Problems such as climate change and the loss of biological diversity and ecological services (gift from nature) have to be dealt with special care in small islands, because of their small environmental capacity and the signifi cant damages. For instance, coral reefs are tourism resources specifi c to the region, and they also serve as important natural barriers preventing natural disasters, but they are damaged by climate change such as bleaching caused by sea temperature rise, as well as humans activity. Moreover, there are some island regions where national land itself is in danger due to direct and indirect infl uences of climate change.

Regarding renewable energies which contributes to prevent climate change, while measures must be taken to overcome their unstable outputs, there is a great potential in using tremendous energies (wind and fl ood tide power, etc.) existing in the ocean. Moreover, sustainable island economy and politics, which is low-carbon and in harmony with nature, must be sought for through the promotion of ecotourism using tourism resources such as coral reefs as well as the use of cutting-edge environmental technology.

We will host this international symposium in order to examine how a sustainable island keeping in harmoney with environment should be and to send this message to the world, while presenting advanced cases of Okinawa and the Pacific islands as a region with a unique island ecosystem and taking into account the international trend in climate change mitigation and coral reef conservation.

Public symposium [ Place: Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University Auditorium ]
13:00-13:20	Greetings	Nobuteru Ishihara (Minister of the Environment)	Material [PDF 408KB]
		Hirokazu Nakaima (Governor of Okinawa Prefecture)
		Jonathan M.Dorfan (President of Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University)
13:20-14:20	Opening presentation	Rajendra K.Pachauri (IPPC chairman/India) [ presentation title : Prediction of climate change and impact on marine ecosystem ]	Presentation Material [PDF 1,663KB]
14:20-15:00	Talk Show	Eriko Imai (Member of SPEED. Besides performing as a solo artist, she broadens her activities giving lectures and writing) *SPEED: a Japanese vocal dance group

Titles omitted

• 
• 

15:15-17:00	Public debate -Island in symbiosis with nature, how an island country should be / thinking about preventing global warming and protecting coral reefs-
	Presenter	Shiro Wakui (Professor at the Faculty of Environmental and Information Studies, Tokyo City University)	Presentation Material [PDF 1,726KB]
	Panelists	Andrew Skeat (Great Barrier Reef Marine Park General Manager/Australia)	Presentation Material [PDF 9,251KB]
		Elbuchel Sadang (Palau Conservation Society’s Executive Director/Palau)	Presentation Material [PDF 3,853KB]
		Hajime OSHIRO (President of the University of the Ryukyus/Japan)	Presentation Material [PDF 1,597KB]
		Mariyam Shakeela (Minister of Environment and Energy/ Maldives)	Presentation Material [PDF 3,499KB]
		Rika Hiraki (NPO Japan Ecotourism Society member/Japan)	Presentation Material [PDF 3,349KB]

Titles omitted

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
•