2018-4-24

Toward Further Collaborative Research in Asia

NIES International Forum Report, Part 5

Poster Session.
Photo 1: Poster Session. Dr. Shinohara of NIES

Poster Session

The 3rd Forum program included a flash poster presentation session and a subsequent poster session on both Day1 and Day2. In the flash presentation session, the poster presenters made one-minute introduction on their concept with one slide in order to show the outline of the contents and to motivate the audience to join the poster session for in-depth discussion. There were 23 posters presented, and some of the posters can be viewed on the Forum website.
http://www.nies.go.jp/i-forum/posters/index.html

Photo 2: Dr. Yoshioka of NIES 
Photo 3: Mr. Futami of NIES

Joint Statement—Collaboration for a Sustainable Future in Asia

Photo 4: Presenting the joint statement. Prof. Fujita of NIES
Photo 4: Presenting the joint statement. Prof. Fujita of NIES

In the final session, a joint statement was presented on further research collaboration, agreed by five organizations concerned: National Institute for Environmental Studies; Integrated Research System for Sustainability Science- the University of Tokyo; Asian Institute of Technology; Universiti Teknologi Malaysia; and Forest Research Institute Malaysia.

The statement emphasized the following three points:
(1) Both adaptive and mitigative measures need to be considered as urgent solutions to address climate change issue.
(2) We should strengthen networking of research institutes in Asia and expand cooperative ties through international and cross-sectoral research programs.
(3) It is important to work closely with governments, citizen groups and business stakeholders, to promote appropriate actions and to elucidate new ways of building sustainable societies in Asia.

The statement expressed the five organizations’ consensus to continue the effort to strengthen comprehensive research initiatives and networks to formulate solutions of challenges in diverse research fields.

Conclusion

The 3rd NIES International Forum was completed successfully. In his closing remarks, Mr. Norihiko Tanaka, NIES Planning Department General Manager, noted the importance of taking urgent actions for the goal of achieving a sustainable society, and concluded with high expectations that this forum would become a consortium to link a wide range of stakeholders, including scientists, policymakers, NGOs, and the private sector.

Approximately 150 people participated in the forum. It is highly expected for each participant to take actions leveraging their respective expertise in order to contribute to realizing a sustainable future in Asia.


Written by Yuri Sugimoto (Research Project Collaboration Division) and Shuichi Ashina (International Coordination Office, Planning Department)
Photos by Seiji Narita (Public Relations Office, Planning Department)