Science and Technology

On September 20, Prof. MATSUMOTO Yoichiro, Science and Technology Advisor to the Minister for Foreign Affairs participated in the online session on the OSCE and sustainable development: Enhancing economic and environmental co-operation to promote security and stability.

Prof. MATSUMOTO introduced Japan's efforts and examples on Science and Technology Diplomacy to deal with the environmental issues and climate change, including activities on disaster prevention and environmental protection utilizing satellite data by JAXA; and joint research programs between Japan and developing countries called SATREPS, that aim to find solutions to global issues, such as environment, energy, bio-resources, natural disasters, and infectious diseases. Furthermore, Prof. MATSUMOTO also presented Japan's efforts towards achieving Carbon Neutrality by 2050.

Prof. MATSUMOTO stated that industry-government-academia collaboration and co-creation were important to address these challenges and that one country cannot handle them alone, so multi-layered international collaboration is the key. He also stressed the need for the active participation of citizens.