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.