Pub Date : 2022-08-02DOI: 10.21820/23987073.2022.4.20
Y. Minamiyama, S. Takemura, H. Ichikawa, Toshikazu Yoshikawa
Cumulative exposure to environmental factors and chemicals can be damaging to human health. A new concept called the exposome refers to the totality of exposures and their impact on health. Professor Yukiko Minamiyama, Food Hygiene and Environmental Health Division of Applied Life Science, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Kyoto Prefectural University, is exploring how lifestyle factors could reduce exposure and maintain human health and also how certain lifestyle changes could control or avoid chronic oxidative stress. She and her team are delving deeper into the concept of the exposome and chronic oxidative stress to enhance understanding and facilitate informed, beneficial changes for humankind. Minamiyama is collaborating with a leading researcher on oxidative stress Dr Toshikazu Yoshikawa, Dr Hiroshi Ichikawa of Doshisha University School of Life and Medical Sciences and Dr Shigekazu Takemura of Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School of Medicine. Minamiyama and the team believe controlling free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) can prevent or improve diseases. Although food additives are unavoidable, Minamiyama believes that consuming antioxidants could help reduce oxidative stress and disease. In one study , the researchers investigated the in vitro and in vivo effects of food additives on the male rat brain and sperm/testes, with an emphasis on oxidative stress and found that the food additive stevioside induced ROS production in sperm and resulted in sperm dysfunction. They also discovered that treatment with the antioxidant alpha-tocopherol significantly improved oxidative stress.
{"title":"Better understanding the exposome in order to maintain human health","authors":"Y. Minamiyama, S. Takemura, H. Ichikawa, Toshikazu Yoshikawa","doi":"10.21820/23987073.2022.4.20","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21820/23987073.2022.4.20","url":null,"abstract":"Cumulative exposure to environmental factors and chemicals can be damaging to human health. A new concept called the exposome refers to the totality of exposures and their impact on health. Professor Yukiko Minamiyama, Food Hygiene and Environmental Health Division of Applied Life Science,\u0000 Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Kyoto Prefectural University, is exploring how lifestyle factors could reduce exposure and maintain human health and also how certain lifestyle changes could control or avoid chronic oxidative stress. She and her team are delving deeper into\u0000 the concept of the exposome and chronic oxidative stress to enhance understanding and facilitate informed, beneficial changes for humankind. Minamiyama is collaborating with a leading researcher on oxidative stress Dr Toshikazu Yoshikawa, Dr Hiroshi Ichikawa of Doshisha University School of\u0000 Life and Medical Sciences and Dr Shigekazu Takemura of Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School of Medicine. Minamiyama and the team believe controlling free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) can prevent or improve diseases. Although food additives are unavoidable, Minamiyama\u0000 believes that consuming antioxidants could help reduce oxidative stress and disease. In one study , the researchers investigated the in vitro and in vivo effects of food additives on the male rat brain and sperm/testes, with an emphasis on oxidative stress and found that the food additive\u0000 stevioside induced ROS production in sperm and resulted in sperm dysfunction. They also discovered that treatment with the antioxidant alpha-tocopherol significantly improved oxidative stress.","PeriodicalId":88895,"journal":{"name":"IMPACT magazine","volume":"64 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"91072573","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-08-02DOI: 10.21820/23987073.2022.4.4
L. Annette
Biodiversity and human survival go hand in hand but biodiversity and related crucial resources are declining. According to the ‘Living Planet Report 2018’ wildlife populations have declined by 60 per cent since 1970, while human activities have caused alterations to 97 per cent of all land and 66 per cent of the marine environment. Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) will be developing a post-2020 framework called the Global Biodiversity Framework. The goal of this is to stop biodiversity loss by 2030 and achieve recovery by 2050. In October 2021 CBD COP15 (the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties) took place to determine the framework and the second part of the conference which is scheduled for the second half of 2022 will see the framework being further negotiated and adopted. Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius said: ‘In these challenging times, multilateralism is more critical than ever, for people and the nature we depend on. The evidence is clear: we need a future in harmony with nature, for ourselves, for future generations, for our climate and for sustainable development — and we need a common roadmap to achieve it.’ An important document to emerge from part one of CBD COP15 was the Kunming Declaration, which requests that the parties involved prioritise the protection of biodiversity when it comes to decision-making and recognise the key role of conservation in protecting human health.
