Drawing Plans of a House That Already Stands: Knowledge Systems of the Shiretoko Region, a World Heritage Site of Japan

In the context of the process in which Shiretoko was selected as a World Natural Heritage Site, we discuss the functions of bilateral knowledge translators as buffers to resist external pressure. We explore a process that encourages reconfiguration of the international framework represented by World Natural Heritage Site. In the Shiretoko region, through the interaction between fishers and visiting researchers, knowledge systems that contribute to the international value of World Natural Heritage Sites are reorganized to fit local realities. The mechanisms utilized and the value derived from local fisher practices can spread widely via the language of science.