Rural areas between decline and resurgence : lessons from Japan and Austria edited by Ralph Lützeler = BEITRÄGE ZUR JAPANOLOGIE Band 46 (BzJ 46) # CONTENTS # Ralph LÜTZELER: Introduction: Rural Areas – Dying or Just Smelling Funny? # (Re-)Assessing Rural Living Conditions # Ralph LÜTZELER: Living Conditions in Japanese Rural Areas: Stuck in a Downward Spiral? Gerhard HOVORKA: Structural Changes in Austrian Agriculture in Mountainous Areas Wolfram MANZENREITER: Rural Happiness in Japan: Contrasting Urban and Rural Well-Being in Kumamoto Shinya UENO: Impact of Structural Change in Rural Areas and Public Policies Georg WIESINGER: The Importance of Social Capital in Rural Development, Networking and Decision-Making in Rural Areas Barbara HOLTHUS and Ralph LÜTZELER: Project Report A: Regional Differences of Parental Well-Being in Japan # Examples of Rural Community Revitalization # Naoto TANAKA: Participatory Community Development Based on Local Identity in Yamato Town, Kumamoto Prefecture Yoko KAWAMURA: Health for Sustainable Community Development Johannes WILHELM: Disaster Resilience in Coastal Pacific Tōhoku: Restoring Livelihood after the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Theresia OEDL-WIESER and Thomas DAX: The Impact of LEADER Initiatives to Rural Revitalization in Austria Signy SPLETZER: Project Report B: Here to Stay – The Revitalization Initiative Zen of the Aso: Region and its Impact on the Local Community