SIMONA ZOLLET

Last Updated :2024/05/07

Affiliations, Positions
Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Assistant Professor
Web Site
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Simona-Zollet-2
E-mail
szollethiroshima-u.ac.jp
Self-introduction
Simona Zollet received her Masters' degree in Environmental Science and Sustainable Development from Ca' Foscari University of Venice, Italy, and her PhD from Hiroshima University, under the TAOYAKA Leading Graduate School Program. Her doctoral disseration focused on the agroecological transition associated to new entrant farmers as a driver of rural revitalization. She is now Assistant Professor at Hiroshima University and a 2021 USASBE (US Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship) Rural Research Fellow. Her published research encompasses several overlapping areas of inquiry. The first pertains to organic farming (eco)systems and clusters in Italy and Japan and their connection to the social, ecological and economic sustainability of marginal rural areas. A connected research topic is that of urban-to-rural lifestyle migrants seeking more sustainable and fulfilling lifestyles through small scale entrepreneurship, with a focus on food- and farming-related businesses. Broadly, she is interested in sustainability transitions in agri-food systems and in rural revitalization through innovative approaches to farming and rural living, informed by notions of degrowth, sufficiency, and the well-being economy.

Basic Information

Major Professional Backgrounds

  • 2021/04/01, Hiroshima University, Office of Research and Academia-Government-Community Collaboration, Assistant Professor

Educational Backgrounds

  • Hiroshima University, Graduate School for International Development and Cooperation , Japan, 2018/04, 2021/03
  • Hiroshima University, Graduate School for International Development and Cooperation , Japan, 2016/04, 2018/03
  • Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, Department of Environmental Sciences, Italy, 2012/09, 2015/10
  • University of Udine, Department of Agriculture, Italy, 2005/10, 2011/02

Academic Degrees

  • Joint Masters' Degree in sustainable Development, Venice University
  • Masters' Degree in International Development and Cooperation, Hiroshima University
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Hiroshima University

Research Fields

  • Agricultural sciences;Agricultural science in society and economy;Agricultural science in rural society and development

Research Keywords

  • Rural revitalization; Urban to Rural migration; Lifestyle entrepreneurship; Sustainable lifestyles; Newcomer farmers; Alternative Food Networks; Organic farming; Agroecology

Affiliated Academic Societies

  • The Association for Regional Agricultural and Forestry Economics (ARAFE), 2017/10
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  • USASBE (US Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship), 2021/04
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Educational Activity

Course in Charge

  1. 2024, Liberal Arts Education Program1, Intensive, Rural Entrepreneurship in Practice
  2. 2024, Graduate Education (Doctoral Program) , 3Term, Innovation Practice
  3. 2024, Undergraduate Education, 3Term, Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems

Research Activities

Academic Papers

  1. Resisting the vineyard invasion: Anti-pesticide movements as a vehicle for territorial food democracy and just sustainability transitions, JOURNAL OF RURAL STUDIES, 86, 318-329, 202108
    Link to Paper Search Results by DOI
  2. Towards Territorially Embedded, Equitable and Resilient Food Systems? Insights from Grassroots Responses to COVID-19 in Italy and the City Region of Rome, SUSTAINABILITY, 13(5), 202103
    Link to Paper Search Results by DOI
  3. ★, Overcoming the barriers to entry of newcomer sustainable farmers: Insights from the emergence of organic clusters in Japan, SUSTAINABILITY, 13(2), 866, 202101
    Link to Paper Search Results by DOI
  4. Amplifying Agroecological Farmer Lighthouses in Contested Territories: Navigating Historical Conditions and Forming New Clusters in Japan, FRONTIERS IN SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS, 5, 20210818
    Link to Paper Search Results by DOI
  5. The impact of COVID-19 on alternative and local food systems and the potential for the sustainability transition: Insights from 13 countries, SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION, 28, 591-599, 202110
    Link to Paper Search Results by DOI
  6. The making of art islands: A comparative analysis of translocal assemblages of contemporary art and tourism, Island Studies Journal, 16(2), 235-264, 202109
    Link to Paper Search Results by DOI
  7. Marché as a Place for Interaction between Organic Produc-ers and Local Consumers: A Study of Hiroshima Prefecture, Journal of Rural Problems, 56(4), 143-150, 202012
    Link to Paper Search Results by DOI
  8. Organic Farming and Agricultural Landscape Preservation for the Sustainable Development of Uttarakhand Mountain Villages, Journal of Urban and Regional Studies on Contemporary India, 4(2), 41-53, 201803
    Link to Paper Search Results by DOI
  9. The Role of Domestic In-migrants for the Revitalization of Marginal Island Communities in the Seto Inland Sea of Japan, MIRRA (Migration in Remote and Rural Areas) Research and Policy Briefs Series., 201910

