Ecosystems and disaster risk reduction in the context of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami: a scoping study Report to the Keidanren Nature Conservation Fund

This new working paper focuses on the perceptions of communities on the role of ecosystems for disaster risk reduction (DRR), particularly in the context of the 3/11 tsunami in Japan. The research was carried out in the region of Sendai over a two month period in July and August 2012. A desk-based study was conducted to review the institutional setup and mechanisms for Japan’s risk reduction, reconstruction and land use planning. It includes insights on the specific policies designed to support ecosystem management in the reconstruction phase and presents key experiences and perspectives of some of the best ‘experts’ on the effects of the 3/11 events on local communities. Finally, it provides insights on peoples’ experiences of how ecosystems are perceived, understood and how they witnessed the role of ecosystems during the 3/11 events and highlights research gaps, recommendations for further analyses and the valuable lessons Japan is learning.