The Future of Climate: Mitigating Climate Impact Via Innovation
If islands can teach us how climate change may affect the rest of the world, perhaps there is one that can also teach us about combating climate change through sustainable practices. But that island is not here on Earth.
At the start of the OIST Foundation’s webinar “Mitigating Climate Impact Via Innovation,” held on December 17, 2020, retired JAXA astronaut Naoko Yamazaki suggested that the International Space Station (ISS) could be a model for best practices in sustainability. This was the third and final webinar in the Future of Climate series funded by a generous grant from the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership. The webinars spotlighted some of the most important global issues of deep concern to the United States and Japan: climate change, combating it effects, and environmental conservation.
Joining Yamazaki, who is now a council member at The Earthshot Prize, were Noriyuki Satoh, professor in the Marine Genomics Unit at Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST); Afshan Jamshaid, a Ph.D. candidate in the Energy Materials and Surface Sciences Unit at OIST; and Dawn Lippert, CEO of Elemental Excelerator, which deploys solutions to climate change in communities that need it the most. Jennifer Costley, director of physical sciences, sustainability, and engineering at New York Academy of Sciences, moderated the discussion.
Having actually lived aboard the ISS, Yamazaki noted, “Sustainability is the key point to maintain the ISS, just like on Earth.” For example, the air and more than 60% of the water are recycled. Electricity is generated through solar panels and batteries. However, clothing cannot be recycled or even washed, so items are thrown away. And, astronauts rely on food that is delivered to them. Innovations such as 3D printing and growing food on-board, make the ISS even more sustainable. They also have a two-fold benefit for humanity: First, the ISS can provide valuable lessons for reducing, reusing, and recycling here on Earth. Second, it helps to sustain space research so that the next generation of astronomers and astronauts can search the solar system for resources that may be beneficial to species on land and in oceans.
Satoh, a global expert on coral preservation in the face of climate change, is particularly focused on the 25% of marine organisms that live in coral reefs. These biodiversity hotspots are extremely susceptible to climate change. But innovative solutions are helping to restore reefs, and in doing so, to support entire ecosystems. Specifically, an ongoing coral reef preservation project in Okinawa relies on a transplantation method to grow new reefs. “You break the coral branch and affix it to a substrate to develop a small colony,” Satoh explained. For 5–8 months the corals grow in a protected nursery environment. Once they are stable enough, the new corals are transplanted into the ocean. Every patch of new coral contains four different species to ensure genetic diversity once they are mature enough to reproduce naturally. Since 2010, more than 150,000 coral branches have been introduced to the reefs around Okinawa. The technique is not the only innovative aspect of the program, however. It also represents a mutually beneficial and productive partnership between OIST and the local government. The model can — and should — be applied worldwide, Satoh said. “Coral reef restoration is not just an Okinawan problem. Other universities need to do similar projects in their areas.”
Lippert echoed the importance of collaboration, citing the Hawai‘i-Okinawa Memorandum of Cooperation for Clean and Efficient Energy Development and Deployment that was co-signed by Hawai‘i Governor David Ige and Takeshi Onaga, governor of Okinawa. Elemental Excelerator, which is based in Honolulu and Palo Alto, also relies on partnerships. “We have three key funders: government, corporate, and philanthropy,” Lippert said, noting that they have similar goals around climate. She added, “We see Japan as an extraordinary leader around climate technology and climate action, and it’s really exciting to partner with some leading Japanese corporations that are on their own pathways to decarbonization.” Together, funding partners are supporting start-ups that are producing hybrid-electric aircraft, carbon-capturing concrete, and solar-generated clean water.
Solar power is an important key to the future of energy. Jamshaid spoke of the limited amount of oil left on the planet. It will eventually run out, making renewable energy — such as that from wind or the sun — even more essential. Jamshaid studies solar power at OIST, with an emphasis on solar cell technology. Solar cells are the mechanism that convert sunlight into electricity. Third-generation perovskite cells are a particularly high efficiency, low cost type of cell, but their inherent instability leads to degradation when exposed to air and moisture. Having a shorter life span means there is more waste, and, because they use lead, that waste is toxic. Jamshaid’s research delves into the materials of these cells at the atomic level. “We try to improve them by mixing in other materials” to stabilize the cells so they can last longer, she said.
With so much innovation around climate change happening in both the U.S. and Japan, Costley asked the panelists how citizens who are not working on the front lines of science and technology could play a role in mitigating climate change. In spite of her interest in solar energy, Jamshaid recommends that everyone recycle. Yamazaki emphasized the importance of society, industry, academia, and government collaboration. Lippert recognized the growing interest among young people in being part of the solution and encouraged the creation of pathways to facilitate their involvement. Finally, Satoh closed with the simple statement, “We should do our best to keep nature as it is.”
The OIST Foundation is grateful to Elemental Excelerator for co-sponsoring this event and to the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership for funding the webinar series and strategic report that will follow. The report will outline how the OIST Foundation can play a central role in bringing together American and Japanese leaders on climate change topics in order to expand partnerships and help policy makers by sharing informed scientific insights with them.
