(Toyo University)
People in maritime Asia and Oceania have continued to build their lives in the seashore as an ecotone (transition zone), which is vulnerable to natural disasters such as tsunamis. This is because they have found their own socio-cultural meaning in this niche, and they have secured resilience, the ability to cope with uncertain situations such as disasters. Under the theme of “Resilience of Living by the Sea and the Logic of Local Community,” this project will analyze (1) the historical process of natural disasters and living by the sea, (2) the socio-cultural transformations and adaptations that occurred during that process, and (3) the involvement of external actors in living by the sea and their impacts over a long-term time span of about 100 years. Based on these analyses, the main objectives of this study are to clarify the resilience that people have secured through living by the sea and to show the regional characteristics and commonalities of such resilience through comparisons among regions. This year, we will establish a framework for implementing the project and conduct preliminary surveys in Indonesia, Thailand, and Japan. In addition, a website will be developed and a medium- to long-term plan for disseminating the results will be discussed.