Knowledge Forum: Nature, People, and Sustainable Development: Achieving Sustainable Progress on a Finite Planet

Over the past decades, the international community has established numerous treaties, conventions, and global frameworks aimed at conserving the natural environment. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) also include dedicated goals related to environmental sustainability, notably SDG 14 (Life Below Water) and SDG 15 (Life on Land). Despite these efforts, however, ecosystem degradation, environmental destruction, and biodiversity loss continue across the globe. Why have we been unable to reverse these trends?

One reason may lie in the way environmental conservation has traditionally been positioned within international development policy. Nature has often been treated as one sector among many development priorities, implicitly placing the natural environment within the broader sphere of human society and economic activity. In reality, however, human societies and economies are embedded within nature, and it is healthy and resilient ecosystems that provide the foundation upon which human well-being and economic prosperity depend. Ignoring this relationship and degrading nature is akin to undermining the very foundations of the house in which we live. To secure a sustainable future, we must recognize the fundamental interdependence between people and nature and transform our social and economic systems in ways that enhance ecological integrity and resilience.

In recent years, a range of innovative approaches has emerged worldwide, including the promotion of the bioeconomy as a means of reconciling biodiversity conservation with economic development, corporate disclosure of nature-related risks and dependencies, and the recognition of the legal rights of nature, such as rivers, forests, and other ecosystems. Against this backdrop, this forum will explore how human societies, as part of nature, can pursue sustainable development while strengthening the relationship between nature, economy, and society.

Drawing on the joint research project, Nature, People, and Sustainable Development , conducted by the Brookings Institution and the JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development, the forum will bring together leading experts from diverse fields to discuss the values, institutions, and behavioral changes required to build a more sustainable future.

10:00 – 10:05 Opening Remarks
・ Haruko Kamei , Director General, JICA Ogata Research Institute
10:05 – 10:20 Book Presentation: Nature, People, and Sustainable Development
・ Homi, Kharas , Senior Fellow, Center for Sustainable Development, Brookings Institution
10:20 – 11:20 Panel Discussion
Moderator
・ Ichiro Sato , Executive Senior Research Fellow, JICA Ogata Research Institute
Discussants
・ Julie McCarthy , Chief Executive Officer, Nature Finance; Nonresident Fellow, Center for Sustainable Development, Brookings Institution
・Keisuke Midori, Chief Researcher, CSV Strategy Department, Kirin Holdings Company, Limited
・Osamu Saito, Program　Director, Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES)
Visiting Professor, Institute for Future Initiatives (IFI), The University of Tokyo
11:20 – 11:55 Q&A Session
11:55 – 12:00 Closing Remarks
・Tim Scott, Policy Advisor, UNDP's Nature Hub

Please register by clicking here .
*Registration will be closed at noon November 10 (Japan time).
*We will provide accommodations such as sign language interpretation, real-time captioning, and advance access to text data. If you wish to request any of these services, please contact us at dritrp@jica.go.jp by October 28.

JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development（Mr. Tanaka/Ms. Kajino ）
E-mail：dritrp@jica.go.jp