Department of Bioenvironmental Design

Features of the Department

• Students study mechanisms of nature and technology to protect, preserve and restore natural environments.
• Practical training and research are conducted in the rich natural environment of our Kyoto Kameoka Campus.
• To deploy projects related to a variety of environments in collaboration with societal stakeholders.
• Extensive qualification and career education programs which include support for students who wish to go to graduate school and those who want to become science teachers.
• Students can obtain a teacher’s license for teaching natural science in a junior or senior high school as well as different types of environment-related qualifications.

Let Us Challenge Environmental Design Which Reverses the Loss of Nature.

Faculty of Bioenvironmental Science, Department of Bioenvironmental Design
Professor, Reiji Suzuki

In Japan, there are many magnificent landscapes which have been created by our traditional way of life. One example is the large grass plain spreading at the foot of Mount Aso in Kumamoto Prefecture. The people in this region have maintained this massive plain by utilizing methods such as grazing, field burning and grass cutting. These grasses are mainly used to feed cows and horses, to build thatched roofs, and to produce fertilizers. In such “secondary nature”, including grass plains, coppice forest, rice fields and water reservation ponds, diverse species have been coexisted with humans. However, secondary nature is rapidly disappearing due to changes in lifestyle and the decline of agriculture and livestock industry. As a result, there has been a stark increase in endangered species. How should we design future environments for coexistence of people and nature? Our department aims to educate people who want to solve these challenging questions.