ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru meets with Japan’s Minister of the Environment to strengthen collaboration
2025/03/10
ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru and Honorable Minister ASAO Keiichiro on 10 March 2025. Photo: Simon Kawaguchi/ITTO
ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru met with Japan’s Minister for the Environment, the Honorable Minister Asao Keiichiro and senior officials from Japan’s Ministry of the Environment at its office in Tokyo, Japan, to explore avenues for deeper collaboration on shared global challenges, including climate change, biodiversity conservation, and desertification. Given the longstanding engagement between ITTO and the Japanese government, both parties agreed on the importance of enhancing cooperation in these critical areas, amongst others.
In the short term, ITTO expressed interest in jointly organizing events at major upcoming global forums, particularly the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9) in August and the 30th UN Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Belém, Brazil, in November. These events will serve as platforms to promote sustainable tropical forest management and nature-based solutions to global environmental challenges, a major area of interest to the Ministry and the ITTO.
An additional point of discussion was the potential for collaboration between ITTO and Japan’s Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM), bolstered by ITTO’s accreditation to the Green Climate Fund (GCF). By aligning efforts, both parties see potential in leveraging financing to advance sustainable forest management, carbon sequestration, and climate mitigation strategies.
Discussions also highlighted ITTO’s engagement in several key international environmental agreements and with many international organizations. ITTO has Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with the Rio Conventions and CITES, and through its membership in the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF), works closely with CPF members on forestry-related matters.
Furthermore, the meeting addressed the importance of enhancing forest productivity and efficiency as a nature-based solution to pressing global issues, including global warming, food security, and biodiversity conservation. Recognizing tropical forests' essential role in sustaining ecosystems and livelihoods, the discussion underscored the need for innovative and integrated approaches to sustainable forest management and biodiversity conservation.
The meeting reaffirmed the strong relationship between ITTO and Japan’s Ministry of the Environment and set the stage for enhanced cooperation in addressing global challenges through sustainable forest management.