Doctoral Dissertation Research: Disjuncture in Perceptions of Success in Collective Action for Natural Resource Management: The Case of Hokkaido, Japan

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Indiana University doctoral student Shingo Hamada, with the guidance of Dr. Richard Wilk, will undertake research on variability in how different social groups perceive and define successful marine conservation and the effects of that variability on actual marine resource recovery. The project's specific focus will be why herring restoration projects in Japan have developed in coastal communities in the last two decades, despite uncertain benefits both economically and ecologically. This research will contribute to improved understanding of the conditions in which multiple stakeholders engage in conservation efforts and the cumulative ecological effects of their engagement.The researcher will undertake thirteen months of fieldwork in a fishing community in Hokkaido, northern Japan, where he will focus on the herring industry. The herring industry is particularly important in the wake of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami because it has persisted while other fisheries are at risk. Hamada will conduct multiple semi-structured interviews and carry out participant observation in conservation-related events, such as reforestation activities and hatchery operations. He will recruit a wide range of informants, including fishers, seafood entrepreneurs, reforestation project participants and organizers, fishery scientists, and municipal administrators. The researcher will apply a series of social scientific research methods to determine the agreements and variations in the cultural values of herring and herring fishing among actors, and to identify how socio-cultural contexts influence the success of the restoration projects.The research is important because many conservation projects fail to achieve social and environmental sustainability. Findings from this study will contribute to building theory on what brings about improved human-environment relations and successful collective environmental decision-making. The research also will contribute to the doctoral training of a social scientist.