[Japanese]
Lab. Sustainable Development & Human Ecology
Latest update on 1 September 2026.
The laboratory of Sustainable Development & Human Ecology, Global Health Section, Division of Global and Environmental Health, Department of Future Social Medicine, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine is managed by Prof. Minato Nakazawa since 1st April 2012.
Theme of Research / Education
The sustainable development is one of the major targets of the United Nations' post-MDGs. From the viewpoint of international health, sustainability is essentially important. Overseas aids are, even if the amount of investment is huge, totally ineffective if the recipients cannot maintain the system, or do not have needed indeed. For instance, if hunter-gatherer once changes their subsistence to sedentary farming and/or herding as the result of overseas aid to increase stability of food production, they may tend to suffer from various infectious diseases, so that the clinic must be built and vaccinations are needed. Since the natural environment which the hunter-gatherer depended on cannot revive, they must continue farming/herding after the end of overseas aid. Vaccination and treatment in the clinic must be maintained by the local people, though it is very difficult. The aid must consider such a situation, including the local ecosystem. In other words, we must study the human ecology of the local population (recipients) (and sometimes donors, too). We aim to study and give education for these topics.
To check actual fieldwork done by Prof. Nakazawa, see his personal web site.
Members
Faculty
Prof. Mitsuaki Matsui and Assoc. Prof. Chihiro Teorin Tsuchiya also belong to Global Health Section.
Research Assoociates of Health Sciences
- Ichiro Mihara, Ph.D. (International Studies)
- Bharat Negi, Ph.D. (Health Sciences)
- Takayo Maeda, Ph.D. (Health Sciences)
- Risa Murakami, Ph.D. (Health Sciences)
- Megumi Kitagawa, Ph.D. (Health Sciences), supervised by Prof. Uesugi, Kinjo Univ.
- Satoko Mizohata, Ph.D. (Health Sciences), supervised by Prof. Uesugi, Kinjo Univ.
- Masako Yamada, Ph.D. (Health Sciences)
- Yorin Watabe, Ph.D. (Health Sciences)
- Seetabaral Baral, Ph.D. (Health Sciences)
- Gita Shrestha, Ph.D. (Health Sciences)
- Mire Sugino, Ph.D. research map
Graduate Students
(Note: GSHS=Graduate School of Health Sciences, GSICS=Graduate School of International Cooperation Studies, GSM=Graduate School of Medicine)
- Manami Ueno Sato (GSHS, D): Laos
- Chitose Iwasaki (GSHS, D): Morocco, Cambodia (on a leave)
- Miho Sugiura (GSHS, D): China
- Vilayphone Vang (Emma) (GSHS, D): Laos
- Acharya Shiva (GSHS, D): Developing mobile apps and applying it for public health
- Ken'ichi Asai (GSHS, D3): Community health around the leprosy patients and their family
- Chiharu Horimoto (GSHS, D2)
- Aoi Nakagawa (GSM, D1)
- Kumi Kobayashi (GSM, D1)
- Cao Jiaxin (GSM, M1)
- Eimi Tetsu (GSM, M1)
- Kouyu Tanaka (GSM, M1)
- Yoshikin Tanaka (GSICS, M1) under supervision by Prof. Aiko Sakurai since April 2026
Undergraduate students
- Ryoma Toya (Medical Technology)
- Yu Furukawa (Medical Technology)
- Chihiro Morimoto (Medical Technology)
- Kanae Tsujiuchi (Medical Technology)
Research Students
Exchange Students
Alumni
- Kazuko Miyamoto, Ph.D. (GSHS): Professor, Yamanashi University
- Syahirul Alim, Ph.D. (GSHS): Faculty in Universitas Gadja Madah)
- Junko Koga (GSHS)
- Kaori Sugishima (GSHS)
- Sakie Shizuki (GSICS[as sub])
- Ayaka Shimizu (GSICS): JOCV in Bolivia)
- Yui Hosokawa (GSICS[as sub])
- Shoko Nakamura (GSHS)
- Harumi Oshitani (GSHS)
- Hisako Kasahara (GSICS)
- Miho Ikai (GSICS)
- Ryodai Yamamura (Undergrad, MT, Ph.D. at Hokkaido Univ., Postgraduate researcher at Hokkaido Univ.)
- Kaoru Mitsumori (Undergrad, MT)
- Yoshinori Matsumoto (Undergrad, Ns)
- Keiko Aihara (Undergrad, Ns): Graduate Student at SPH, Univ. Tokyo
- Mami (Sakakibara) Ozaki (Undergrad, Ns, the study has been published as JSOS Newsletter paper in Japaneses): JOCV
- Yuka Morita (Undergrad, MT)
- Yuuya Karato (Undergrad, MT, the study has been presented in the annual meeting of JSHHE)
- Yuuta Mitono (Undergraduate, MT, the study has been presented in the annual meeting of JSHHE)
- Minami Kamata (Undergraduate, MT)
- Tomoko Kanata (GSICS): West Africa
- Chihiro Tsuchiya, Ph.D. (GSHS M and Kyoto Univ D): Assoc. Prof. since 2025.
