SDGs Symposium 2023 – Cities and nature: exploring linkages and designing solutions for sustainability

  • Date：
    2023.02.28（Tue.）
  • Time：
    15:00-16:00(JST) Student Poster session
    16:30-19:30(JST) Symposium
  • Venue：
    Onsite participants : Ito Hall, Ito International Research Center, The university of Tokyo, Hongo campus
    Online participants : Zoom webinar
  • Co-sponsor：

    Springer Nature
    The University of Tokyo

  • Language：

    English
    (simultaneous Japanese translation)

  • Registration：

    Registration fee: Free

    Springer Nature Website(external link)

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Overview

The 2023 SDGs Symposium will explore intersections between cities and nature, both in terms of how cities and urban activities affect nature, as well as how nature can help solve urban challenges.

We wish to take this opportunity to invite renowned researchers from Japan and abroad, as well as students and young researchers, working at the interface of cities, nature, and other SDGs to actively discuss how research can explain these multifaceted phenomena and develop solutions with high societal relevance and impact.

We look forward to your participation in this event.

Program
  • 15:00-16:00
    Student poster session
  • 16:30-16:40
    Opening Remarks

    Teruo Fujii
    (President, The University of Tokyo)

  • 16:40-17:00
    Keynote 1

    Xuemei Bai
    (Professor, Australian National University; Visiting Professor, The University of Tokyo)

  • 17:00-17:20
    Keynote 2

    Phillip Campbell
    (Editor-in-Chief, Springer Nature)

  • 17:20-17:25
    Break
  • 17:25-18:05
    Panel Presentation

    Thomas Elmqvist
    (Professor, Stockholm University; Visiting Professor, The University of Tokyo)

    Masashi Soga
    (Associate Professor, The University of Tokyo)

    Naomi Shimpo
    (Lecturer, University of Hyogo)

    Monica Contestabile
    (Chief Editor at Nature Sustainability, Springer Nature)

  • 18:05-18:15
    Break
  • 18:15-19:25
    Panel discussion (with all keynote speakers and panelists)

    Moderator: Yasuko Kameyama
    (Professor, The University of Tokyo)

  • 19:25-19:30
    Closing Remarks

    Antoine Bocquet
    (Managing Director, Springer Nature Japan)

Contact

Secretariat of SDGs Symposium 2023
E-mail: sdg_sympo2023★pco-prime.com(★→@)

The University of Tokyo and Springer Nature jointly organized a symposium on cities, nature, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on 28 February 2023. This was the fourth SDGs Symposium between the University of Tokyo and Springer Nature, following three symposia in 2019, 2021 and 2022, each focusing on a separate Sustainable Development Goal. The 2023 symposium focused on SDG11— “Sustainable Cities and Communities” and its intersections with other SDGs. This reflected the consensus between the organizing teams that the rapid pace of urbanization observed globally has important ramifications for sustainability, especially in relation to shifts in lifestyles and consumptions patterns that affect nature in ever-increasing distances. Many urban processes, ranging from consumption and waste generation to access to infrastructure and resources, sharpen inequalities within and between cities and between urban and rural areas.

The thematic focus of the 2023 SDGs Symposium on cities, nature and sustainability aligns well with the underlying long-term goal of this series of symposia to share the significance of adopting an integrated intellectual approach (“Sougouchi”) to solve global sustainability challenges, by including in the discussion both experienced scholars and practitioners and the next generation of scholars.

To reflect these goals, the 2023 SDGs Symposium brought together leading international academics and publishers with long experience on cross-cutting themes of cities, nature, and sustainability, with emerging academics and students from Japan. There was special attention to achieve inclusivity among the speakers in terms of disciplines, affiliation, gender, and stage of their career. The speakers included two globally leading international academics (Prof. Bai, Prof Elmqvist), the Editor-in-Chief of Springer Nature (Sir Campbell), the Chief Editor of Nature Sustainability (Dr. Contestabile) and two up-and-coming academics from Japan (Dr. Soga, Dr. Shimpo). The SDGs Symposium was hosted by the Institute for Future Initiatives (IFI), which represents a hub of researchers practicing integrated research efforts within the University of Tokyo.

Of the approximately 1,400 registered participants from 97 countries, 453 participants attended the 2023 SDGs Symposium. 63 attended in person at Ito International Research Center, the University of Tokyo and 390 online from different parts of the world. Approximately 56% of the online audience joined from Japan and 44% from other countries. Beyond academic and research institutions, many of the participants were affiliated with the private sector, government agencies, and civil society, showing the transdisciplinary appeal of the event. Many registrants were students and early career researchers.
*For the full report, please see below.

Event report / UTokyo FOCUS
(external link)