Connecting People through the Blessings of Satoyama and Satoumi

Satoyama and satoumi are Japanese words used to describe Japanese landscapes (satoyama) or seascapes (satoumi) where a mosaic of different land- and sea-uses and natural habitats has developed through harmonious human interaction with nature. The Urato Islands in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan are a group of small islands with rich satoyama and satoumi where people have been cultivating oysters and seaweed, and growing vegetables, for years.

In the last few decades, the islands’ communities have been facing challenges such as a declining and ageing population, and abandoned farmland. The 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami badly exacerbated this situation and significantly weakened the social capital of the communities that live on the islands.

As one way to tackle this problem, the United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) and the company e-front have been working together on a project that aims to use the satoyama and satoumi of the islands to create opportunities for people to interact and revitalise farmland that is increasingly being abandoned. This video introduces the project and how it has made an impact on the islands’ people.

From 2011 to 2015, UNU-IAS carried out an earlier project, in collaboration with Tohoku University, that aimed to revitalise satoyama and satoumi in the islands’ communities. Please see the additional videos listed below, which capture a portrait of people engaged in community recovery.

Bouncing Back from Disaster – Working with Nature to Create a Brighter Future for the Urato Islands -    • Bouncing Back from Disaster – Working...   Urato, Home of Oysters (Japanese language only) –    • 浦戸、牡蠣のふるさと   Urato, Beautiful Islands (Japanese language only) –    • 浦戸、美しい島々  

These projects were carried out under the concept of the Satoyama Initiative. For more information on the Satoyama Initiative, please visit: http://satoyama-initiative.org

The production of this video was made possible with financial contributions from the “Ink Cartridge Satogaeri Project”. For details on this project, please visit: http:// http://www.inksatogaeri.jp/