Networks
Network for Global Sustainability
Background
In 2006, the Network for Global Sustainability was launched by participants who attended the Hokkaido University International Symposium on Sustainable Development. The aim of the network is to accelerate research and higher education on sustainable development through the sharing of ideas and good practices. Broad challenges on sustainability are covered from environmental changes in Antarctic to the right of ethnic minority. A special spotlight is on five areas: Global Warming, Securing Food & Forest, Integrated Water Management, Recycle-oriented Community, and Infectious Disease.
Member Universities
The network is comprised of institutions and universities from Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, North America, Latin America and the Caribbean.
Activities
The network is involved in several international collaborative activities such as joint symposia, joint researches, and joint lectures. Although a wide range of issues on sustainability are handled, the following five areas are of significant interest: global warming, security of food and forest, integrated water management, recycle-oriented community, and infectious diseases. The activities of the Network for Global Sustainability includes Japanese-Finnish Cooperative Program "Ice Climatology of the Okhotsk and Baltic Seas" started since 1995, Asian-African Research Forum on Emerging and Reemerging Infections in Dec.15-16, 2008, Hokudai’s 5-year research projects in the fields of Environment/Energy and Infectious Diseases Control under the Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development started in 2008, hosting the G8 University Summit in June-July 2008.