In the 1990s, Japan gradually began to turn green and started to experiment with more participatory forms of environmental governance. Ecological Modernisation and Japan explores this transformation and looks at Japan as a case for ecological modernisation while contextualising the discussion within its unique history and recent discussions about globalisation and sustainability. It makes a significant contribution to the ecological modernisation debate by unpacking the Japanese environmental experience.
Biography
Brendan Barrett is an Academic Programme Officer at the United Nations University, Japan. He is the co-author of Environmental Policy and Impact Assessment in Japan (Routledge, 1991) and co-editor of Human Development and the Environment (UNU Press, 2001). He has written extensively on Japanese approaches to impact assessment, integrated environmental management, Local Agenda 21 and decentralisation.
'In addition to its account of development in Japan, this book will likely be welcomed by supporters and critics of the theory of ecological modernization, because the central arguement provides additional fuel concerning the pros and cons of the theory.' - Japanese Studies
'This volume provides an up-to-date and worthy commentary on environmental politics in Japan. It is informative and well-researched, and the collaborators should be commended for their efforts.' - Mike Danaher, Central Queensland University