{"title":"Establishing a Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework","authors":"L. Annette","doi":"10.21820/23987073.2022.4.4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21820/23987073.2022.4.4","url":null,"abstract":"Biodiversity and human survival go hand in hand but biodiversity and related crucial resources are declining. According to the ‘Living Planet Report 2018’ wildlife populations have declined by 60 per cent since 1970, while human activities have caused alterations to 97 per\u0000 cent of all land and 66 per cent of the marine environment. Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) will be developing a post-2020 framework called the Global Biodiversity Framework. The goal of this is to stop biodiversity loss by 2030 and achieve recovery by 2050. In October\u0000 2021 CBD COP15 (the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties) took place to determine the framework and the second part of the conference which is scheduled for the second half of 2022 will see the framework being further negotiated and adopted. Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and\u0000 Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius said: ‘In these challenging times, multilateralism is more critical than ever, for people and the nature we depend on. The evidence is clear: we need a future in harmony with nature, for ourselves, for future generations, for our climate and for\u0000 sustainable development — and we need a common roadmap to achieve it.’ An important document to emerge from part one of CBD COP15 was the Kunming Declaration, which requests that the parties involved prioritise the protection of biodiversity when it comes to decision-making and\u0000 recognise the key role of conservation in protecting human health.","PeriodicalId":88895,"journal":{"name":"IMPACT magazine","volume":"63 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88677857","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-08-02DOI: 10.21820/23987073.2022.4.35
L. Annette
The oceans and climate are closely linked and climate change is threatening ocean health. Human activities are accelerating climate change and global warming is causing issues on land and in the sea. In February 2022, European Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius delivered a press speech addressing this situation. Discussing the impact of the pandemic on the worsening climate situation he said: ‘We all have lost precious time to save our nature, our oceans, and to create more sustainable opportunities for citizens all around the world.’ He highlighted the need for quick action and progression, stating: ‘We must move forward and we must do it fast.’ He also spoke of the progress of the European Green Deal and its potential to extend beyond Europe: ‘We are not only ambitioning to bring changes within the EU, but also to lead by example and steer a global green transition.’ Underlining key focus for 2022, Sinkevičius said: ‘This year must be the year of the oceans. This year must be the year of biodiversity’. It is hoped that the Convention on Biological Diversity’s (CBD) post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework will be adopted at COP15. ‘We need a Paris moment for biodiversity. This is a top priority for the EU,’ Sinkevičius stated. ‘We want COP15 to be a genuinely transformative moment for biodiversity, and this requires a strong political engagement from all at the highest level.’
{"title":"The year of the oceans and biodiversity","authors":"L. Annette","doi":"10.21820/23987073.2022.4.35","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21820/23987073.2022.4.35","url":null,"abstract":"The oceans and climate are closely linked and climate change is threatening ocean health. Human activities are accelerating climate change and global warming is causing issues on land and in the sea. In February 2022, European Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginijus\u0000 Sinkevičius delivered a press speech addressing this situation. Discussing the impact of the pandemic on the worsening climate situation he said: ‘We all have lost precious time to save our nature, our oceans, and to create more sustainable opportunities for citizens all around\u0000 the world.’ He highlighted the need for quick action and progression, stating: ‘We must move forward and we must do it fast.’ He also spoke of the progress of the European Green Deal and its potential to extend beyond Europe: ‘We are not only ambitioning to bring changes\u0000 within the EU, but also to lead by example and steer a global green transition.’ Underlining key focus for 2022, Sinkevičius said: ‘This year must be the year of the oceans. This year must be the year of biodiversity’. It is hoped that the Convention on Biological\u0000 Diversity’s (CBD) post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework will be adopted at COP15. ‘We need a Paris moment for biodiversity. This is a top priority for the EU,’ Sinkevičius stated. ‘We want COP15 to be a genuinely transformative moment for biodiversity, and\u0000 this requires a strong political engagement from all at the highest level.’","PeriodicalId":88895,"journal":{"name":"IMPACT magazine","volume":"136 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80250757","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-08-02DOI: 10.21820/23987073.2022.4.14
