March 11, 2021, which marks the 10th year since the Great East Japan Earthquake, is also the 1st year since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 as a pandemic. Many lives been lost and mobility containment measures to curb the spread of infection have resulted in a major shift in how people live, work, travel and interact. Although these changes have temporarily reduced anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions, their medium- to long-term impacts are limited and countries need to take more ambitious climate change mitigation measures towards carbon neutrality. 

March 9th is “millet day” based on the Japanese pun for words. It is expected that millet will play such a major role in global food security and eradicating hunger due to its high nutritional value and wide adaptability to the agricultural ecological environment. At JIRCAS, we are conducting joint research with local partners on crops such as buckwheat species in Asia, amaranth in Africa, and quinoa in South America, which have high functionality and well adapted to harsh environments, but have not been sufficiently studied for stable production and utilization.

Over the past century, the global food system has undergone dramatic changes in response to population dynamics and urbanization, increased food production, and increased trade and distribution. For those involved in agriculture, nutrition and health, the biggest challenge over the next few decades will be to develop policies to achieve a sustainable and healthy diet. On top of this, knowledge of how individuals and households make food decisions in various situations is required. Global Food Security has published a paper on rapidly changing food systems and food choices in low- and middle-income countries.

In February 2021, the Secretariat of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change published the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) of the 75 Parties to the Paris Agreement submitted by 31 December 2020 (NDC Synthesis Report). To reach the 1.5°C goal, emissions in 2030 must be reduced by 45% compared to 2010 but the report indicates that only 1% reduction can be expected at this stage. 

In January 2021, with the inauguration of the the U.S. President Biden, one of the first actions of the new administration was the return to the Paris Agreement. On February 26, the Biden administration's Interagency Working Group announced that it would make decisions based on scientific evidence, and tentatively returned the social cost per ton of greenhouse gases to the levels of the Obama administration at $51 for carbon dioxide, $1,500 for methane and $18,000 for nitrous oxide.

The burden on the environment caused by humans has gradually increased for almost half a century, and is now causing a planetary emergency. In February 2021, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) published a synthesis report titled "Making Peace with Nature" with practical recommendations on how to tackle the climate, biodiversity and pollution emergencies,  and build a sustainable future.

In February 2021, the British think tank Chatham House published the report “Food System Impacts on Biodiversity Loss". The global food system has been shaped by the ‘cheaper food’ paradigm over the past 50 years. Without a change in the food system, biodiversity loss will accelerate and it will even be impossible to sustain human survival. The United Nations Food System Summit is scheduled to be held in 2021 and will provide a unique opportunity for food system transformation.

It has been confirmed that 2020 was as hot as 2016, but from the end of 2020 to 2021, the Northern Hemisphere has been hit by several cold waves. According to reports in the US, this is due to polar vortex disruptions. Sudden stratospheric warming (SSW) occurred in January allowing cold air from the Arctic to flow easily into the United States, Europe, and Asia. 

The world is looking for concrete measures for decarbonization and achieving carbon neutrality to address climate change. Forest supports life on earth by absorbing carbon dioxide and producing oxygen and forest management plays a very important role in climate change mitigation measures. Mapping tools and data monitoring are indispensable for understanding the spatial impact of the activities of various stakeholders. In January 2021, Nature Climate Change published a paper on geospatial monitoring of forest carbon fluctuations in the 21st century.