Environmental Studies

This course offers a study of the risks arising from climatic, hydrological, and internal and external geodynamic and biological processes. It discusses the social repercussions of extreme events, the approach to preventative and mitigation measures, and the response of land use planning. This course analyzes extreme episodes of natural and associated risks including the extent to which they are influenced by direct anthropic intervention in the biophysical environmental and by the variability of natural factors.

This course presents basic concepts and information of plate tectonics and the tectonic history of the Asiatic continent and the Japanese islands, active faults and earthquakes, and volcanoes. The lectures include how past and recent environment influence human livelihood.

The course covers the following topics:
- Introduction of the course
- Basics of Plate tectonics
- Plate margin and Japan island arc
- Rock structure beneath surface
- Geology and natural resources
- History of earth and geological timescale
- Earthquake and active faults
- The Great East Japan earthquake
- Rheology of rocks and subduction zone earthquake cycles
- Volcanoes
- Advancement in geodynamics with space geodesy
- Advancement in geodynamics with InSAR and machine learning

The lecture series on "Advances in Water Management and Climate Adaptation" is a comprehensive course designed to explore the latest techniques, tools, technologies, strategies, and policies in managing water resources and adapting to the challenges posed by climate change. Tools and technologies will include, among others, advanced modelling techniques, digital technologies, remote sensing, and geographic information systems. Water management and climate adaptation strategies and policies will unpack the intertwined relationship between environmental, technological, societal, and economic stakes, and include topics related to climate justice, multi-objective optimization, risk and conflict management, and multi-sector dynamics under uncertainty. After an introductory session, different early-stage researchers from international universities, research institutions, technology centers, and policy institutes will present cutting-edge research, projects, lessons learned, challenges, and visions on water resources management and climate adaptation. Each lecture will be followed by a class discussion.

This course examines the core hydrological and climatic processes that cause change within the environment, particularly the role of water. It covers why climate varies spatially, and why vegetation has such an important influence on the availability and timing of moisture and stream flow. It will also examine how hydrological and climatic systems respond to human interaction and environmental change. The emphasis will be on providing the skills necessary to interpret the processes controlling the spatial and temporal variability in climate and water availability.

This course explores the factors that have triggered the evolution of environmental law and governance beyond state (since the development of the UN Sustainable Development Goals), and how the theoretical approaches of environmental studies developed in that context. Additionally, it reflects on how and to what extent environmental law and governance can be resilient and adaptive in facing global challenges.

The course provides the key economic concepts and tools for analyzing environmental and urban issues; introduces and explains the application of economic methods to the analysis of the built and natural environments; presents the ways in which sound economic analysis is critical to urban and environmental policy making; and encourages critical debate and reflection on the key environmental and urban policy issues. 

The technical aspects of environmental issues in Egypt are examined taking into account the cultural, social, and political dimensions upsetting the balance of the environment. Major issues such as water scarcity, global warming, desertification, urban pollution, tourism, and demographic pressures are presented and analyzed.

The course focuses on various land use and system dynamic topics to guide class discussions in the weekly seminar meetings. Lectures are watched outside of scheduled meeting times to maximize time for discussion and expansion of ideas in class. The topic focuses include the following: global urbanization dynamics, global land use and change, urbanization, global land take of urbanization, urban expansion, urbanization in regards to climate change, urban climate change economics (including subtopics of buildings emissions and urban heat), as well as urban transport. 

This course examines the nature, formation, and classification of soils, their physical, chemical, mineralogical, and biological properties, and issues of soil quality, land degradation and sustainable management. It also encompasses the properties, genesis, and distribution of the soils of New Zealand and their use.

This course focuses on disaster risk as the key element of international environmental studies and elaborates with case studies on disaster risk reduction frameworks, climate change adaptation and sustainable development. Examples from developing countries in Asia are presented.