Global COE Program - Kyoto University - In Search of Sustainable Humanosphere in Asia and Africa

 There is no research institution or academic project in the world that explicitly focuses on the study of sustainable humanosphere in Asia and Africa, by involving a large number of scholars of international standing in humanities, social science and science on this scale. It merits Japanese funding, partly because Japan plays a leading role in the international development of science and technology and remains committed to overseas development assistance, especially in the area of sustainable development, and partly because the Japanese economy is critically dependent on imports of raw materials and energy. But we also argue that the substance of our intellectual endeavor is relevant to the global issue of environmental concerns and its compatibility with sustainable development in Asia and Africa, which goes beyond immediate national agenda.

 International organizations concerned with environment, energy, climatic change, sustainability and human development have been collecting relevant data increasingly including developing countries of Asia and Africa. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have commissioned studies in development including the issues of poverty and deprivation, human security and environmental sustainability. Our ambition is to make a contribution to these efforts from the perspective of area studies, arguably the academic approach most closely in touch with the reality of local people, languages and feelings, hence their real sense of sustainability. We believe that it is crucial to bring up the next generation of area studies specialists familiar with the frontier knowledge relating to global environmental concerns, and scientists with in-depth knowledge of history and area studies. Our innovation is a unique training program with the use of field stations and scientific research sites, and its use in interdisciplinary paradigm formation.

 The paradigm of sustainable humanosphere should encourage area studies specialists to engage in the dialogue with disciplinary and global perspectives on sustainability, and in turn help direct the research agenda of environmental and energy studies currently conducted by international organizations towards the more locally and regionally oriented ones. Such an initiative should constitute an important part of intellectual initiatives of Japan for the global, long-term co-existence between man and nature.