High-level outreach meetings in Japan
Activity list
Sustainable wood use for climate change mitigation
2023/12/05
In the side-event “Sustainable Forest Management for the Mitigation and Adaptation against Climate Change” held at the Japan Pavilion on 5 December 2023, during the 28th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru explained how sustainable wood use can contribute to climate change mitigation by adding value to forests, a key factor in reducing their conversion to other land-uses.
Yokohama City Council LDP members visit ITTO
2023/10/06
Yokohama City Council Liberal Democratic Party members, Ms Fushimi Yuki and Mr Kawaguchi Hiro, paid a courtesy visit to ITTO headquarters on 3 October 2023 to meet ITTO Director of Operations Gerhard Breulmann and ITTO Financial and Administrative Officer Simon Kawaguchi.
Courtesy visit with parliamentarian Suga Yoshihide
2023/07/21
ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru visited The Most Honourable Mr Suga Yoshihide, Member of Japan’s House of Representatives and Member of the South Korea–Japan Parliamentarians’ Association, on 18 July 2023 at Mr Suga’s diet office in Tokyo.
Courtesy call by members of Yokohama City Council and Diet
2023/07/10
Diet member Sakaya Sasaki and several members of the Yokohama City Council paid a courtesy visit to ITTO headquarters on 10 July 2023 to meet with ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru. Representing the Yokohama City Council were Ms Fukushima Naoko, Vice-president; Mr Takahashi Masaharu, former Vice-president; and Mr Nakajima Mitsunori and Mr Takenouchi Takeshi.
ITTO Executive Director meets with President of Sumitomo Forestry
2023/07/06
ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru met with Sumitomo Forestry President and Executive Officer, Mr Mitsuyoshi Toshiro, in Tokyo on 6 July 2023. The focus of the conversation was the importance of stand-level sustainable forest management and potential collaboration through Sumitomo’s long-term vision for decarbonization, known as Mission TREEING 2030.
ITTO Executive Director moderates seminar at G7 meeting in Miyazaki
2023/04/22
ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru moderated the seminar, “Toward Net Zero and Circular Economy with Sustainable Wood Use", held on 21 April 2023 during the G7 Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting in Miyazaki, Japan.
ITTO Executive Director stresses forests as nature-based solutions in event in Japan Pavilion
2022/11/29
The sustainable consumption of tropical forest products is an important nature-based solution to climate change, according to ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru. She was speaking at an event on 18 November 2022 in the Japan Pavilion on the sidelines of the 27th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.
Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Fisheries and ITTO discuss tropical forests ahead of G7 meeting
2022/11/29
Mr Tanimura Eiji, Counselor at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Fisheries (MAFF) and Cabinet Counselor, made a courtesy visit to ITTO headquarters in Yokohama on 18 November 2022 to meet with ITTO Director of Operations Gerhard Breulmann.
ITTO Executive Director meets head of Komei in Tokyo
2022/10/28
ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru met with the head of the Komei political party, Yamaguchi Natsuo, on 26 October 2022. The visit was featured in Komei’s newspaper where the party acknowledged ITTO’s important work to address global issues such as climate change, wood fibre supply from sustainably managed forests and biodiversity loss.
ITTO and IGES strengthen cooperation on tropical forests
2022/10/19
ITTO and the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) will work more closely together in assisting tropical countries and stakeholders to conserve and sustainably manage their forests under a new memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed on 19 October 2022 by ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru and IGES President Takeuchi Kazuhiko.
ITTO and Japan International Cooperation Agency renew commitment on cooperation
2022/10/18
ITTO and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) have agreed to continue their collaborative work to assist tropical countries and stakeholders in conserving and sustainably managing their forests under a new memorandum of cooperation signed on 17 October 2022 by ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru and JICA Director General, Global Environment Department, Morita Takahiro.
