Hokkaido University has established the Renewable Energy Research & Education Center (REREC) (Representative: Kazushi Miyashita, Field Science Center for Northern Biosphere) as a joint project hub for research on renewable energy technology and human resource development, for a period of five years starting in June 2024.
Hokkaido has the greatest potential in Japan for the introduction of renewable energy, and expectations for its use are growing. However, it is also a pioneering region facing issues that many developed countries face, such as population decline and an aging population with a low birth rate, and there is a demand to build a sustainable regional growth model.
When introducing renewable energy, the Center will conduct appropriate environmental impact assessments for the region and contribute to the implementation of a social system that balances nature-positive, which utilizes natural capital sustainably, with local community-positive, which realizes local community design and regional revitalization.
Purpose and Necessity
While the use of renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and biomass contributes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, it has been pointed out that measures are necessary to address the disruption of ecosystems caused by changes in land use such as deforestation, and the sustainable use of natural capital. The SDGs call for the harmonization of various goals, and our university, located in Hokkaido and training the next generation of leaders, cannot overlook this.
Changes in land use resulting from the use of renewable energy pose significant risks of conflict with agriculture, forestry, and fisheries, as well as impacts on ecosystems, making trade-offs likely to occur. Our university has a track record of research in the fields of agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and ecology, and is also strong in the SDGs. By engaging in education and research on renewable energy, we will produce talented people with the problem-solving skills to strike a balance between nature-positive and local community-positive thinking.
Education and Research Content
Through undergraduate and graduate education, we promote research that oversees the entire life cycle of renewable energy utilization, from planning and development, to environmental impact assessment, installation, operation, management, and removal, and we foster human resources who can comprehensively manage the implementation of social systems that are both nature-positive and local community-positive.
First, we will utilize the Hokkaido Offshore Wind Academy (HOA) Consortium to develop recurrent education in collaboration with local governments, companies, educational and research institutions, etc., to produce specialized human resources. We will also expand and develop this into various types of education and research on renewable energy, while contributing to regional revitalization.
Expected outcomes
By collaborating with regions that are promoting the introduction of renewable energy and promoting the development of human resources who can be involved in the consensus-building process between businesses, local stakeholders, and residents, as well as the development of environmental system evaluation tools, we aim to return benefits to the region and utilize natural capital in a sustainable manner.
Achieving both nature-positive and local community-positive goals
Human resource development and environmental system evaluation research
- By comprehensively assessing the environmental impact of introducing renewable energy, we contribute to the formulation of nature-positive business plans.
- We will develop a new method for evaluating the value of natural assets in a region and make the evaluation results visible, thereby sharing the value of natural assets within the region and examining how they should be and how they should be utilized, thereby realizing a positive impact on the local community.
- This will increase procurement rates from local companies and create high-quality jobs.
Press conference held on July 4th (from left: Professor Kazushi Miyashita, Director Field Science Center for Northern Biosphere, Professor Kazuhide Ishii, Faculty of Engineering, Professor Yasuzumi Fujimori, Faculty of Fisheries Sciences, and Professor Satoru Kato Institute for the Advancement of Sustainability)