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Okinawa comprises less than one percent of the total land area of Japan, but hosts over seventy-five percent of all US Forces Japan military personnel. The US military bases occupy over twenty percent of the total land area of Okinawa's main island, and the local economy has become dependent on the activity generated by the presence of the bases. The social and environmental costs of such a high concentration of military bases have led to calls by many Okinawan residents for a reduction in the U.S. military's "footprint" on the island. Therefore, many Okinawan communities are looking for ways to encourage sustainable economic development. This paper examines recent development efforts in two Okinawan communities. In the late 1990s Nago City was selected as the location for the construction of a new U.S. military base by the Japanese central government. The proposal sharply divided the community, but local officials eventually accepted the government's proposal. The Japanese central government, working with the local government, implemented a top-down development strategy for Nago City that included efforts to expand its tourist industry and to attract international investment from the high-technology industry. In contrast to the top-down development strategy evident in Nago City, Yomitan Village, which also hosts several U.S. military bases, has pursued a bottom-up strategy which builds on its identity as a cultural center. The experiences of Nago City and Yomitan Village illustrate the difficulties that Okinawan communities face in their efforts to identify sustainable development strategies in the context of a military base-dependent regional economy.

Stream: Economic Sustainability

Paper: U.S. Military Bases and Sustainable Economic Development in Okinawa