｜Length : 44min. ｜Year : 1996 ｜

Back to Nature

Nature has amazing powers of regeneration. This was the lesson learned when an elementary school in a densely populated residential area of Yokohama tried its hand at eco-improvement by building a small dragonfly pond. The pond, which recreated the former wetland environment of the area, soon attracted both dragonflies and other life, which within three years had spread to a nearby river. The project's success is encouraging for battered ecosystems everywhere.

｜Length : 33min. ｜Year : 1996 ｜

Birds Vs. Bureaucrats

What happens when bureaucracy and Nature clash? Find out as we examine the case of the "kumatakas," or Japanese Hawk-Eagles, of Yamagata Prefecture. The endangered birds are threatened by construction of a large-scale forest road which is, to many people's thinking, an unwelcome government project. Environmentalists battle to save the birds.

｜Length : 29min. ｜Year : 1996 ｜

Science Aids Nature's Renewal

Aquatic plants are being reintroduced to two lakes in Japan's Nagano Prefecture in an attempt to rebuild their damaged ecosystems. At Lake Suwa, an artificial reed plain has been planted. At Lake Nojiri, an aquatic plant that is extinct in the wild has been grown in a laboratory in the hopes that it will serve as a building block for new life.

｜Length : 28min. ｜Year : 1995 ｜

Deforestation is destroying the beauty of Iwate Prefecture, which is home to some of northern Japan's most breathtaking scenery. In fact, mountain logging is having a disastrous effect on the whole ecosystem: bare of trees, the mountains are unable to hold water, leading to flooding and drought and massive soil erosion. As is so often the case in Japan, the culprit is the bureaucracy - the Forestry Agency, which mandates continued logging despite low demand for timber.

｜Length : 59min. ｜Year : 1993 ｜

This program focuses on a major environmental issue. It follows two Dayaks from Sarawak's highland rain forest on a journey to the lowlands. Piman and Peseo want to invite logging companies to their area, hoping "progress" will bring jobs and roads. First, however, they want to look at a logging site and visit the villages of the many Dayaks who have already migrated to the lowlands looking for a better life. What they find is a tragic predicament with relevance to us all.