In his opening remarks, Prof. Akimasa Sumi, President, NIES stressed the importance of an international forum for converting aspirations into actions. Elaborating on a new strategy for international collaboration, he identified synthesis, integration and building networks are the keywords for action. Quoting an example for a greenhouse gases observation satellite, Prof. Sumi highlighted its applicability in creating a tracking mechanism for moderating and controlling emissions from each country.
Prof. Kazuo Yamamoto, AIT's Vice President for Resource Development, delivered the welcome address on behalf of the Institute. He stated that the two historic events of adoption of SDGs and the Paris Agreement had provided an opportunity for academic and research organizations to build bridges between science and policy.
Dr. Shuzo Nishioka, Senior Research Advisor, Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES), and Dr. Bindu Lohani, Former Vice-President for Knowledge Management and Sustainable Development, Asian Development Bank (ADB), set the agenda of the two-day conference with their inaugural address.
Prof. Rizaldi Boer, Executive Director, Centre for Climate Risk and Opportunity Management in Southeast Asia and Pacific, Bogor Agricultural University , Indonesia delivered a keynote address on "Low Carbon Society", while Dr. C. Visvanathan, Professor, School of Environment, Resources and Development, AIT delivered a keynote address on "Waste Management and Recycling." Dr. Jitendra Vir Sharma, Indian Forest Service and Senior Fellow, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), India, delivered a keynote address on "Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services: REDD+ is a Solution for Restoring Ecosystem Services and Biodiversity," while Dr. Peter King, Senior Policy Advisor, Institute for Global Environmental Strategies delivered a keynote address on "Environmental Monitoring: Monitoring and Environmental Impact Assessment - a Tool for Improved Project Design."
The forum was aimed at bringing together researchers from universities and governmental institutions, experts from governments and industries, and graduate and postgraduate students. The forum focussed on four sustainability challenges -- low carbon societies, waste management and recycling, biodiversity and ecosystem services, and environmental monitoring.