and Taisho eras. Railways were opened in this area during the Meiji era, facilitating transportation of products and cultivation materials such as fertilizers to wider areas. Moreover, demand for cocoons, raw silk, and Isesaki Meisen-style silk fabrics had increased overseas as well as in Japan. This drove the popularity of sericulture in Japan, and many farmers bought "mulberry leaves" to make up for mulberry leaf shortages and "mulberry seedlings" to expand mulberry gardens. Mulberry plantations for the sale of mulberry leaves, mulberry plantations for the sale of mulberry seedlings, and mulberry plantations for rent began to crop-up among sericulture farmers in greater numbers than during the period before the opening of the railways. As a result, landscapes of mixed mulberry fields and paddy fields using different farming styles spread in areas where the risk of flooding was low and sericulture and silkworm egg farmers also owned paddy fields. In contrast, only flood-resistant mulberry gardens spread in the areas adjacent to the Tone River, where the possibility of flooding was high, resulting in a different type of mulberry landscape.

This study aimed at clarifying the actual situation in which water facilities in urban parks were used to secure water for citizens' daily lives during a large-scale power outage caused by the Hokkaido Eastern Iburi Earthquake. As a result of the research, the following points were clarified: 1. Citizens' use of water facilities was confirmed in 305 urban parks during a power outage, of which block parks accounted for 84.3%, 2. An interview survey with the manager of the housing complex revealed the situation in which the citizens used the urban park water supply facility in the event of a power outage, 3. As a result of spatial analysis by GIS, it became clear that there are 15 "blank areas" where there are no urban parks where water facilities can be used. In these areas, multiple apartments with a high possibility of water outage in the event of a power outage were locally concentrated.

Awareness of greenery is an important factor in the lifestyles of those living in detached houses located in urban districts. This awareness changes over time with resident life stage and greenery growth. In this study, we aimed to investigate residents’ awareness of greenery along a common garden path shared by 16 houses, comparing this awareness when their houses were first built with that 5 years later. We found that the Green View Index increased by 18% over the 5-year term. Around 80% of the residents were positive about the growing greenery because they felt close to it. In particular, residents preferred the pathway that was covered by tree canopies. The pruning was initially designed by a gardener to create the image of "houses in a copse" and as a result, the narrow pathways have been successfully covered by tree canopies, bringing the landscape closer to the intended design, leading to more positive evaluations by the residents. It was suggested that the landscape agreement containing the centralized management of tall trees and the continuous relationship between the residents and the gardener, kept the landscape to meet the preferences of the residents and increased the sense of unity throughout the residential area.

We aimed to clarify the effects of school closure and state of emergency during the COVID-19 pandemic on children's use of principal park in residential area within walking distance. We surveyed the number of children and the number of accompanying parents at several principal park in residential area during the period of school closures and state of emergency, and for about one year after. The results of the survey showed that the number of preschool and elementary school children during the period of school closure and the first state of emergency (March to May 2020) tended to be higher than during the period of the cancellation of the state of emergency and the second and third state of emergency. In addition, the percentage of parents accompanying elementary school children when using parks was higher during the period of the school closure and the first state of emergency than during the other periods. From these results, it can be considered that because the school closures and the first state of emergency were the first serious activity restrictions, children used their familiar principal park in residential area as places where they could spend some time outdoors. However, most of them were accompanied by their parents, and it is considered that they used the parks with more limited awareness than under normal situations.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, various behavioral restrictions and behavioral changes have been required worldwide, and people's movements have changed significantly. In this study, we investigated how the usage patterns of citizens and tourists changed before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in six representative public parks and tourist attractions in Kanazawa City depending on the purpose of their maintenance, internal facilities, and location. For the analysis data, we used location data recorded by the GPS built into the smartphones of individuals who stayed in Kanazawa City during the first half of May in each of 2019, 2020, and 2021. The results showed that the number of visitors, time of use, and place of estimated residence differed greatly among the six study sites. In particular, the number of visitors (especially tourists from outside the prefecture) at tourist attractions decreased remarkably in 2020 during the pandemic compared to 2019 before the pandemic. On the other hand, the number of visitors increased in the seaside comprehensive park, and the time of use by nearby residents changed in the riverside park, indicating that the pandemic created new patterns of green space use.

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between student’s choices of companies they want to go into and the attractivity of the regions where the companies locate, based on statistical analysis of a questionnaire survey conducted in 2017 at University of Toyama for the education of regional leaders. The results of this survey indicates that students place importance on their views of companies and occupations, and this suggests the importance of not only communicating about the region but also communicating the characteristics of the regional companies in order to promote regional settlement. This survey also shows that students who find employment outside Toyama Prefecture attractive, in particular, consider it important to be able to contribute to society and to be in positions of responsibility in the future. This suggests the importance of making it clear that to build these careers are possible even at local companies. In addition, this survey shows that students consider their human networks and experience of internships as good opportunities to gather information for employment. This suggests the necessity of using these situations to let them know they can realize their expectations wherever they get jobs.

