United Nations University
Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability
39th UNU GLOBAL SEMINAR

Dates: 7-9 August 2023
Time: 13:00-17:00 JST on 7th and 8th Aug.
10:30-17:00 JST on 9th Aug.
*Consultation Time: 18.30-20.30 on 8th Aug.

Modality of the Seminar: Online
Language: English
Expected participants: 100
Participant fee: 30,000 JPY
Certificate: Awarded upon the successful
completion of the programme
Contact: ias.pdt.event@unu.edu
Details: ias.unu.edu/en/
Description and Aim
Join us for a seminar on sustainable agriculture and food production! Sustainable agriculture is a wayof producing food that is healthy for consumers and animals, does not harm the environment, ishumane for workers, respects animals, provides fair wages to farmers, and supports and enhances
rural communities. It takes many forms but at its core is the goal of producing enough healthy food forthe growing world population while reducing food's negative social and environmental impacts.
The UNU Global Seminar 2023 will examine the importance of transforming our global food systems
in meeting the largest challenges faced by humanity. Groupwork will be organised to discusssustainable agriculture practices and explore how these practices can help ensure food security while
reducing negative social and environmental impacts. Participant groups will also be tasked to propose
innovative solutions for mainstreaming sustainable agriculture practices.
Learning Outcomes▪ Engage with prominent leaders across fields and disciplines such as biodiversity, water, andeducation to learn about the contemporary global issues related to each area and understand thesustainable initiatives.
▪ Obtain skill how to tackle the global issues with multiple aspects by planned groupworks step-bystep applying the world café style.
▪ Enhance communication capability and skill in making a consensus among the team members
through the preparation for the presentation for the innovative solution about the impact and solutionof the effect of climate change.
▪ Make a network with other participants from different university and with diverse backgrounds
through the world café style discussion and preparation for the presentations.
Who is eligible to participate?
▪ Undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in the universities located in Japan.
▪ Young professionals who are interested in the theme of the seminar are also welcome.
* Note: Faculty members and researchers of the university are not admissible.

United Nations University
Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability
Summary of the Programme
Sustainable agriculture takes many forms, but at its core is the shift-away from the industrial approach tofood production developed during the 20th century. This system, with its reliance on monoculture,mechanisation, chemical pesticides and fertilizers, biotechnology, and government subsidies, has madefood abundant and affordable. Food lies at the heart of healthy people, thriving societies and asustainable planet. One of humanity’s greatest challenges is how to produce enough healthy food for thegrowing world population while at the same time reducing food’s negative social and environmental
impacts. Transforming our global food systems is central to meeting the largest challenges faced byhumanity, including climate change, biodiversity loss, food insecurity and risks to future pandemics.
The global food system is the primary driver of biodiversity loss on the planet. According to researchers,
the area given over to agriculture now accounts for around half of the planet’s habitable land. With 7.7
billion mouths to feed, more and more land is being given over to food production, causing habitat loss
around the world and stripping vast swathes of land of its biodiversity. Converting land to agriculture
doesn’t just destroy natural ecosystems such as prairies, grasslands and forest, it also deprives wildlife of
the food sources and shelter they depend upon to survive. Beyond the destruction of ecosystems, theintensification of farming is also driving biodiversity loss.
Agriculture isn’t just one of the primary drivers behind rapidly accelerating biodiversity loss; it’s also oneof the areas of our lives that will be most impacted by it. The United Nations’ Food and AgricultureOrganization (FAO) recently warned that biodiversity loss is threatening the security of the world’s foodsupply, as well as the livelihoods of millions of people who work in the industry.

Programme*Programme and lecturers are subject to change.
Day 1: Monday, 7 August 2023, 13:00-17:00 (JST) Welcome Address: Prof. Yume Yamaguchi, Director, UNU-IAS Keynote Speech 1: Yagi Nobuyuki, Professor, Graduate School of Agricultural and LifeSciences, The University of Tokyo
 Concept Speech: TBD, UNU-IAS
 World Café and group forming
Day 2: Tuesday, 8 August 2023, 13:00-17:00 (JST) Keynote Speech 2: Prof. Atsushi Yokota, (Research Faculty of Agriculture, Division of
Fundamental AgriScience Research, Research Group of Bioscience and Chemistry;
Executive/Vice-President of Hokkaido University, Japan)
 Group Work Session
Day 3: Wednesday, 9 August 2023, 10:30-17:00 (JST) Group Presentations
 Keynote Speech 3: Gordana Kranjac-Berisavljevic, Professor, Department of Agricultural
Mechanization and Irrigation Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Consumer
Sciences, University for Development Studies, Ghana
 Ceremony of Certificate Awards
Consultation Day: Tuesday, 8 August 2023, 18:30-20:30 (JST) Instructors will be available online to answer your questions related to the group work
*Programmeand lecturers
are subject to change.
What is the UNU
Global Seminar?
The UNU Global Seminars began in Japan in 1985.
The aim of the UNU Global Seminars is to enhance awareness about
contemporary global issues and the role of the United Nations inaddressing those issues. Students and young professionals are given
the opportunity to interact with distinguished scholars and practitioners
from Japan and abroad, and to explore a specific issue in depth
through lectures and group discussions.

Funded byMinistry of Education, Culture,Sports, Science andTechnology, Japan, and The
Japan Foundation for theUnited Nations University.
(Logos to be added)