A cultural anthropological study on U.S. military base redevelopment in Okinawa: the case of Yomitan Village

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15K03061
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Cultural anthropology
• Research Institution: Waseda University
• Principal Investigator: Hara Tomoaki 早稲田大学, 人間科学学術院, 准教授 (00287947)
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2019-03-31
• Keywords: 沖縄 / 読谷村 / 跡地利用 / 開発

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study aims to trace the history of a US military base redevelopment project in Yomitan Village, Central Okinawa, and identify the achievements and challenges of the project. The project was created by the joint effort of former landowners and the local government, and it was intended to develop 70 percent of the land for agriculture and the rest for public use. Previous studies have described this unique project as a possible example of“endogenous development” in Okinawa. This study, however, reveals that the project faced many difficulties, for example, the emergence of differences in opinion amongst the landowners over agriculture-oriented development.

Free Research Field

文化人類学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

先行研究では、読谷補助飛行場の跡地開発プロジェクトは、沖縄における「内発的発展」の可能性を有する取り組みとして注目されてきた。しかし本研究を通じて、同プロジェクトは、多くの課題に直面していることが明らかになった。現在進行中の米軍基地跡地開発プロジェクトの課題を浮き彫りにできたことが、本研究の学術的・社会的意義である。