ITTO Executive Director makes courtesy visit to heads of Japan’s Forestry Agency
2022/09/22
ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru paid a courtesy visit to the Director-General of Japan’s Forestry Agency, Orita Hiroshi, and the Deputy Director-General, Mori Shigeki, on 6 September 2022. The purpose of the visit was to follow up on discussions about how ITTO’s work might contribute to Japan’s goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050; collaboration on the upcoming 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, to be held in Egypt in November; the Group of Seven; and the World Horticultural Exhibition, which will be held in Yokohama in 2027.
ITTO Executive Director meets Mayor of Yokohama City
2022/09/22
ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru met with Yokohama City Mayor, Yamanaka Takeharu, on 1 September 2022 to discuss ways in which ITTO’s work might contribute to the city’s carbon-neutrality plan, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals, and collaboration on the World Horticultural Exhibition, which will be held in Yokohama in 2027.
ITTO’s role is critical for supporting Japan’s efforts in global issues
2022/08/01
ITTO Executive Director, Sheam Satkuru, met with Hayashi Yoshimasa, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan on Monday, 1 August 2022. The Minister expressed the importance of ITTO in relation to Japan as its host country, and that the organization’s work plays an important role in regards to global issues, such as mitigating climate change and the ensuring of sustainable supply chains. Ms. Satkuru ensured the Minister of the organization’s commitment to continue working with Japan to facilitate legal and sustainable forest management and sustainable use of timber in the tropics, which are often correlated to the larger global issues.
ITTO proposed plans for Japan’s carbon neutrality by 2050 at the Ministry of Environment
2022/07/29
On Friday, 29 July 2022, ITTO Executive Director, Sheam Satkuru, paid a visit to the Ministry of Environment in Tokyo to meet with Nakagawa Yasuhiro, Japan’s Parliamentary Vice-minister of Environment; Mizutani Yoshihiro, Director for International Cooperation for Transition to Decarbonization and Sustainable Infrastructure; and Kudo Shunsuke, Planning Officer for the Joint Crediting Mechanism to follow up on a previous meeting in late April to propose plans on how ITTO’s could contribute to Japan’s pledge to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
Follow-up meeting with Shimamura Dai, Japan’s parliamentary vice-minister of health, labour and welfare to discuss how ITTO’s work could contribute to Japan’s pledge to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050
2022/07/28
A follow-up meeting took place between ITTO Executive Director, Sheam Satkuru, and the parliamentary vice-minister of health, labour and welfare, Shimamura Dai on Thursday, 28 July. This meeting continued discussions on how ITTO’s work could contribute to Japan’s pledge to achieve net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions by 2050, which took place last year in December, when Mr. Shimamura visited ITTO headquarters and met with Officer-in-charge Steven Johnson.
ITTO meets with Japanese government officials to discuss emission reductions
2022/04/27
ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru met with Nakagawa Yasuhiro, Japan’s Parliamentary Vice-minister of Environment, in Tokyo on 27 April 2022 to exchange views on how ITTO’s work could contribute to Japan’s pledge to significantly reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
Japan’s Forestry Agency makes courtesy call to ITTO headquarters
2022/04/12
Japan’s Forestry Agency Director of Wood Utilization, Kojima Hiroaki, accompanied by the Deputy Director of the Wood Products Trade Office, Tabata Akiko, and the Section Chief of the Wood Products Trade Office, Sugaya Kyohei, visited ITTO headquarters on 12 April 2022.
Head of Citynet visits ITTO headquarters
2022/03/31
ITTO Executive Director Ms Sheam Satkuru received a courtesy call from the Head of Citynet, Mr Onozaki Nobuyuki, and the Director of Citynet’s Project Administration, Ms Kudou Yukiko, on 31 March 2022.
Japan's parliamentary vice-minister of health, labour and welfare, Shimamura Dai, makes courtesy call to ITTO headquarters
2022/01/08
Japan’s parliamentary vice-minister of health, labour and welfare, Shimamura Dai, visited ITTO on 23 December 2021 and met with Officer-in-charge Steven Johnson. Vice-minister Shimamura represents Kanagawa prefecture in Japan’s parliament and is based in Yokohama. Discussions focused on how ITTO’s work could contribute to Japan’s pledge to achieve net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions by 2050.