When Listening to the Time of the Lakes──A Continuous History of Nature and Jomon as Reflected by the Mikatagoko Eco-museum (1990s)

When Listening to the Time of the Lakes──A Continuous History of Nature and Jomon as Reflected by the Mikatagoko Eco-museum (1990s)
The Mikata-Goko (Five Lakes of Mikata) in Wakasa Town, Fukui Prefecture, is a complex mixture of fresh and brackish water, with a unique topography of five interconnected lakes connected to the sea. In the 1990s, this rich wetland environment began to be recognized as part of an international trend toward wetland conservation, and the viewpoint that the Mikata-Go-Ko lakes are one of the most important wetland areas in the world began to spread. The viewpoint that the Mikatagoko Lakes are one of the most important wetlands in the world begins to spread. In Japan, the Basic Environment Law was enacted, and the value of wetlands and lakes was being reevaluated as a global ecosystem service, rather than as a mere room for development.
At the same time, the Torihama shell mound on the banks of the Mikata Goko (Five Lakes of Mikata) once again attracted attention in the history of Jomon culture. A round wooden boat, lacquerware, and traces of plant use dating back about 10,000 years were discovered one after another, and this led to a reevaluation of the Jomon culture as one that possessed advanced natural use and technology. The Torihama Shell Mound is a valuable site that proves that the wetland environment supported human life and created a continuous and integrated history of nature and culture, and this reevaluation has given academic depth to the Mikata-Goko Eco-museum.
The 1990s was also a time of decentralization, and community development with the participation of local residents began to attract attention. The Mikatagoko Eco-museum was conceived as a mechanism for residents to proactively pass on, preserve, and learn about local nature and culture. The museum's approach of treating the entire region as an open museum, without separating the lake ecosystem, Jomon ruins, and the history of fishing and agriculture, goes beyond the conventional framework of exhibiting nature and culture separately. The attitude of sharing the lakeside scenery and memories of daily life with visitors, with residents acting as guides and curators, embodied the philosophy of resident sovereignty that is at the core of the eco-museum concept.
Mikatagoko is a good example of the theory of natural-cultural unity because the ecosystem, Jomon culture, and the present time of life are uninterruptedly connected in one place. The cycle of nature nurturing culture, and that culture giving rise to a perspective that understands nature, is visible here both in the landscape and in the history of the area. These efforts later led to the registration of Mikatagoko as a Ramsar wetland, connecting the region's progress to an international conservation framework. The Mikatagoko Eco Museum is a place that responds to the needs of the times to reread the history of nature and mankind as a single story.