Notice: Special Subject Research for Fiscal 2027

“Interdisciplinary and/or international research to explore Planetary Health

Planetary Health (PH) is a relatively new keyword, originally introduced in a renowned academic journal published in 2015. Based on the deep concerning of global environmental issues such as Planetary Boundaries, PH is a notion that represents both research framework and social implementation for reconsidering interdependence between human health, social health and environmental conditions of our planet, with the aim of rebuilding the sustainable relationship. Humankind is currently facing " Triple Planetary Crisis" such as climate change, biodiversity loss and environmental pollution, which might stem from a diminished recognition of the interdependence. Amongst various approaches for sustainability , PH has some significant features, that is abovementioned interdependence, synergy or trade-off within multiple tasks, emphasis on the relationship among multiple systems, impact on future generation, or cherishing local and cultural context. The notion of PH has adopted by research/educational organizations, United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), or in national action plan. Furthermore, it has been gaining attention that we can see governmental documents or business policy of major enterprises.

In this call, we are looking for cross-disciplinary and/or international research stretching over natural science, engineering, humanities and social science to implement PH's goals. We are welcoming not only proposals addressing issues, but also proposals leading to solutions and analyses of how Triple Planetary Crisis affect human health including mental diseases, human well-being, and our daily lives.

Example include:

research on technological and policy/institutional innovations that facilitates the implementation of PH;
research on institutional design or value systems;
research on the process bridging scientific knowledge with decision-making process in policy or industry;
research that identifies trade-off or synergy among PH- related domains such as climate change and biodiversity conservation, or that deepens understanding of interdependence;
research on governance framework that integrate geopolitical risks with global environmental risks;
social or technical analyses of regions or communities that aim to realize PH;
research on the social implementation of technological innovation;
research on ripple effects within social or environmental systems that contribute to PH;

Both global and local-scale research are welcome. In case of local-scale research , it's desirable to suggest feasibility of ripple effects to global scale research. Finally, proposals should clearly describe how the research contributes to implementation of PH.