Japan and Germany as the number two and three of the economic powers base their success more than others on their industries. These have created in the past heavy environmental hazards (Minamata disease and 'Waldsterben'), which again led to the fact that they have become leaders in environmental technologies and protection. This volume presents the most outstanding contributions of a conference organised at the Musashi Institute of Technology, Yokohama, in October 2002, by the German-Japanese Society of Social Sciences, which assembles some of the most prominent specialists in the field of both countries.