Seventy percent of the earth's freshwater ice is said to be in Antarctica. The fear of global warming is that this ice will melt. There have been climate changes in earth's past, and we know of many forms of life that became extinct due to these changes, as well as forms that thrived. On earth, all things are in a state of flux, and the human race is no exception.

This is the fiftieth year since Japan began participating in the international Antarctic observation activities. In this paper I would like to review the changes in the international situation in the Antarctic over this period and how they have affected certain research topics in recent years. Along with this, I would like to introduce some aspects of Japan's observation and research efforts in the Antarctic Ocean.

Although the holders of Common Fishing rights are themselves part of the fishing community, their licensing by the Japan Fisheries Cooperatives (JF) is made use of to consider them members in the JF, allowing it to approve land reclamation projects by vote in its general assembly. Meanwhile, as those involved in Licensed and Non-licensed fishing are not part of such misrepresentation, there have been cases in which they are the ones to protect the ocean. In future, I expect we will see more cases in which Licensed and Non-Licensed fishermen work to protect the ocean from indiscriminate development.