1 Introduction:Sustainability is also a Matter of Culture

2 Asian History and Culture

 2.1 Main culture in Asia

 2.2 Religions and related culture in Asia

 2.3 Features and commonality of Asian civilization

3 Farming Culture Serves as the Foundat on of Asian Civilization

 3.1 Main history of agricultural development in Asia

 3.2 Major a.qricultural patterns and their characteristics

4 DifferenCes and Clashes Of the Oriental and the Western Civilizations

 4.1 Agricultural patterns of the East and the West: cereal pattern vs. cereal and hay pattern

 4.2 Comparison of development path between the East and the West:enhance land productivity vs. labor productivity

 4.3 Challenges in front of traditional culture in Asia

5 Retrospect and Prospect

 5.1 Challenges for the development of Asian agriculture

 5.2 Main achievements and experiences of Asian traditional agriculture

 5.3 Historical application

References

This series of books are the output of the research project called “Sustainable Development in Asia (SDA)”, which was initiated by the Association of Academies of Sciences in Asia (AASA). They are comprised of one synthesis report, which entitled “Towards a Sustainable Asia: Green Transition and Innovation”, and four thematic reports on natural resources, energy, the environment and climate change, and culture from particular perspectives of agriculture.

They aim to: 1) investigate common sustainability issues faced by all Asian countries, including population increase, poverty alleviation, pollution control, ecological restoration, as well as regional problems, such as water shortage in West and Central Asia, energy security in Northeast Asia, development model & transformation in East Asia; 2) analyze and summarize of best practices towards sustainable development in Asia; 3) bring forward suggestions and policy options for promoting green transition, system innovation and sustainable development of Asia.

With best practice guidelines for a sustainable Asia, this series of reports, for the first time systematically address the common challenges and regional problems in regard to Asia’s natural resources use, pollution reduction and climate protection, sustainable energy development, and innovations for environment-friendly and culture-compatible agriculture. They will provide handy and useful information to researchers, government policy makers and the general public who have concerns about Asia’s sustainable development.

AASA is a scientific and technological organization in Asia, established in 2000, comprising of 26 member academies all over Asia. Its vision is to provide a forum for the discussion of all issues relevant to science and technology development and its application on national level within Asia.

With a focus on farming culture, this report briefly discusses Asian history, culture and their present-day importance. It covers a wide range of topics including an overview of Asia's main civilizations, Asian religions and related cultures, a discussion of the characteristics and similarities of Asian civilizations, an examination of the role of agriculture in Asian civilizations; and an analysis of the differences between eastern and western civilizations from a global perspective and, more particularly, western civilization's impact on eastern civilization. This report will also summarize the major achievements of Asian traditional agriculture and analyze the main challenges faced today by Asian agriculture and culture. It hopes to show how cultural roots can point the way towards sustainable development in the future.