A. Takeishi
Senses are key to responding to environmental stimuli and survival depends on appropriate responses. Although researchers have identified the cells and molecules essential to sensing each environmental stimuli, it remains relatively unknown how pathways interact when animals receive multiple stimuli. Asuka Takeishi, Laboratory for Neural Circuit of Multisensory Integration, Japan, is working to identify the mechanism of sensory integration by exposing Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) to odour and temperature stimuli. The goal of this research is to decipher the general mechanisms of sensory integration and, in doing so, contribute to the development of understanding of human neural mechanisms. Takeishi and the team also believe the research could have applications in agriculture. So far, the researchers have established the behaviour assay to observe the responses of C. elegans to odour and temperature stimuli simultaneously, and have also created a fluorescent microscope system to monitor the freely-moving worms' neural activities. Next, Takeishi and the team will use these systems to extract biological data and perform mathematical modelling in order to simulate how neurons process multiple pieces of information and produce locomotion. The researchers hope to expand their studies beyond odour and temperature to look at the integration of other stimuli.
{"title":"Overview of the research undertaken within the Laboratory for Neural Circuit of Multisensory Integration","authors":"A. Takeishi","doi":"10.21820/23987073.2022.4.14","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21820/23987073.2022.4.14","url":null,"abstract":"Senses are key to responding to environmental stimuli and survival depends on appropriate responses. Although researchers have identified the cells and molecules essential to sensing each environmental stimuli, it remains relatively unknown how pathways interact when animals receive\u0000 multiple stimuli. Asuka Takeishi, Laboratory for Neural Circuit of Multisensory Integration, Japan, is working to identify the mechanism of sensory integration by exposing Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) to odour and temperature stimuli. The goal of this research is to decipher the general\u0000 mechanisms of sensory integration and, in doing so, contribute to the development of understanding of human neural mechanisms. Takeishi and the team also believe the research could have applications in agriculture. So far, the researchers have established the behaviour assay to observe the\u0000 responses of C. elegans to odour and temperature stimuli simultaneously, and have also created a fluorescent microscope system to monitor the freely-moving worms' neural activities. Next, Takeishi and the team will use these systems to extract biological data and perform mathematical\u0000 modelling in order to simulate how neurons process multiple pieces of information and produce locomotion. The researchers hope to expand their studies beyond odour and temperature to look at the integration of other stimuli.","PeriodicalId":88895,"journal":{"name":"IMPACT magazine","volume":"69 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86407762","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-08-02DOI: 10.21820/23987073.2022.4.29
Z. Hseu
Soil quality is linked to human health and there is a need to evaluate risks, such as high background levels of chromium (Cr) and nickel (Ni) in serpentine soils. Professor Zeng-Yei Hseu is a world-leading soil scientist working on a three-year project to capture and demonstrate mineral composition and transformation in serpentine soils. This work will guide remediation techniques for contaminated soils and, in doing so, contribute to food safety and security. Hseu is based at the Soil Survey and Remediation Lab, Department of Agricultural Chemistry, National Taiwan University. He and his team are seeking to better understand factors such as soil distribution, formation, application and limit. Hseu is interested in phytoremediation, a process through which plants can remove contaminants in the soil and is looking for links between serpentine soils, the plants that grow in them and their ability to facilitate phytoremediation. He investigated the origin and bioavailability of Cr and Ni and their dynamics in serpentine soils, the risk of Cr and Ni to the food chain and identified that Cr and Ni were mainly released from respective chromites and silicates of serpentine soils. Hseu is focused on serpentine soils in the Western Pacific region and he and his team collected and analysed serpentine soils from Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines along the western Pacific island arc, as well as from a control site along the Red River Fault Zone in Vietnam. The researchers looked for the morphology and pedogenesis of different serpentine soils and mineral sources of major and trace elements in the soils.
