The Global Risks Report, published annually by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in January, is drawing attention in predicting trends in global issues as it captures the changing perspectives of world leaders on how to perceive the world. The 2021 report ranked infectious diseases as the global risk with the greatest impact. At the same time, infectious diseases ranked 4th in the top ranking global risks by likelihood, along with climate change related risks such as extreme weather (1st), climate action failure (2nd), human environmental damage (3rd), and biodiversity loss (5th).

On January 14, 2021, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) published the Adaptation Gap Report 2020, providing updates on the progress of climate change adaptation measures and the actions required. As climate change progresses, there is an increasing need for countries to take climate change adaptation measures as well as climate change mitigation measures. By taking adaptation measures, it is possible to avoid a serious crisis in the future, and the benefits are said to exceed the cost of implementing adaptation measures.

Social distancing saves people's lives and at the same time imposes large costs on society as a whole due to the decline in economic activities. The Copenhagen Consensus Center, a think tank that researches and publishes the smartest solutions to the world’s biggest problems, conducted a rapid cost-benefit analysis of moderate social distancing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana. The report assessed the opportunity costs of different strategies to lessen the impact of the pandemic.

A paper published in PNAS showed that understanding nature’s contributions to people and monitoring their benefits are crucial in improving our ability to manage earth systems efficiently, equitably and sustainably. The paper reviewed the impact of the progress of environmental degradation over the last 50 years on human quality of life, and noted a declining trend in the potential for nature to contribute in the majority of material, nonmaterial and regulating contributions assessed.

The latest issue of ARDEC, the information magazine of the Overseas Agricultural and Development Center, Japanese Institute of Irrigation and Drainage (JIID), focused on the impact of climate change and the new coronavirus in agricultural resilience.

Exactly a year ago, the genome of SARS-CoV-2 was sequenced in China, wildfires peaked in Australia, and East Africa was exposed to the desert locust onslaught. As the world welcomes 2021, the coronavirus pandemic has not subsided at all, and the recovery of the world economy will depend on effectiveness of the vaccine. In contrast, there is no silver bullet like a vaccine for climate change, and every country is required to take concrete technical and institutional measures.

The United Nations has set the International Year on important themes that need to be addressed on a global scale and calls for action on issues to be considered. The year 2021 is designated as the International Year of Peace and Trust, the International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development, the International Year of Eradication of Child Labor, and the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables.

Researchers at the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) published a paper in the Environmental Research Letters and cautioned that recommendations for reducing consumption of animal foods, including meat, as a measure against climate change may not be the applicable in low- and middle-income countries. While meat consumption is still low in developing countries, there is plenty of room for livestock production to contribute to improving farmers' income and nutrition, as well as soil fertility.

A paper published in The Lancet Planetary Health in December 2020 discussed the trade-off between food system innovation and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Emerging trade-offs must be addressed, particularly those involving social aspects like inequality and social justice, in order to achieve true sustainability.