This book, written by one of the leading Japanese scholars in the philosophy of agricultural science, examines the relationship between human life, the natural environment, and agriculture. The author argues that satisfying diverse human values requires a harmonious realization of three sometimes conflicting sets of values, and situates a reconceived agricultural science as the best means to realizing these ends. This means rethinking the entrenched divisions between the natural, human, and practical sciences to create an agricultural science that draws on the reductive empiricism of the natural sciences as well as the interpretative methodologies of the human sciences in its efforts to find applied solutions to real problems. This also entails rethinking the place of agriculture in the world, recognizing that its non-economic contributions to the community and environment are every bit as important as, if not more than, its economic values. Only through balancing diverse value objectives and synthesizing diverse research methodologies will modern societies avert further environmental damage and begin to rectify existing problems.

About Editors and Authors

SODA Osamu is a renowned agronomist and agricultural economist in Japan. After graduating from the Faculty of Agriculture at Kyoto University, he obtained a Doctorate in Agriculture (1980) and held Professorship in Agriculture (1990-2003). He is Professor Emeritus at Kyoto University and served as President of Fukui Prefectural University from 2004 to 2010. He specializes in the philosophy of agriculture, agricultural economics and regional economics.