{"title":"Elemental composition, mineral characteristics and pedogenesis of serpentine soils in the Western Pacific region","authors":"Z. Hseu","doi":"10.21820/23987073.2022.4.29","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21820/23987073.2022.4.29","url":null,"abstract":"Soil quality is linked to human health and there is a need to evaluate risks, such as high background levels of chromium (Cr) and nickel (Ni) in serpentine soils. Professor Zeng-Yei Hseu is a world-leading soil scientist working on a three-year project to capture and demonstrate mineral\u0000 composition and transformation in serpentine soils. This work will guide remediation techniques for contaminated soils and, in doing so, contribute to food safety and security. Hseu is based at the Soil Survey and Remediation Lab, Department of Agricultural Chemistry, National Taiwan University.\u0000 He and his team are seeking to better understand factors such as soil distribution, formation, application and limit. Hseu is interested in phytoremediation, a process through which plants can remove contaminants in the soil and is looking for links between serpentine soils, the plants that\u0000 grow in them and their ability to facilitate phytoremediation. He investigated the origin and bioavailability of Cr and Ni and their dynamics in serpentine soils, the risk of Cr and Ni to the food chain and identified that Cr and Ni were mainly released from respective chromites and silicates\u0000 of serpentine soils. Hseu is focused on serpentine soils in the Western Pacific region and he and his team collected and analysed serpentine soils from Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines along the western Pacific island arc, as well as from a control site along the Red River Fault Zone in Vietnam.\u0000 The researchers looked for the morphology and pedogenesis of different serpentine soils and mineral sources of major and trace elements in the soils.","PeriodicalId":88895,"journal":{"name":"IMPACT magazine","volume":"29 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89193713","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-08-02DOI: 10.21820/23987073.2022.4.12
K. Miyazawa
Associate Professor Kae Miyazawa is investigating a new farming method called "Radical Carbon Farming”. Miyazawa heads up her own laboratory within the Laboratory of Global Plant Resource Science, The University of Tokyo, Japan. She and her team discovered that some farmers had succeeded in increasing yield and quality by applying wood chips without fertilisers or pesticides and conducted field surveys that revealed that filamentous fungi were dominating, the soil was free of traces of hardpan layers, and vegetables were growing large. This led Miyazawa to attempt to reproduce these outcomes and, over time, began to gain a sense of where to pay attention to grow fungi in the field. To date, the researchers' experiments have demonstrated that the radical carbon farming method softens the hardpan layer and increases the yield of vegetables, along with improvements in vegetable quality. Miyazawa and the team hypothesise that in radical carbon farming, filamentous fungi prevent the excessive release of inorganic nitrogen even in summer, thereby enabling high-quality leafy vegetables to be cultivated. The researchers intend to collaborate with other agricultural researchers, along with fields such as environmental psychology, neuroscience, and economics and, ultimately, usher in a future where human activities such as agriculture enrich rather than damage the global environment.
