About CSRS
Through the power of science, CSRS opens our future where both the Earth and humanity can live healthily together
The Earth we live on is a 'system' where the air, oceans, land, and living things all affect each other. The Earth system has ‘resilience’ to heal itself and return to its original state. However, our activities to make life more comfortable have caused problems like climate change, loss of biodiversity, and pollution. Because of this, the Earth's resilience is reaching its limit. To solve the problems, people around the world have been working to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), but the crisis is not over yet. The Earth system is shared by all people, and it is called ‘Global Commons’. To protect and nurture it, we must join forces to transition from a mass consumption society to a sustainable circular society that safeguards the Earth system.
Since its establishment in 2013, the Center for Sustainable Resource Science (CSRS) has pursued research under the concept of 'Sustainable Resource Science', integrating research fields such as plant science, chemical biology, catalytic chemistry, and biomass engineering, and has been tackling the global challenges. The center is advancing the development of stress-resistant plants and environmentally friendly crop production technologies, and has also achieved results in ‘manufacturing’ utilizing the power of biology and catalysts. Furthermore, to ensure that the outcomes of our basic research benefit society, CSRS collaborates with researchers within and beyond RIKEN and experts from companies and the fields of humanities and social sciences.
It is humanity that has brought crisis to the Earth. However, we believe that humanity can also overcome this crisis by using its wisdom and actions. Through the power of science, CSRS contributes to solving global challenges toward the realization of a sustainable circular society and preserving the global commons, and opens our future where both the Earth and humanity can live healthily together.
Director, CSRS
Mikiko Sodeoka
Missions
CSRS has built world-class achievements through the interdisciplinary research integrating plant science, chemical biology, catalytic chemistry, and biomass engineering. We promote four strategic programs leveraging the strengths of CSRS and tackle the urgent and global challenge of preserving the Global Commons.
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