Invited Lecture, Oral Presentation, Poster Presentation

  1. Lifestyle migrants in Japan's Seto Inland Sea islands: beyond Western-based conceptualizations of lifestyle migration, Simona Zollet, Meng Qu, SICRI 'Islands and Migration' Research Symposium - 6 November 2021, 2021/11/06, Without Invitation, English
  2. Small-scale agroecological farming and the 'return to rural': at the intersection between rural revitalization and agri-food sustainability transitions., Zollet Simona, 71th ARAFE Symposium, 30-31 October 2021, 2021/10/30, With Invitation, English
  3. COVID-19: OPPORTUNITY OR THREAT FOR LOCAL AND ALTERNATIVE FARMERS?, Simona Zollet, Norie Tamura, Steven R. McGreevy, Yu-Chan Chiu, Yu-Hua Chen, Felix Zoll, Maximilian Spiegelberg, Mai Kobayashi, 19th European Week of Regions and Cities, 11-14 October 2021, 2021/10/11, With Invitation, English
  4. Urban-to-rural migration and lifestyle entrepreneurship: opening spaces of possibilities for resilient rural communities and local agri-food systems, Simona Zollet, Emi Makino, Is Rural Japan Sustainable? A Symposium on the Past, Present and Future of Community-based Endeavors, October 1-3 2021, 2021/10/02, Without Invitation, English
  5. Small Scale sustainable farmers and COVID-19: Limits and resilience of Italian Alternative Food Networks at the beginning of the pandemic., Zollet Simona, 31st International Conference of Agricultural Economists (ICAE 31), 17-31 August 2021, 2021/08/17, Without Invitation, English
  6. Small-scale farming and local and alternative food system resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic: insights from Italy, Germany, Taiwan and Japan, Norie Tamura, Simona Zollet, Steven R. McGreevy, Yu-Chan Chiu, Yu-Hua Chen, Felix Zoll, Maximilian Spiegelberg, Mai Kobayashi, 60th ERSA Congress, 24-27 August 2021, 2021/08/24, Without Invitation, English
  7. Special Session: Impacts of COVID-19 on alternative and local food systems (ALFS) and potential for sustainability transitions: case studies and theoretical considerations, Chiffoleau Yuna, Nemes Gusztáv; Zollet Simona, 60th ERSA Congress, 24-27 August 2021, 2021/08/24, Without Invitation, English
  8. Exploring lifestyle entrepreneurship among Japanese urban-to-rural migrants through the 'diverse economies' framework: Towards a research agenda on rural community resilience and well-being, Zollet Simona, MIRAI Research and Innovation Week 2021, June 7-11, 2021/06/07, With Invitation, English
  9. Beyond teikei? Japanese organic farmers and the construction of producer-consumer relationships, Asia Pacific Society for Agricultural and Food Ethics (APSAFE), 3-16 December 2020, 2020/12/03, Without Invitation, English
  10. Lifestyle migrants for the Revitalization of Marginal Island Communities in the Seto Inland Sea of Japan, Zollet Simona, Qu Meng, 2nd International Conference in Critical Tourism Studies Asia-Pacific (CTS-AP), Wakayama University., 2020/02/17, Without Invitation, English
  11. The 'Preparing Future Faculty' Course at Hiroshima University: Experiences and insights., Zollet Simona, Shimazu Reiko, CITL (Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning) Symposium 2018: Creating Learning Experiences with Graduate Students: Beyond TAs. Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan, 2019/01/30, Without Invitation, English
  12. Farmers' markets in Japan: creating new spaces of action for alternative food initiatives?, Zollet Simona, XXVIII European Society for Rural Sociology Congress"Rural Futures in a Complex World"Trondheim, Norway., 2019/06/25, Without Invitation, Japanese
  13. Newcomer organic farmers and the new rurality: multifunctional rural development pathways in the Italian Alps, Zollet Simona, 2019 AAG Annual Meeting, Washington DC, United States, 2019/04/03, Without Invitation, English
  14. Towards sustainability transitions in Japanese agri-food systems: the role of new entrant organic farmers in rural areas of Hiroshima prefecture, Japan., Zollet Simona, 13th European IFSA Symposium - Farming systems: facing uncertainties and enhancing opportunities, Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania., 2018/07/01, Without Invitation, English
  15. The urban-to-rural migration and newcomer farmers: Sustainability, place and identity-making through the lenses of local food., Culture, Sustainability, and Place: Innovative Approaches for Tourism Development, Ponta Delgada., 2017/10/11, Without Invitation, English