{"title":"Mechanism and Dissemination of High Quality Vegetable Cultivation Technique Using Local Wood Biomass and Filamentous Fungi","authors":"K. Miyazawa","doi":"10.21820/23987073.2022.4.12","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21820/23987073.2022.4.12","url":null,"abstract":"Associate Professor Kae Miyazawa is investigating a new farming method called \"Radical Carbon Farming”. Miyazawa heads up her own laboratory within the Laboratory of Global Plant Resource Science, The University of Tokyo, Japan. She and her team discovered that some farmers had\u0000 succeeded in increasing yield and quality by applying wood chips without fertilisers or pesticides and conducted field surveys that revealed that filamentous fungi were dominating, the soil was free of traces of hardpan layers, and vegetables were growing large. This led Miyazawa to attempt\u0000 to reproduce these outcomes and, over time, began to gain a sense of where to pay attention to grow fungi in the field. To date, the researchers' experiments have demonstrated that the radical carbon farming method softens the hardpan layer and increases the yield of vegetables, along\u0000 with improvements in vegetable quality. Miyazawa and the team hypothesise that in radical carbon farming, filamentous fungi prevent the excessive release of inorganic nitrogen even in summer, thereby enabling high-quality leafy vegetables to be cultivated. The researchers intend to collaborate\u0000 with other agricultural researchers, along with fields such as environmental psychology, neuroscience, and economics and, ultimately, usher in a future where human activities such as agriculture enrich rather than damage the global environment.","PeriodicalId":88895,"journal":{"name":"IMPACT magazine","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82378128","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-08-02DOI: 10.21820/23987073.2022.4.32
Hsin‐Hua Huang
Taiwan is a hotbed of seismic and orogeny activity and this is the basis of the research of Dr Hsin-Hua Huang, Earth Structures Laboratory, Institute of Earth Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taiwan. He has illuminated detailed crustal and slab structures that have furthered understanding of Taiwan orogeny, incorporated ambient noise data to resolve high-resolution imaging of the volcanic and fault structure in northern Taiwan and conducted research that led to the discovery of multi-layering magma beneath the Yellowstone supervolcano in the US. The ultimate goal of his diverse studies is to achieve an improved imaging of the structure of the Earth and establish better understanding of the orogenic tectonic process and assess and mitigate natural hazards, such as volcanoes and earthquakes. In their latest project, Huang and the team are using the seismic wave interferometry method, combined with Taiwan's existing real-time signal transmission Taiwan Broadband Seismic Network (BATS) and the Central Weather Bureau Seismic Network (CWB24), to develop an automated real-time seismicity change detection system. The idea is that by measuring changes in the transmission velocity of seismic waves in the crust, physical parameters such as the degree of rock compression or changes in porosity can be linked and discussed. The researchers have performed an extensive review of knowledge about the current stage of fault zone failure and healing processes,the advantages of seismic noise interferometry and the need for Taiwan fault zone monitoring and related seismic interferometry research. In order to understand the temporal changes in crustal structure and the behaviour of velocity changes across faults, a long-term and stable real-time seismic velocity change monitoring system is necessary.
{"title":"Construction and use of real-time seismic velocity change detection system to monitor the temporal and spatial changes of crustal stress and fault activity in Taiwan","authors":"Hsin‐Hua Huang","doi":"10.21820/23987073.2022.4.32","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21820/23987073.2022.4.32","url":null,"abstract":"Taiwan is a hotbed of seismic and orogeny activity and this is the basis of the research of Dr Hsin-Hua Huang, Earth Structures Laboratory, Institute of Earth Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taiwan. He has illuminated detailed crustal and slab structures that have furthered understanding\u0000 of Taiwan orogeny, incorporated ambient noise data to resolve high-resolution imaging of the volcanic and fault structure in northern Taiwan and conducted research that led to the discovery of multi-layering magma beneath the Yellowstone supervolcano in the US. The ultimate goal of his diverse\u0000 studies is to achieve an improved imaging of the structure of the Earth and establish better understanding of the orogenic tectonic process and assess and mitigate natural hazards, such as volcanoes and earthquakes. In their latest project, Huang and the team are using the seismic wave interferometry\u0000 method, combined with Taiwan's existing real-time signal transmission Taiwan Broadband Seismic Network (BATS) and the Central Weather Bureau Seismic Network (CWB24), to develop an automated real-time seismicity change detection system. The idea is that by measuring changes in the transmission\u0000 velocity of seismic waves in the crust, physical parameters such as the degree of rock compression or changes in porosity can be linked and discussed. The researchers have performed an extensive review of knowledge about the current stage of fault zone failure and healing processes,the advantages\u0000 of seismic noise interferometry and the need for Taiwan fault zone monitoring and related seismic interferometry research. In order to understand the temporal changes in crustal structure and the behaviour of velocity changes across faults, a long-term and stable real-time seismic velocity\u0000 change monitoring system is necessary.","PeriodicalId":88895,"journal":{"name":"IMPACT magazine","volume":"462 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83071585","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-08-02DOI: 10.21820/23987073.2022.4.6
Masahide Sakamoto
Once it was found that long-term exposure to asbestos can cause lung and other diseases, its use in buildings was largely stopped and people who experienced health problems caused by its use began to be compensated. Environmental economist Professor Masahide Sakamoto, Faculty of Commerce, Senshu University, Japan, is working to identify the structural problems of this health damage compensation system and ultimately change the system to ensure people receive the compensation they deserve. Sakamoto's study presents a methodology for designing the system in stages to improve the level of benefits and, in the long-term, will reduce the economic, physical and mental burden on the victims and their families. In addition to eliminating disparity in benefits for asbestos victims Sakamoto wants to put forward a new analytical framework for pollution research. Indeed, environmental economics is behind much of Sakamoto's work. He is also studying the cost-sharing principle for different qualities of pollution and global environmental problems, with reference to the cost-burden principle based on social cost theory by K W Kapp. Furthermore, he is conducting research on institutional design to promote the spread of renewable energy as a way to establish a sustainable socioeconomic system and analysing the structural causes of environmental destruction from the perspective of the history of economic theory.
