Bücher der Reihe International Perspectives in Geography

Management geography explores the spatial characteristics of management-related issues, especially of firms. This book discusses management geography in Japan and other Asian countries from Asian perspectives. The field has made significant contributions to the global economy but has not been deeply investigated in English-language geographical literature to date. The book addresses the following critical questions:What kinds of challenges do multinational corporations in Japan and other Asian countries face?How are managerial actors in multinational enterprises (MNEs) embracing boundary-spanning activities in a global context?How do firms and related entities cultivate business pipelines and 'buzz' within and beyond local regions?How do actors in Japanese MNEs, small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and related institutions embed various managerial processes at overseas locations? This book consists of two parts: Part I discusses the application and roles of Japanese and international managerial practices in the globalizing world. Part II examines changing business communities in the industrial and rural spaces of East Asia, focusing primarily on Japan and China. This work will interest readers in a wide range of fields, including geography, management studies, economics, urban planning and sociology. The book is also suitable for upper-level undergraduate students and graduate students in geography, management studies and related fields.

This book describes observed features of urban climate and its long-term variations as well as the relationship of climate to heat stroke in Japan, based on observational data and statistical analyses. Consisting of three parts, the book is a valuable resource for researchers and professionals involved with these topics. Part 1 focuses on urban climate. The basic characteristics of heat islands are reviewed, and long-term urban warming is described with a focus on the distinction from global warming. The influence of microscale environmental changes on the observed temperature is also presented, as well as changes in wind and precipitation in urban areas. They deepen our understanding of the features and mechanisms of urban heat islands and their long-term changes. Part 2 describes the climatological features of heat stroke mortality, which has become a major social problem in Japan, using mortality statistics and meteorological data. The spatial and temporal variations of heat stroke mortality are analyzed quantitatively on various spatial and temporal scales. In addition, the number of ambulance transports is examined as another measure of heat stroke casualty. The results provide insight into the climatological factors related to heat stroke mortality and contribute to the implementation of preventive measures. The climatology of deaths from extreme cold is also presented. For supplementary information, an overview of the geography, climate, and meteorological data of Japan is presented in Part 3.

This book clarifies the geography of the peripheral Japanese islands from a variety of angles. The islands are distributed in the tropical and cool temperate zones, and the most distant inhabited islands are more than 1,000 km from the mainland. In the past, they were Japan's frontier, close to neighboring countries. However, during Japan's modernization process, the islands were positioned as backward regions, supplying food, resources, and labor. Today, the islands are considered to be on the periphery of Japan, with lifestyles different from those of the mainland. The islands are also getting attention as sightseeing locales and emigration regions attracting those who prefer country life-an image of the islands that has been created by the romanticized gaze from the Japanese mainland. The authors describe the various forms of the outlying Japanese islands and at the same time discover their common regional characteristics, as defined by the view from the mainland.

This book will be of interest to scholars and students of Asian studies, cultural industries, economic geography, and related areas of study. It discusses the results of a microscopic survey focusing on topics such as how animation studios form business relationships and how workers gain skills in the industry. The methodology was based on traditional Japanese economic geographical methods. The study also examines macroscopic issues such as why industrial agglomerations are formed in metropolises, why metropolises develop mutual networks, and how a type of cultural product is created in the metropolises. The methodology uses case studies of the animation industries in Japan, South Korea, and China. The detailed analysis covers the process of the industry¿s agglomeration within the East Asian metropolises of Tokyo, Seoul, and Shanghai as well as the division of labor among them. In addition, the transaction relationships among animation studios are examined, together with the promotion of the industry in the peripheral region of Okinawa, Japan. Differences in work styles and output among these cities are also examined. The research presented in this book contributes to understanding the spatial structure and reality of creativity in an innovative industry, particularly the East Asian content industry.

This book is the first work to comprehensively investigate the enclaves of non-Japanese residents in Japan. In a comparative study, it convincingly examines eight enclaves of five nationalities (Chinese, Korean, Filipino, Brazilian and Turkish) in twelve municipalities. Japan now leads in terms of depopulation in countries affiliated with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The fact that the country has been supplementing the decreased number of Japanese nationals with an increase in migrants, who form enclaves, has attracted great attention. The temporal development and status quo of such enclaves are important concerns of researchers, policymakers and the general public. This publication is the result of joint studies by geographers and sociologists and contributes to a more detailed understanding of these topics. It thus represents a valuable achievement in the study of the segregation and enclave formation of minority nationalities. The empirical validity of existing explanatory frameworks, such as spatial assimilation and heterolocalism, is also discussed in a Japanese context.

This book discusses the building of comprehensive community support systems, which constitutes a key issue in social security reforms in Japan. The book comprises three parts: (I) Mapping Social Security in Japan, (II) Community-Based Integrated Care Systems in Japan, and (III) A Prospect of Community-Based Inclusive Society in Japan.

Comparative analysis of the communities provides a practical framework to understand a variety of local resources in Japan's coastal regions, which will serve as a guide to the development of alternative adaptive governance in community-based small-scale fisheries in the world.

The giant Asian monsoon has formed a diverse climate and natural environment.

This book asserts that the albatross was the reason for the advance of the Japanese into the isolated islands in the Pacific after the abolition of the Japanese "closed-door" policy that had been in effect from the seventeenth century to the latter part of the nineteenth century.

Written by one of Japan's most celebrated cultural geographers, this book explores the function of religion in the country's communities, revealing how diverse forms of reverence, from tree worship to Shintoism, are intimately related to context and location.

This is the first book to systematically describe the formation and historical changes of the Monpa people's area (Monyul) through its nature, society, culture, religion, agriculture and historically deep ties with Bhutan, Tibet and the Tibetan Buddhist faith.

This book examines Tokyo's changes, current challenges, and future trends through a new kind of regional geography and serves as an important source of comprehensive information about the past, present, and future perspectives of Tokyo as a global city.

This book enhances the discussion of anthropized soils with photographs of soil profiles and provides general information about soils in Japan, using data on their physical and chemical properties.

This book examines Tokyo's changes, current challenges, and future trends through a new kind of regional geography and serves as an important source of comprehensive information about the past, present, and future perspectives of Tokyo as a global city.

This book examines how we can mold the earth's future through such traditional wisdom and modern knowledge from the nine keynote speeches of the Kyoto Regional Conference focusing on three topics: traditional wisdom, the environment, and the Great East Japan Earthquake.

The 21 chapters are organized into themes, beginning with an overview of the geography education system in Japan, followed by chapters that deal with regional geography and fieldwork, teacher training, geography education's contributions to society, and a comparative study of geography education across multiple countries.

This book will be of interest to scholars and students of Asian studies, cultural industries, economic geography, and related areas of study.

This book features research on historical land use and land cover in the Amur River Basin, which are important not only for residents there but also for those affected by its material and water cycles. The Amur region of Russia, land cover change analysis of the Amur, wetland, and flooding of the Amur provide evidence of land cover change.

This book features research on historical land use and land cover in the Amur River Basin, which are important not only for residents there but also for those affected by its material and water cycles. The Amur region of Russia, land cover change analysis of the Amur, wetland, and flooding of the Amur provide evidence of land cover change.

The 21 chapters are organized into themes, beginning with an overview of the geography education system in Japan, followed by chapters that deal with regional geography and fieldwork, teacher training, geography education's contributions to society, and a comparative study of geography education across multiple countries.

This book examines how we can mold the earth's future through such traditional wisdom and modern knowledge from the nine keynote speeches of the Kyoto Regional Conference focusing on three topics: traditional wisdom, the environment, and the Great East Japan Earthquake.