School of Human Science and Environment

Professor Mizue Ohashi

In forests, various biological activities centered around trees create flows of materials. We aim to unravel what kinds of ecosystem services (various benefits derived from ecosystems) are generated by these material cycles. Our focus is primarily on phenomena occurring underground, which are challenging to study. We are conducting research not only in Japan’s temperate forests but also in tropical and boreal forests overseas. By analyzing these data sets, we seek to understand the invisible world.

Institute of Natural and Environmental Sciences

Professor Atsuko Takano

Natural history specimens of plants and insects serve as tangible evidence that these organisms existed at a specific time and place. Therefore, rapidly digitizing specimens and enhancing their accessibility is crucial for promoting biodiversity research. To this end, we have developed a device that allows individuals without specialized skills to photograph specimens at a certain level of quality, and a method to automatically extract label data such as collection date, collector, and collection location using various AI technologies.

School of Human Science and Environment

Professor Yutaka Mizukami

Architecture makes up the fabric of human society, and that architecture is influenced by the surrounding nature. Architecture is nothing but an expression of the relationship between the natural environment and human activity. We are studying the ideas and works of the architect Frank Lloyd Wright, who aimed to create a harmony between nature and human beings through organic architecture. We are also conducting research on the preservation and utilization of Wright's architectural works, including activities to add to the eight Wright buildings already inscribed on the World Heritage List.

Graduate School of Engineering

Associate Professor Yoshihiro Oka

I am developing a water-based pesticide that uses only water as an ingredient and which is safe and worry-free for both humans and the environment.

In recent years, there have been problems such as the emergence of pesticide tolerance disease and effects of chemical pesticides on human health, so there has been a demand for the development of new pesticides.

Cavitation plasma technologies can be used to create disinfectant water that is highly effective against plant pathogens.
I believe that cavitation plasma disinfectant water can greatly contribute to the realization of sustainable farming that is not dependent on chemical pesticides.

Graduate School of Disaster Resilience and Governance

Associate Professor Hiroshi Taniguchi

Meteorology and climatology are fields in the natural sciences that are closely connected to the everyday lives of humans. I learn about these fields and conduct research so that the knowledge I gain can be applied to future disaster prevention and disaster resilience. For example, methods such as analysis of observation data and re-analysis data, numerical simulations, and theoretical calculations are used for clarifying the mechanisms of past, present, and future phenomena. The forecastability of such phenomena and the relevant knowledge can be used for creating hazard maps or other applications.

Graduate School of Landscape Design and Management

Associate Professor Yoshihiro Sawada

I research the relationship between nature and humans, such as how people use land and what they get from using the land, in order to investigate future preservation and application with an understanding of
the physical composition of the secondary nature of mountain villages and forests, such as the grasslands of the ridges of terraced paddy fields and the wetlands of rice paddies, waterways, and ponds.

Also, I conduct experiments on soil transplantation of ridges between rice fields in order to establish a method for creating fields while preserving biodiversity.

Institute for Policy Analysis and Social Innovation

Lecturer Atsushi Osawa

Realizing sustainable societies requires that we learn from past experiences.

If we look back at the history of economic development in all countries and regions, we see that the course of industrialization has involved problems with pollution.

Currently, I am working on extracting lessons from history on the most desirable methods of economic development and business growth by ascertaining specific measures taken by local societies for problems that are difficult to solve with market solutions, such as through compensation. The focus is on the smoke pollution that had been generated in the Kazuno region in Akita Prefecture.

Institute for Nature and Environment

Full-time Lecturer Shinya Narusawa

Human beings, who have evolved while overcoming limitless odds, have an extremely precious existence. The human race must not perish, even with environment destruction, singularity, or war.

Can the human race continue on existing? Hints to this question exist within the number of civilizations in the universe.

This is because it is proportional to the average number of years a civilization has continued to exist. Conversely, we think about our future from speculation on the number of civilizations by SETI (search extra-terrestrial intelligence). “The future of humanity is in space”

Graduate School of Landscape Design and Management

Lecturer Takuya Kenmochi

I am doing research on how psychological health, physical health, and social health of people are affected by growing plants and spending time in an environment surrounded by plants.

I did research on the effects that green spaces created in medical and welfare facilities have on users, employees, and regional citizens, and on their roles during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Attention has been directed at how interactions with green spaces and plants during the COVID-19 pandemic have affected human health, and I will be investigating how to utilize green spaces, including for preventing health problems.