{"title":"Comprehensive study on system design for revision of asbestos health damage relief system","authors":"Masahide Sakamoto","doi":"10.21820/23987073.2022.4.6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21820/23987073.2022.4.6","url":null,"abstract":"Once it was found that long-term exposure to asbestos can cause lung and other diseases, its use in buildings was largely stopped and people who experienced health problems caused by its use began to be compensated. Environmental economist Professor Masahide Sakamoto, Faculty of Commerce,\u0000 Senshu University, Japan, is working to identify the structural problems of this health damage compensation system and ultimately change the system to ensure people receive the compensation they deserve. Sakamoto's study presents a methodology for designing the system in stages to improve\u0000 the level of benefits and, in the long-term, will reduce the economic, physical and mental burden on the victims and their families. In addition to eliminating disparity in benefits for asbestos victims Sakamoto wants to put forward a new analytical framework for pollution research. Indeed,\u0000 environmental economics is behind much of Sakamoto's work. He is also studying the cost-sharing principle for different qualities of pollution and global environmental problems, with reference to the cost-burden principle based on social cost theory by K W Kapp. Furthermore, he is conducting\u0000 research on institutional design to promote the spread of renewable energy as a way to establish a sustainable socioeconomic system and analysing the structural causes of environmental destruction from the perspective of the history of economic theory.","PeriodicalId":88895,"journal":{"name":"IMPACT magazine","volume":"8 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"73456181","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-08-02DOI: 10.21820/23987073.2022.4.9
H. Tsunashima
The challenges of modern society, combined with global crises, are impacting countries across the globe, with many people experiencing financial difficulties of varying severity. Dr Hiroyuki Tsunashima, Urban Resilience Research Center, Osaka Metropolitan University, Japan, has been leading a project that may contribute to alleviating this situation by linking the lack of workers in agriculture with social welfare. The idea is that the agricultural sector, which is in need of workers, can offer job opportunities to those excluded from the existing labour market. The Japanese Government is now also looking to enhance the agriculture-welfare partnership. The target population is those with different types of social disadvantages, while the practitioners are farmers or social welfare organisations seeking to offer opportunities to vulnerable people. These clients can then work on farms under the supervision of staff members from social welfare organisations. Tsunashima places emphasis on holistic practices, encouraging his participants to enjoy the growth of the crops they are tending to. This comprises a process of autonomous skill acquisition in relation to farm work, according to the model which Tsunashima and the team developed. Drawing from a movement called Teikei, a system of community-supported agriculture in Japan, the process will be facilitated through the medium of food, if a description of the experiences of farmer-consumer partnerships provides participants with a clearer understanding about the consumer demands.
