Abstract
This study examined regional revitalisation in Japan from the perspective of actor– network theory (ANT), which has been discussed in cultural anthropology and other fields, and studied extensively in organisation studies. Research on regional revitalisation includes innovation, government policies studies, and community formation. However, a crucial viewpoint is missing from the previous studies. It is the intentionality of the main actors, that is, the existence of influencing networks, and the nonhuman factors in the created networks. Therefore, people involved in local revitalisation in Japan were interviewed in this study. Our findings show that various actors are involved in the formation of towns and regions. Moreover, each actor builds translation networks to achieve its own goals and incorporates nonhuman actors. Consequently, the application of ANT facilitated nuanced analysis, and it offers a novel perspective in the study of regional revitalisation.