Role of citizens in environmental conservation: The case of the Yokosuka City; a statistical analysis

With the recent environmental issues such as global warming and illegal dumping of waste, people are getting more concerned with the impacts of household activities on the environment. Environmental conservation activities conducted voluntarily by citizens may reduce these impacts. Citizens can be encouraged by the assessment of their activities for further undertakings. In this article, as necessary tools for such assessment, new statistics measuring the size of citizens' activities in the environmental conservation are presented along with the outline of environmental governance in Japan. In concluding, several strategies for effective involvement of citizens in the environmental governance are suggested. © Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2009.