The Uryu Research Forest and Sapporo Campus, which were certified as "Nature Coexistence Sites" by the Ministry of the Environment in 2023 as areas that contribute to biodiversity conservation, were registered as Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) in the international database managed by the United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) in August.

 

In the "National Biodiversity Strategy 2023-2030," Japan has set a 30 by 30 target to achieve "nature positive" that stops and reverses biodiversity loss. To achieve this goal, the Ministry of the Environment is certifying areas where biodiversity conservation is being promoted through private initiatives as "nature-friendly sites." Of the nature-friendly sites certified in 2023, 48,000 hectares, excluding areas that overlap with protected areas, were registered in the international database as OECMs for the first time from Japan, and Uryu Research Forest and the Sapporo Campus were also registered as part of this.

Hokkaido University will continue to utilize its intellectual and physical assets to solve global issues and contribute to the local community, as well as contribute to the achievement of the 30by30 goal, and promote sustainability to balance biodiversity conservation and climate change countermeasures.

 

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