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The Mitsui & Co. Environment Fund

Introduction to Grant Projects

E-TEC (Environment, Ecology, Economy)

Restoring local seas along the Minamisanriku coastline following the disaster

Activity grant

Project Description

The Great East Japan Earthquake and accompanying tsunami completely devastated the marine resources that sustained the fishing and marine product industry on the Minamisanriku coast, one of the core industries of the region. This project will bring together NPOs, universities, local government, fisherperson organizations, residents and divers in initiatives to assess the environmental conditions post-disaster and regenerate seagrass beds. It will also assess the marine conditions in the 'bounteous seas' of Shizugawa Bay and establish a continous monitoring system, and carry out activities for regenerating seagrass beds and mud flats in production areas in order to assist the curative power of nature in reviving a sustainable fishing and marine production industry.

Fields
Marine resources/foodPreservation of biodiversity and ecosystem
Grant year
FY2011 Activity Grants
Grant term
3 years and 5 months
May 2011 - September 2014
Grant amount
17,240,000 yen
Activity region
The Minamisanriku coast, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan
Surveying the marine environment on the Minamisanriku coast

Overview of the Organization

Ryuichi Sudo, Director
Representative
Ryuichi Sudo, Director
Establishment
2004
Establishment purpose
By the time founder Ryuichi Sudo left his post as professor at Tohoku University's School of Engineering in March 2000, he had been holding seminars on environmental conservation (4-5 times per year) for local government workers, environmental business personnel, and civic organizations, and had provided venues for environmental awareness-raising and support activities including information sharing and exchange meets, and support for green technologies. He went on to serve as a member of various national and Miyagi Prefectural committees, including ones formed by the Ministry of the Environment, carried out research activities with environmental conservationists he had met through seminars and with former students, and supported the activities of exchange students. Leveraging his vast track record of academic study and research results, and a personal network comprising a variety of people, he established E-TEC to carry out initiatives looking for solutions to specific environmental problems. As experts in the environmental problems facing the world, E-TEC aims to carry out ongoing activities to address the root causes of the specific problems facing different regions and the world, in ways such as passing on the knowledge and skills it has cultivated to regional communities and people, and providing support to developing countries based on academic expertise in environmental education and measures practiced in developed countries.
Main area of activity
Miyagi Prefecture
Staff
1 full-time staff member, 98 full members
Annual operating budget
14.12 million yen in 2008, 9.32 million yen in 2009, 15.20 million yen in 2010
Recent activities
Since its establishment, E-TEC has published a monthly newsletter, held seminars once every two months, and carried out various research and conservation activities, and its membership is growing annually. Main activities carried out are as follows:
  • (1) Environmental education for local communities
  • (2) Academic instruction and international exchange activities for overseas students in environmental conservation-related fields
  • (3) Making environmental policy recommendations to governments
  • (4) Holding seminars and lecture presentations for citizens, local government workers, and businesses in environment-related sectors
  • (5) Commissioned research and investigations related to conservation and ecological engineering
  • (6) Publishing and distributing texts on conservation and environmental studies
  • (7) Teaching skills to environmental conservation-related businesses
  • (8) Raising awareness of other global and regional environmental and conservation issues