{"title":"What the welfare‐agriculture cooperation can inherit from the farmer‐consumer partnership movement for exchanges of organic produce: on‐site implementation and international sharing of its outcome","authors":"H. Tsunashima","doi":"10.21820/23987073.2022.4.9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21820/23987073.2022.4.9","url":null,"abstract":"The challenges of modern society, combined with global crises, are impacting countries across the globe, with many people experiencing financial difficulties of varying severity. Dr Hiroyuki Tsunashima, Urban Resilience Research Center, Osaka Metropolitan University, Japan, has been\u0000 leading a project that may contribute to alleviating this situation by linking the lack of workers in agriculture with social welfare. The idea is that the agricultural sector, which is in need of workers, can offer job opportunities to those excluded from the existing labour market. The Japanese\u0000 Government is now also looking to enhance the agriculture-welfare partnership. The target population is those with different types of social disadvantages, while the practitioners are farmers or social welfare organisations seeking to offer opportunities to vulnerable people. These clients\u0000 can then work on farms under the supervision of staff members from social welfare organisations. Tsunashima places emphasis on holistic practices, encouraging his participants to enjoy the growth of the crops they are tending to. This comprises a process of autonomous skill acquisition in\u0000 relation to farm work, according to the model which Tsunashima and the team developed. Drawing from a movement called Teikei, a system of community-supported agriculture in Japan, the process will be facilitated through the medium of food, if a description of the experiences of farmer-consumer\u0000 partnerships provides participants with a clearer understanding about the consumer demands.","PeriodicalId":88895,"journal":{"name":"IMPACT magazine","volume":"20 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78514061","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-08-02DOI: 10.21820/23987073.2022.4.16
T. Chiang
Climate change and the resultant extreme weather events have disrupted agricultural ecosystems. In South Taiwan, serious droughts and unpredictable, heavy rainfall have caused slope sliding at lowland areas and led to significant agricultural and economic loss. A team of researchers led by Professor Tzen-Yuh Chiang, that includes Dr Tsai-Wen Hsu and Professor Yu-Chung Chiang, and is based at the University Social Responsibility, National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan, wants to drive change in farming practices in the Dong Shan district, Taiwan. In work supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology in Taiwan, the team is introducing a combination of natural and microbial farming practices. As such, the researchers have isolated and reformulated microbial fertilisers in the lab and applied them to enforce the health of crop roots. They have found that many insects and birds are now back on the farm, acting as biological control, which removes the need for pesticides. The overall goal of the project is to rebuild the vegetation and natural ecosystem along the slopes of lowlands. Key to this is stopping slope exploration, along with using microbial farming practices to enforce and ensure the health of crops. The project's success also relies on the use of microbial technology to culture microbes with sterile medium, which can then be used as fertilisers. This important work will help to integrate knowledge and policy about the agricultural environment and the agricultural economy.
{"title":"Responding to Future Earth's Biodiversity Goals: Implementing Ecological Services, Agricultural Diversity and Bioresource Sustainability of the Shallow Mountain Slope Ecosystem in Dongshan Distric","authors":"T. Chiang","doi":"10.21820/23987073.2022.4.16","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21820/23987073.2022.4.16","url":null,"abstract":"Climate change and the resultant extreme weather events have disrupted agricultural ecosystems. In South Taiwan, serious droughts and unpredictable, heavy rainfall have caused slope sliding at lowland areas and led to significant agricultural and economic loss. A team of researchers\u0000 led by Professor Tzen-Yuh Chiang, that includes Dr Tsai-Wen Hsu and Professor Yu-Chung Chiang, and is based at the University Social Responsibility, National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan, wants to drive change in farming practices in the Dong Shan district, Taiwan. In work supported by the\u0000 Ministry of Science and Technology in Taiwan, the team is introducing a combination of natural and microbial farming practices. As such, the researchers have isolated and reformulated microbial fertilisers in the lab and applied them to enforce the health of crop roots. They have found that\u0000 many insects and birds are now back on the farm, acting as biological control, which removes the need for pesticides. The overall goal of the project is to rebuild the vegetation and natural ecosystem along the slopes of lowlands. Key to this is stopping slope exploration, along with using\u0000 microbial farming practices to enforce and ensure the health of crops. The project's success also relies on the use of microbial technology to culture microbes with sterile medium, which can then be used as fertilisers. This important work will help to integrate knowledge and policy about\u0000 the agricultural environment and the agricultural economy.","PeriodicalId":88895,"journal":{"name":"IMPACT magazine","volume":"139 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85591059","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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