I first became interested in fieldwork after walking in town and walking in the mountains. I saw and heard the city; I talked to people while walking with my own legs. While mountain climbing, I carried a map and studied the terrain; I observed the plants, and consulted local weather lore. Such experiences of feeling and thinking with the whole body have remained in my memory for many years.
When I was a student, I learned about rain, snow, and related natural disasters in the laboratory of the Department of Civil Engineering. In the process of cloud development, a cloud can include many snow particles (ice crystals) of various shapes and sizes before raindrops are generated. The story of snow was something new and fresh for me, because I grew up in an area where it does not snow. Rain is also closely related to the peatland fires in Indonesia, which I am currently focusing on. However, it is difficult to solve the problem of peatland fires only with the knowledge of rain. It is also necessary to consider societal factors, such as the social mechanisms and the economy, so that the land can be properly managed without being abandoned.
I first became interested in Indonesia was when I was a graduate student spending time with an Indonesian friend. I learned that Indonesia is a country that has as many disasters as Japan, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and floods. We often saw news [from Indonesia] of the houses being flooded almost every year. Every time I was surprised to see evacuees walking and pushing bicycles through waist-high flood waters. I was very attracted to the strong connections among the people. While helping each other, they are living a vibrant life in a multi-ethnic country where each religion, culture, and language is mixed.
I think that the way of thinking about and understanding disasters is different in Japan and Indonesia. Instead of simply providing disaster prevention weather information to the citizens, I would like to think together about how to utilize such information in their everyday lives and whether and how it can be useful.
I hope that this video might allow you to enter the world of area studies from a scientific field such as civil engineering.
