- Project Leader : Yamamoto Sota (Research Center for the Pacific Islands, Kagoshima University)
- Collaborators : Noda Shinichi (Research Center for the Pacific Islands, Kagoshima University)
- : Nagashima Shunsuke (Research Center for the Pacific Islands, Kagoshima University)
- : Kawai Kei (Research Center for the Pacific Islands, Kagoshima University)
- : Nishimura Satoru (Faculty of Law, Economics and
Humanities, Kagoshima University) - : Shimizu Hiromu (Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University)
Outline of Research
The insular regions of Southeast Asia and Oceania have a common cultural background and now face a common crisis: the collapse of traditional society and subsistence activities under globalization and climate change. There are, however, few studies surveying or comparing the two regions. This collaborative research aims to bring together the accumulation of Area Studies from different disciplines in the insular regions of Southeast Asia and Oceania, to discover common problems at present in the two regions, and to create networks of researchers among these regions. Indonesia and Micronesia, which are neighboring regions in this area, will be the sites of an initial subsistence survey.
Description
The people in Oceania are known to have moved from Taiwan or the insular region in Southeast Asia several times more than 3000 years ago. Therefore, the insular regions of Southeast Asia and Oceania have a common cultural background. Confined to tropical islands but with a variety of ecologies the people have developed distinctive subsistence economics from their common base. Moreover, the two regions now face the common crisis of the collapse of traditional society and subsistence activities under globalization and climate change. There are, however, few studies that survey or compare the two regions.
Indonesia and Micronesia, which are neighboring regions in this area, will be the springboard for this comparative survey. While staying at the Jakarta Residence of Center for Southeast Asian Studies (CSEAS), Kyoto University, joint research between Indonesian and Japanese or Japan-based researchers will be promoted, and a field survey will also be conducted from there. Symposiums or Workshops will be held to collate the accumulation of Area Studies in the insular regions of Southeast Asia (CSEAS) and Oceania (Center for the Pacific Islands, Kagoshima University), to bring together contributions from different disciplines, to identify common problems at present in the two regions, and to create networks of researchers among these regions. Area Studies in Southeast Asia led mainly by CSEAS will be enriched by taking in Area Studies in Oceania.
 Crop and food survey in Pingelap Atoll, Federated States of Micronesia |
 Chili pepper field (Karimunjawa, Indonesia) |