Complex systems analysis and environmental modeling

Most studies of complex systems take the way of comparing a developed artificial world in the computer with the real world and trying to explore the principles of the complex real world. But, this is not enough to understand complex phenomena and make decisions. This paper emphasizes a soft approach that uses both the logic and the educated intuition of people. Our methodology originates in Sawaragi's shinayakana systems approach that is based on Japanese intellectual tradition. This paper introduces our systems methodology together with our trial of applying it to the global environmental problems. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.