Hokkaido Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Hokkaido - Term Paper Example As a subject or academic discipline, geography is the study of earth as the home for humanity. However, man has created conditions that are favorable to his existence on the foundations of existing physical features. Study of such creation encompasses human geography, which analyzes the relationship between human activities and the natural environment. Cultural geography is a major branch of geography and it is concerned with language, religion, government, and economy of a geographical region. Japan is an island nation that has fascinating environment and climate. These features have greatly influenced how people make a living from available resources. Hokkaido is the northernmost island of Japan. Unlike other islands that form the country, Hokkaido has extremely cold climate that influence how people construct their houses. In addition, Hokkaido sits on a rugged terrain, which has a relatively high water table. These factors also influence the design and sizes of house that can be constructed. The region is also prone to earthquakes that also influence housing designs and structures. Hokkaido is known as the territory of constructions this is because the region ever has new buildings. In Hokkaido, public construction works exceeds work done in the private sector. Government policies and regulations meant to enhance safety in the construction industry greatly influence building of new houses in Hokkaido. The Japanese construction industry contributes about 20% of the total GDP of the country. This constitutes construction works performed in the country and outside the country. Construction of houses in Hokkaido is very different from other parts of the country. This is partly due ton the housing values of the native communities and the developing status of Hokkaido. Unlike other parts of Japan such as Tokyo, Hokkaido is still in its early development stage. However, Hokkaido is developing very fast and it may soon overtake Tokyo as the world largest metropolitan. This has made the region to be characterized by new construction and engineering works. It has often been said that public construction work in Hokkaido greatly exceeds work done in the private sector. Registered contractors who are regulated by the prefectural governor cry out construction works in Hokkaido. Hokkaido is considered as the land of construction. Currently the region holds 7% of the total number of construction companies in Japan. This is a significant figure considering the fact that construction in Hokkaido constitutes about 5% of the total construction works in Japan. Small construction companies are the most dominant in Japan and they handle nearly 78% of all construction contracts awarded annually in Hokkaido. In Hokkaido nearly 8% of the total population work in the construction industry, either as s killed semi-skilled or unskilled laborers. The most desirable characteristic of Hokkaido construction workforce it that, there is a striking balance between the skilled and unskilled labor force. However, the region is likely to