In many of Asia's developing countries, ongoing rapid economic development has increased waste production, and it is clear that the problem of waste disposal will only become more serious from now on. Meanwhile, global environmental issues such as resource depletion and global warming are becoming urgent in these developing countries as well. As a way of breaking through these issues, Japan has suggested the "creation of a sound material-cycle society." However, merely transferring sound material-cycle technologies is not enough to spread the concept of such a society, but it is important to design one that is customized to each community, based on a proper understanding of environmental awareness which is rooted in the society and culture of people in various countries.

  For this Program, a "Special Course on Environmental Rehabilitation in Asia" has been established under the Graduate School of Environmental Science, with the goal of developing "human resources who are able to demonstrate international leadership in environmental rehabilitation in Asia" by implementing a curriculum which is designed to:

  1. Raise awareness concerning issues of our contemporary material society and their solution, through education for sustainable development (ESD);
  2. Let students systematically learn the theories of technology, planning, and policies for a sound material-cycle society; and
  3. Help expand in stages the image of a sound material-cycle society from regional material-cycle to global material-cycle through project research.