Kumano Geopark Project: Community Regeneration by Interconnecting Tourism Study with Geoscience in Wakayama, Japan

This paper presents our community-regeneration project in Wakayama, Japan. Wakayama Prefecture is the southwestern part of the Kii Peninsula. The Kumano region is the southern part of Wakayama. The Kii Peninsula has a UNESCO World Heritage (cultural heritage), registered in 2004 July as Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range. The Heritage has been widely utilized to attract tourists to the region. However, the Kii Peninsula has not only the cultural heritage but many geoscientifically important natural heritages such as the volcano-plutonic complex including well exposed ring dyke in the Kumano region. A Geopark can be described as a region which has a system to apply the Earth's heritages so that people can enjoy and scientifically understand Earth. Authorization by the Global Geoparks Network (GGN) enables a region to claim as Global Geopark. Similarly, Japan Geoparks Network enables it domestically in Japan. To be authorized, there are some important factors, for example; the importance and conservation of the Earth's heritage (geophysical, geological, etc.); devices to communicate mechanism, structure, origin, and history of Earth plainly and interestingly with visitors; sustainable and cooperative systems linking the administrative organizations, residents, researchers, tourism bureaus, and so on. Our goal is to be officially authorized the Kii Peninsula as Kumano Geopark by JGN (and furthermore, by GGN if possible). We also try to discuss this issue in the light of tourism management. The authorization by JGN (or GGN) may work as regional branding. By raising the value of the Kumano regional brand (or the ``brand equity'' of Kumano), we may contribute the community regeneration.