Advanced Collaborative Research Organization for Smart Society (ACROSS)Waseda University

To accomplish this vision, IFES’s members focus their research on what institutional structures, technological development, consumer choices, and public policies will foster sustainable food and energy systems together. We emphasize the balance between food, energy, environment, and economies in analyzing and designing such systems.

Food security and energy systems

Facing a steady decline in agricultural workers, to maintain adequate and stable food supply in Japan, it is inevitable for Japan’s agriculture to shift to larger-scale farming with higher mechanization and automation levels. Accordingly, Japan’s agriculture will be increasingly more energy intensive, and thus energy systems will be more important for agriculture.

At the same time, it is also important to increase the share of energy from renewable resources to realize a more sustainable energy system and to raise energy self-sufficiency in Japan. However, increasing the share is often followed by a rising energy price, which will cause higher costs for agriculture and may accelerate a decrease in agricultural workers. Thus, there may be a tradeoff between energy self-sufficiency and food self-sufficiency in Japan.

Considering this potential tradeoff, IFES explores what institutional structures, technological development, consumer choices, and public policies will be socially optimal to make food and energy systems more sustainable together.

Human health and energy systems

Energy systems may also influence eating behaviors, physical activities, and human health through energy distribution and pricing. Thus, IFES explores what food and energy systems may contribute to improving human health besides environmental aspects. For example, it examines how the introduction of home energy management technologies can change people’s lifestyles and health status.

Director

Satoru SHIMOKAWA (Professor, Faculty of Political Science and Economics)

Institute Members

HAYASHI, Yasuhiro Professor, Faculty of Science and Engineering, School of Advanced Science and Engineering
ISHIKAWA, Ryuichiro Professor, Faculty of International Research and Education, School of International Liberal Studies
KAMIJO, Yoshio Professor, Faculty of Political Science and Economics, School of Political Science and Economics
MIYACHI, Motohiko Professor, Faculty of Sport Sciences, School of Sport and Sciences
SHIMOKAWA, Satoru Professor, Faculty of Political Science and Economics, School of Political Science and Economics
TANABE, Shinichi Professor, Faculty of Science and Engineering, School of Creative Science and Engineering

Adjunct Researcher

TAJIMA, Atsushi

S. Shimokawa Lab., Faculty of Political Science and Economics, Waseda University

Room#1325, Bldg#3, 1-6-1, Nishi-Waseda, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 169-8050 JAPAN
【WEB】 https://prj-foodecon.w.waseda.jp/