Formation of the resource concept in Japan: pre-war and post-war efforts in knowledge integration |
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Authors: | Jin Sato |
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Institution: | (1) Department of International Studies, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa-shi, Chiba, Japan |
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Abstract: | The objective of this paper is to trace the evolution of the resource concept in modern Japan by highlighting key individuals
who played major roles in communicating this idea to a wider audience during its formation and development between the 1910s
and 1950s. Special attention will be paid to the effect of different historical contexts on interpretations of the term “resource”.
The paper reveals how the integration of knowledge indispensable for achieving sustainability occurs. The orientation of resource
policy was drastically different before and after World War II. In the pre-war period, the military government used the resource
concept to create a comprehensive inventory of the nation’s military forces, and “resource” was thus a convenient term to
neutralize the aggressive connotations of top-down military mobilization. After the turn to democratic principles in 1945,
“resource” suddenly acquired a symbolic meaning as a means to serve the people. Despite these contrasts, however, pre and
post-war resource concepts share a commonality in that the government acted as the centralizing force, providing a platform
to integrate disparate knowledge under the resource concept. At a time when society itself is more prone to fragmentation,
the resource concept, which played a significant role in unification in the past, should be re-examined. The history of the
concept in Japan, particularly during the pre and post-war period up until the 1950s, contains a wealth of insights as to
how this can be achieved.
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Keywords: | Resource concept Resource council Japan Knowledge integration |
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