Information Analysis
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376. Relationship Between Arctic Warming and the Cold Waves in the Northern Hemisphere
The climate change debate is concerned with the rise in temperatures and the increase in extreme events since the Industrial Revolution. In particular, temperatures in the Arctic are rising faster than anywhere else in the world. On the other hand, a paper published in Science in September 2021 suggested that Arctic warming could lead to stratospheric polar vortex (SPV) disruption, which could lead to extreme cold waves in the mid-latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. Climate change is certainly an issue that needs to be addressed on a global scale, as it involves a lot of uncertainties and has implications for food security through its impact on agriculture.
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375. STI for Food Systems Transformation
2021 is the year in which food systems transformation as a global agenda has attracted special attention with the upcoming UN Food Systems Summit and the Tokyo Nutrition for Growth Summit. With these opportunities in mind, the Advisory Board for Promoting Science and Technology Diplomacy to the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan compiled the recommendation, “Planetary health: STI for food systems transformation”.
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374. International Workshop of Southeast Asia Research-based Network on Climate Change Adaptation Science (SARNCCAS)
The Ibaraki University Global and Regional Environmental Co-creation Institute (GLEC) was established in 2020 as a center for research and education to promote cross-disciplinary research based on field surveys in various fields and to disseminate high academic results in order to realize a sustainable society in response to global environmental changes. So far, GLEC has formed a solid network with institutions in Southeast Asia such as the Vietnam-Japan University (VJU) and Vietnam Institute for Economics and Research Policy (VIE) by promoting human resource development and joint research on climate change. The International Workshop of Southeast Asia Research-based Network on Climate Change Adaptation Science (SARNCCAS) will be held online on September 16-17, 2021, with the participation of the JIRCAS as co-organizer.
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373. Global Research Alliance (GRA) - Livestock Research Group (LRG) Domestic Network Meeting
The Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is held every year to discuss the framework for international cooperation in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, which are considered to be the cause of the climate change problem. The Global Research Alliance (GRA) was established as a framework to contribute to international cooperation in the field of research related to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and the response to climate change. In order to enhance the presence of Japan's research capabilities in the field of livestock production, a domestic network meeting is scheduled to be held online on September 16, 2021, bringing together relevant government departments and domestic researchers in the field to share the current situation and formulate future policies.
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372. Successful Development of Planetary Friendly, Nitrogen Efficient “Super” Wheat
With the world's population expected to grow to nearly 10 billion by 2050, there is a need for innovation that minimizes the environmental impact without sacrificing the productivity of the food system, which is essential for food security. In order to achieve this, technologies that efficiently utilize the potential power of crops while scientifically understanding the interaction between crops, soil and soil microflora in the global material cycle are required. JIRCAS, in collaboration with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the University of the Basque Country, and Nihon University, has developed BNI (Biological Nitrification Inhibition)-enabled wheat that has high productivity with less nitrogen fertilizer.
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371. About 30% of the World’s Trees are Threatened with Extinction
Trees determine the distribution and composition of forests and are important components of biodiversity and carbon sinks. A research project called the Global Tree Assessment compiled information on the risk of extinction for 58,497 tree species worldwide, and reported that about a third of the world's tree species are threatened with extinction. Threats to trees include deforestation, loss of habitat, overfishing for timber, and the spread of invasive alien and diseases.
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370. More Extreme Weather Over Past 50 Years, Fewer Casualties due to Early Warnings
On August 31, 2021, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) released the Atlas of Mortality and Economic Losses from Weather, Climate and Water Extremes (1970 – 2019). During this period, the number of disasters has increased fivefold, not only because of the effects of climate change, but also because of improved reporting on them, while at the same time, thanks to early warning systems and disaster management, the number of casualties has dropped significantly to less than a third. According to the recently released State of the Climate in 2020, despite the economic crisis caused by the pandemic, greenhouse gases reached an all-time high and 102 hurricanes and typhoons were named.
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369. Explaining Climate Change Terminology to the General Public
In October 2020, the Japanese government declared its intention to decarbonize the country by 2050, and the way we deal with climate change is about to change the way we live, with many news reports on the subject about it. On the other hand, there is a major concern that the words used by climate change experts are often unfamiliar to the general public. A study conducted by the University of Southern California in coordination with the United Nations Foundation found that the terms used by researchers to describe climate change are too complex, and that in order to gain widespread support for action, it is necessary to communicate the climate crisis in a more understandable way, using everyday language that the general public can easily understand.
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368. ACSAC10: The 10th Asian Crop Science Association Conference
The 10th Asian Crop Science Association Conference (ACSAC10), organized by the Crop Science Society of Japan and other organizations, will be held online on September 8-10, 2021. The conference will be attended by leading researchers and engineers in crop production-related fields from all over Asia, and the latest research results related to sustainable production of crops in Asia will be discussed. JIRCAS is supporting this conference with a keynote lecture from Pres. KOYAMA Osamu and sponsoring a session on temperature stress.