This research aims to analyze utilization and resident’s intention of urban Open Spaces towards creation of multicultural coexistence. Site is located at Ojima 4cho-me Housing complex located in Tokyo. Through previous research review, either research on green open space at collective housing or foreign resident’s lifestyle at collective housing were found. However, this paper tried to take integrative perspectives on both domestic and international resident’s utilization and intention at housing complex open spaces. Firstly, utilization research conducted at 4 open space blocks for 3 days. Result of first research indicated that utilization of 4 blocks varied and largest number of users observed at B block open space. Domestic user indicated passive use and international user showed active use. Secondly, potential intention to communicate with other foreign resident confirmed through questionnaire survey. Thirdly, it was clarified that 57% of domestic resident never use open spaces. On the contrary, more than 74% of international resident actively use open spaces. Through this research, there are huge difference between domestic and international residents in open space utilization and intention. Further evaluation needed in order to create open spaces that allow diverse utilization towards multicultural coexistence.

In this study, we investigated the actual utilization and the effects of the urban open spaces as a workplace through a web questionnaire survey performed in October 2020 for workers in Osaka city under the situation of the introduction of ABW or the spread of COVID-19. As a result, it is possible to identify many people who work in urban open spaces more than a few times a week, and the frequency is increasing in the spread of COVID-19. In addition, not only sidewalk cafes but also open spaces at public facilities and parks were chosen. It was found that environmental factors such as shade, sunshine, and greenery were emphasized in parks, plaza, and open spaces at private facilities, and that good ideas came to mind in parks, compared to other places.

This study analyzed the transition of discussions, current state and tasks of buffer zone for world cultural heritage, based on data and minutes (1992-2019) of the World Heritage Committee. As a result, 1) The purpose for regulating the visual influence of the development around the heritages was strengthened in the buffer zone originated from the protection of surrounding environment under the Operational Guidelines. After the revision of Operational Guidelines in 2005, the establishment of buffer zone actually became mandatory, and its necessity was recognized at relevant international conferences, so the buffer zone was established in many cultural heritages. 2) Even though the establishment of buffer zone is currently the most important task for both world heritages in danger and the general world heritages, the weight of deliberation on management & regulation after establishment is increasing. On the other hand, the coordination and cooperation with interested parties and residents are barely mentioned. 3) This study suggests discussing the measures for balancing the future development regulations, protection of surrounding environment, and coordination & cooperation, in Asia with high establishment rate of buffer zone.

This study focused on the positions of stone statues of Buddha to grasp the relation of streets and villages along the Wakasa Kaido Road, an old road connecting Kyoto and Wakasa. We conducted investigations in 5 villages (Takano, Kawabata, Kamitakano, Yase, Ōhara) along Wakasa Kaido Road, then analyzed them by QGIS(ver.3.4.8). 86 places of stone statues of Buddha were found. Among them, 39 places were along Wakasa Kaido Road at intervals of 1710m or less, including 32 places faced to Wakasa Kaido Road, 15 places that located on the turning point of the branch road, and 2 places that located on the boundary between villages. 32 places were found in the living areas of Late Meji era, including 13 places that located on the boundary of the living areas. 15 places were found away from both Wakasa Kaido Road and the living areas of Late Meji era, and 10 of them located in Kamitakano. These results showed a strong impact of Wakasa Kaido Road as well as a strong consciousness of living area’s boundary in the 5 villages. The meaning of the stone statues of Buddha’s positions is possible to contribute to the modern town planning and community development.

In this study, as an example of a walking trail located in the suburbs of a large city, we took up a walking trail around Mt. Tenranzan, Hanno City, Saitama Prefecture, which has confronted the wave of green conservation and urban development. While clarifying the transition of the concept or plan regarding park and green space and residential land development related to the trail, we analyze how its existence has influenced the improvement, development and preservation for the spatial character of this area. Here in Hanno City, a "standard course" was set up and maintained as part of the development as a tourist destination in the prewar period, and not only was it inherited as it was, but also the network of the walking trails has been strengthened to emphasize the spatial structure of “four mountains and one river”. Furthermore, it can be inferred that it has also functioned as a deterrent to such plans as a housing development that may sometimes deteriorate or reduce its natural environment.

The Japanese architect Yoshikazu Uchida planned the estate plan of Osaka Hokko Co. Ltd. from 1920 to 1922. Through this study, we aim to clarify Uchida’s plan for outdoor spaces such as roads, parks, and plazas, and his ideology on them considering his estate plan. To achieve this purpose, we analyze letters sent mostly from the corporate insiders to Uchida, planning documents, and four drawings. The results show that Uchida used conflicting ideas depending on the location. For example, Cul-de-sacs were planned in residential areas to save road space, on the other hand, a wide road was planned with building setback to enhance the dignity of the estate. Furthermore, Uchida intended to provide parks and plazas to the residents from the perspectives of health and sanitation. Regarding the parks, Uchida assigned different functions to each park: for attracting visitors, for strolling, and for children to play. Additionally, Uchida suggested the plan of a wide road combined with boulevard trees and large buildings such as apartments. The circular plazas were also planned to be surrounded by buildings. The above-mentioned examples demonstrate how Uchida planned the outdoor spaces in relation to the buildings around them.