- Shigeo Fukuda (GSHS): Singapore
- Ryoko Yamaguchi (GSICS): Indonesia
- Yao Yao (GSICS): China
- Takako Sasatani (Research Associate)
- Reiko Yotsumoto (Research Students)
- Moe Takano (GSICS): Korea
- Wanjing Li (GSICS): China
- Mayumi Kawanishi (Undergrad, MT)
- Riko Kakutani (Undergrad, MT)
- Chieko Niboshi (GSHS): Cambodia
- Saya Komatsu (GSICS): Indonesia
- Farhana Yesmine Jui (in GSHS, Oct.2019-Mar.2021, from Bangladesh)
- Rika Arimoto (GSHS)
- Atsushi Ohta (GSHS)
- Norimitsu Sasaki (GSICS)
- Emi Kobayashi (GSHS)
- Katsura Danno (Research Associate)
- Shohei Morita (GSHS)
- Haruka Sawada (GSHS)
- Rikako Mizuhata (GSHS)
- Midori Saito (GSHS)
- Yuzuki Miki (Undergrad, MT)
- Kaori Sano, Ph.D. (GSHS): Lecturer, Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical Univ.
- Junko Miyamoto, Ph.D. (GSHS): Assoc. Prof., Hiroshima International Univ.
- Jasmeet Bamrah (GSICS English course, M)
- Misato Tsuru (GSHS, M, supervised by Prof. Chiba, Kyoto Univ.)
- Hanna Horiguchi, Ph.D. (Health Sciences): Assoc. Prof., Osaka Univ.
- Moeno Sakai, Ph.D. (GSICS M, GSHS D): Save the children to UNICEF
- Yui Yoshioka (Undergrad, MT)
- Chinatsu Ozaki (Undergrad, MT)
- Azumi Fukunaga (Undergrad, MT)
- Miria Hirai (Undergrad, MT)
- Risako Maya (Undergrad, MT)
- Zhou Xiaoyue（GSICS M)
- Khammany Phommachanh a.k.a. Sanly (GSICS M)
- Ayane Kawamoto (GSHS M): Drinking water
- Tanzilur Rahman (GSHS M, supervised by Prof. Chiba, Kyoto Univ.)
- Maya Sugiyama (GSICS, M)
- Rie Okuda (GSICS, D): FSM, Assist. Prof., Sonoda Women's Univ.
- Tomomi Kajiwara (GSHS, D, supervised by Prof. Chiba, Kyoto Univ.)
- Florentine Görlitz (Exchange Foreign Student in 2nd Semester 2025 from Kiel University, Germany)
- Eri Katsuki (GSHS, M)
- Yuka Kawahara (GSHS, M)
- Nobutaka Kiyomura (Undergrad, MT)
- Alfi Nurfita Chasanah (GSHS, D): Indonesia
- Li Xueer (GSICS, M) under supervision by Prof. Aiko Sakurai since April 2026
Activities
Basically we have laboratory meetings on every Thursday during 18:30-20:00 at GSICS 206 and Zoom online simultaneously. Since 2025, the joint meeting with Prof. Matsui's lab is held.
Past meetings
Fiscal Year 2026
1st semester
- 9 April
- Orientation (All students' self-introduction)
- 16 April
- Alfi Nurfita
- 23 April
- Shiva Acharya
- 30 April
- Kenichi Asai
- 7 May
- (No meeting)
- 14 May
- Kana Kuroda
- 21 May
- Vilayphone Vang (Emma) -> (Cancelled)
- 28 May
- Haruna Teraoka
- 4 June
- Chiharu Horimoto
- 11 June
- Serina Kawatsu -> (Postponed)
- 18 June
- Aoi Nakagawa
- 25 June
- Kumi Kobayashi -> (Postponed)
- 2 July
- Li Xueer
- 9 July
- Cao Jiaxin
- 16 July
- Eimi Tetsu
- 23 July
- Koyu Tanaka
- 30 July
- Izumi Okaniwa -> (Postponed)
- 6 August
- Rin Sasaki
- 13 August
- (No meeting)
- 20 August
- Hikari Kamata -> (Postponed) / Serina Kawatsu (as rescheduled)
- 27 August
- Yoshikin Tanaka
- 3 September
- (No meeting)
- 10 September
- Izumi Okaniwa (as rescheduled)
- 17 September
- Hikari Kamata (as rescheduled)
- 24 September
- Kumi Kobayashi (as rescheduled)
2nd semester
- 1 October
- Miho Sugiura
- 8 October
- Shiva Acharya
- 15 October
- Kenichi Asai
- 22 October
- Haruna Teraoka
- 29 October
- Chiharu Horimoto
- 5 November
- Kana Kuroda
- 12 November
- Serina Kawatsu
- 19 November
- Aoi Nakagawa
- 26 November
- Cao Jiaxin
- 3 December
- Eimi Tetsu
- 10 December
- Koyu Tanaka
- 17 December
- Izumi Okaniwa
- 24 December
- Rin Sasaki
- 31 December
- (No meeting)
- 7 January
- Hikari Kamata
- 14 January
- Yoshikin Tanaka
- 21 January
- Kumi Kobayashi
- 28 January
- Vilayphone Vang (Emma)
- 4 February
- (TBD)
- 11 February
- (TBD)
- 18 February
- (TBD)
Useful links for students