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367. Climate Change Policies Should Focus on the Social Cost of Carbon
As countries around the world work to develop policies to address climate change, guidance on the economic valuation of greenhouse gas emissions will be important in determining the scale of climate change action. In the August 20 issue of Science on the social cost of carbon (SCC) for climate policy, Joseph E. Aldy of Harvard University and colleagues argue that climate change measures should explicitly incorporate the benefits of avoiding climate change damage.
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366. Investing in Resilient Food Systems in the Most Vulnerable Regions
In August 2021, Nature Food published an article on the critical need to invest in resilient food systems, especially in the most vulnerable regions. Reversing the growing food security crisis will require deliberate targeting of vulnerable areas and a shift to equitable, sustainable and healthy food systems.
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365. Integrated rice and beef production systems are effective in reducing greenhouse gas emissions － Assessing the environmental impact in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam －
JIRCAS, in collaboration with the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO), the University of Miyazaki, and Can Tho University in Vietnam, conducted a life cycle assessment (LCA) to evaluate the environmental impacts of separated rice and beef production systems and an integrated system in the Mekong Delta. It was found that the rice-beef-biogas can reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy consumption, and also reduce the potential for eutrophication.
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364. Towards the UN Food Systems Summit
The United Nations Food Systems Summit will be held in New York City on September 23, 2021 in parallel with the United Nations General Assembly, where international discussions on the food system will be held. To help you understand the agenda of the UN Food Systems Summit, here is a list of Pick Up articles on issues surrounding the food system transformation theory and global issues affecting the food system for your review.
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363. Predicting Growth Environments from Tree Leaf Morphology 一 Towards Predicting the Impacts of Climate Change
Tropical forests are known to be hotspots of tree diversity on earth, and it is known that the species found vary greatly depending on soil, elevation, and other factors. However, the morphology and function of tree species that would appear in which environment has not been well understood. Research conducted at Mount Kinabalu (4,095 m above sea level) in Borneo, the highest mountain in Southeast Asia, with the University of Sabah, Malaysia, suggests that trees maximize the period of time during which they can photosynthesize in response to multiple environmental stresses such as low temperature, high humidity, and strong winds at high altitudes by developing robust leaves. For this research, Dr. Kawai received the 25th Kira Award of the Japan Society of Tropical Ecology.
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362. Climate Change Tipping Point
On August 20, it was reported that rainfall was observed on the top of an iceberg in Greenland from August 14-16 for the first time since observations began in 1950. In the climate change debate, it is said that the Earth is reaching a tipping point where anthropogenic activities are causing massive changes that are increasingly irreversible.
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361. Development of Environment-friendly Management System Against Transboundary Plant Pests Based on Ecological Characteristics
In recent years, damage to crops caused by transboundary insect pests has been increasing. In order to control the damage caused by transboundary pests, it is necessary to establish an international cooperative system that includes developing regions. The “Transboundary pest management” project aims to develop environment-friendly control technologies for transboundary pests, which have become a major problem worldwide, in collaboration with research institutes located in countries where transboundary pests occur. In addition, we will present economic evaluation models that will serve as a guideline for the development of efficient integrated pest management technologies in preparation for the emergence of new transboundary pests.
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360. Public Opinion Survey on the Need to Protect the Global Commons
In recent years, as anthropogenic economic activities have brought about irreversible crises such as global climate change and environmental destruction, the need for rules and consensus building to sustainably use, manage, and maintain the global commons has been recognized. In August 2021, the Global Commons Alliance released the results of a public opinion survey on the current state of global commons in the G20 countries. Among the key findings, 73% of people believe that the earth is reaching a tipping point due to human activities, and 83% express willingness to protect and restore the global commons.
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359. Q&A on the Launch Event of the OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook
At the “Launch Event of the OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook” held on July 14, 2021 (Pick Up 341), several webinar attendees posted questions addressed to the main speakers, Mr. Holger Matthey, FAO Senior Economist and Dr. Hubertus Gay, OECD Senior Agricultural Policy Analyst at the OECD, as well as to the commentators, Mr. Gen FURUHASHI, Senior Economist at the PRIMAFF, and Dr. Jun FURUYA, Director of the Social Sciences Division of JIRCAS. Here are the questions and corresponding responses from the speakers and commentators.
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358. Development of Comprehensive Agricultural Technologies for Climate Change Mitigation and Adaption in Monsoon Asia
Agriculture is a major contributor to climate change through greenhouse gas emissions and is also a heavily impacted economic sector. There is a need to develop and disseminate mitigation technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, as well as adaptation technologies to cope with extreme weather events such as droughts that are becoming more frequent with climate change. On the other hand, there is no ‘one-size-fits-all-solution’ for building sustainable agricultural production that is resilient to climate change, and it is extremely important to take into account the particularities of agricultural production in each country and region. In the project “Development of comprehensive agricultural technologies for climate change mitigation and adaption in Monsoon Asia”, we will develop and implement integrated climate change mitigation and adaptation technologies that will lead to behavioral change among farmers and contribute to the goals of the target countries in the Asian monsoon region.
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357. July 2021 is the Hottest Month on Record
On August 13, 2021, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported that July 2021 was the hottest month on record since records began 142 years ago. As the IPCC report released last week on August 9 mentions, this confirms the acceleration of climate change caused by anthropogenic activities.