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the characteristics of green infrastructure in existing urban area and suburban area in Tokyo Metropolitan Region, towards the sustainability of water circulation based on the watershed analysis. The following things have clarified. By introducing Natural land use unit, it becomes clear that Yato Unit, which is the complexed system of hilly land and narrow valley, takes the important roles on the permeability and storage of the rainfall. The distribution of Yato Unit has analyzed and these areas identified as the essential matrix of water circulation. The second is the potential areas of the rain-water storage have clarified based on the analysis of rice field and wet land, and identified as the matrix of water storage. The third is core areas of the water circulation have identified by combining Natural land use unit, various strategies and laws. These areas are regarded as the high priority areas which should be registered as the protection site. The fourth is the importance of springs as cultural landscape has clarified. Based on the above founding, it becomes possible to establish the structure of Metropolitan Water Circulation Green Infrastructure Planning for achieving the sustainable region.

In the conservation and management of natural landscapes, it is expected that private organizations and citizens will actively participate in the promotion of park management in collaboration with various actors. This study conducted a questionnaire survey on Aso Greenstock, the first "national park management organization," regarding the number of years of activity, motivation of activities, place attachment, satisfaction with the organization, intention to continue activities, constraints on activities, and necessary measures. The multiple regression analysis was used to analyze the factors related to the continuation of activities and the factors related to the constraints that make it difficult to continue activities. As a result, it was considered that the factors for the continuation of activities were related to the attachment to Aso green stock and grasslands, and the sharing of the joy of supporting maintenance activities with colleagues. The factors for the continuation of the activities involved the attachment to Aso green stock and grasslands and the sharing of the joy of supporting maintenance activities with colleagues. The limiting factor for activities was "anxiety about physical fitness."

The purpose of this study is to consider the value factors of the wasabi field as a cultural landscape. As the target sites,21wasabi cultivation areas that have continued from the modern to the present. Each target area was investigated and analyzed for the history of the origin of cultivation and the location characteristics. The history is organized by 6 items; the start time of cultivation, the lord of the cultivation area in the Edo period, the originator of cultivation, the origination factor, the destination, and the seedlings. As a result, it was shown that there were differences in the formation process depending on the time of the start of cultivation and the lord of the Edo period. Many the cultivation areas started in the Edo period were the shogunate territory and natural habitat, and the cultivation area started after Meiji period tended to introduce technology from developed area. It was found that wasabi cultivation tends to be formed as an industry rather than a cash crop of the domain. The location characteristics were classified into 3 groups based on water systems, altitude, slop of the land, and the area of the wasabi field.

This study examined the habitat characteristics of Shortia uniflora, which is one of the main attractors of flower tourism in hilly and mountainous areas. Due to the distribution and vegetation surveys around the open flowering site, nine colonies with areas of 300–700 m² and some above 1000 m² were found in addition to seven colonies with an areas of 50–200 m². The results revealed that S. uniflora prefers steep, upper parts of the north-facing slope and avoids the cedar forest with many litters. The communities were also commonly distributed within evergreen cypress forests, which were deciduous broadleaf forests 70 years ago, in 1950. Regardless of the type of forest canopy (cypress forest, including the open flowering site, and deciduous broad-leaved forest), the floristic composition was dominated by common species. This species is shade-tolerant and has continued to grow in the forest even after the conversion to cypress forest. The area of the community in the open flowering site was 8,000 m², and the community size was much larger than other surrounding communities. The extremely large size of the community is a result of the continuous appropriate forest floor management according to the habitat characteristics, and the flowering landscape was evaluated as a local resource based on the ecological and sociological area-context.

There is a possibility that shrines in factories contribute to qualitative improvement of factory greening which is recommended throughout the country in recent years. In this study, we investigated greenery amount, visibility and tree species of shrines in factories for qualitative improvement of factory greening in the southern part of Amagasaki city, Hyogo prefecture. The results show that about half of the factories had own shrines, and the shrines were places to pray for safety. Moreover, greenery amount of shrines was small scale, and most green spaces of shrines were easily visible because they were close to the entrance gate to the factories. Green spaces of shrines had the function as a buffer green space, while landscape trees familiar as street trees and park trees were also included in the constituent species. It is suggested that green spaces of shrines should be positioned as a base for the formation of green spaces in factories, and the use of landscaping trees which have beauty of the shape or flowers blooming utilizing easily visible green spaces are effective for qualitative improvement of factory greening.

An "onion shed" is a wall-less storage house with only a beam, roof, and frame, where harvested onions are bundled and hung to be dried and stored. Onion sheds were a common feature in Minami-Awaji city in the beginning of summer; however, due to challenges related to hanging onions, the number of sheds has declined. In this study, the spatial characteristics and actual usage of rapidly disappearing onion sheds were investigated to determine an effective way to continue their succession. As per the findings, the district housed 1,093 sheds of three alignments- “spread style (in farmland)” “spread style (in village)” and “lined up style.” And traditional sheds with tiled roofs and wooden pillars accounted for 17.9% of all onion sheds, which were inclined to be lost with farmland consolidation. Moreover, it became clear that livestock farmers and double-cropping farmers are working together in a small village.