Educational Activities

Graduate School of Frontier Sciences: Sustainability Science; Sustainable Urban Planning and Land Management

Research Activities

At the Sustainable Society Design Center, my research spans interdisciplinary areas such as Planetary Health, Urban and Landscape Systems, and Climate Change Adaptation. As a trained sustainability scientist, I believe in crossing scientific boundaries and using innovative, transdisciplinary systems science approaches to tackle the world’s most pressing challenges.
My current project focuses on scenarios of our global environment, particularly through the lenses of food, water, and environmental sustainability. Gathering existing scenarios and comparing them may indicate directions for further research. One of our most ambitious initiatives involves co-designing a scenario to imagine what an ideal Earth could look like 100 years from now. This is a unique opportunity to contribute to groundbreaking research that aims to shape a sustainable and thriving future for our planet.

Literature

1) Sioen G. B., McGreevy S., Ungvari J., Attig-Bahar F., Juhola S. (2024) Charting the course for the next decade of Sustainability Research and Innovation. Global Sustainability, 7, 1 - 6. https://doi.org/10.1017/sus.2024.41
2) Asokan V. A., Sioen G. B., Kawazu E. (2024) Why Not in My Backyard? (W-NIMBY): The potential of design-driven environmental infrastructure to foster greater acceptance among host communities, Global Sustainability, pp. 1 – 18. https://doi.org/10.1017/sus.2024.22
3) Harris F., Lyon F., Sioen G. B., Ebi K. (2024) Working with the tensions of transdisciplinary research: A review and agenda for the future of knowledge co-production in the Anthropocene, Global Sustainability, pp. 1 - 28. https://doi.org/10.1017/sus.2024.11
4) Hahn T., Sioen G. B., Gasparatos A., Elmqvist T., Brondizio E., Folke C., Gomez-Baggethun E., Setiawati M. D., Arini E. Y., Atmaja, T, Jarzebski M. P., Fukushi K., Takeuchi K. (2023) Insurance value of biodiversity in the Anthropocene – a conceptual analysis. Ecological Economics, 208, 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2023.107799
5) Liu J., Gatzweiler F., Hodson S., Harrer-Puchner G., Sioen G. B., Thinyane M., Purian R., Murray V., Yi X. (2022) Co-creating solutions to complex urban problems with collaborative systems modelling - insights from a workshop on health co-benefits of urban green spaces in Guangzhou, Cities & Health (RCAH) Taylor & Francis. https://doi.org/10.1080/23748834.2022.2026694
6) Martin M. A., Sendra O. A., Bastos A., Bauer N., Bertram C., Blenckner T., Bowen K., Brando P. M., Rudolph T. B., Büchs M., Bustamante M., Chen D., Cleugh H., Dasgupta P., Denton F., Donges J. F., Donkor F. K., Duan H., Duarte C. M., Ebi K. L., Edwards C. M., Engel A., Fisher E., Fuss S., Gaertner J., Gettelman A., Girardin C.A.J., Golledge N. R., Green J. F., Grose M. R., Hashizume M., Hebden S., Hepach H., Hirota M., Hsu H. H., Kojima S., Lele S., Lorek S., Lotze H. K., Matthews H. D., McCauley D., Mebratu D., Mengis N., Nolan R. H., Pihl E., Rahmstorf S., Redman A., Reid C. E., Rockström J., Rogelj J., Saunois M., Sayer L., Schlosser P., Sioen G. B., Spangenberg J. H., Stammer D., Sterner T. N. S., Stevens N., Thonicke K., Tian H., Winkelmann R., Woodcock J. (2021) Ten new insights in climate science 2021: a horizon scan. Global Sustainability, 1-39. https://doi.org/10.1017/sus.2021.25
7) Jarzebski M. P., Elmqvist T., Gasparatos A., Fukushi K., Eckersten S., Haase D., Goodness J., Khoshkar S., Saito O., Takeuchi K.,Theorell T., Dong N., Kasuga F., Watanabe R., Sioen G.B., Yokohari M., Pu J. (2021) Ageing and Population Shrinking: Implications for Sustainability in the Urban Century, npj Urban Sustain, 1, 17. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42949-021-00023-z
8) Ebi K. L., Harris F., Sioen G. B., Wannous C., Anyamba A., Bi P., Boeckmann M., Bowen K., Cissé G., Dasgupta P., Dida G.O., Gasparatos A., Gatzweiler F., Javadi F., Kanbara S., Kone B., Maycock B., Morse A., Murakami T., Mustapha A., Pongsiri M., Suzán G., Watanabe C., Capon A. (2020) Transdisciplinary research priorities for human and planetary health in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 17, 8890. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17238890
9) Sioen G. B., Terada, T., Sekiyama, M., Yokohari, M. (2018) Resilience with mixed agricultural and urban land uses in Tokyo, Japan. Sustainability, 10, 2, pp. 435. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10020435

Other Activities

Review Editor: Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services thematic assessment of the interlinkages among biodiversity, water, food and health (nexus assessment)
Member of Future Earth international
Member of Urban Knowledge-Action Network
Member of Health Knowledge-Action Network
Section Editor, Editorial board, Frontiers in Built Environment
Editorial Board Member: Cambridge University Press, Global Sustainability

Future Plan

Quantifying integrated sustainability scenarios

Messages to Students

Are you driven by the desire to create meaningful change in the world? While there’s a wealth of knowledge out there, applying it effectively requires courage, perseverance, and a deep commitment to our interconnected socio-ecological-technological systems. As a transdisciplinary researcher, you’ll have the opportunity to explore beyond conventional boundaries and discover exciting new frontiers. If you’re ready to embark on a journey that pushes the limits of traditional research and makes a tangible impact, then I invite you to join the Graduate Program in Sustainability Science.

URL

https://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/focus/en/people/k0001_05991.html