Authorship：Lead author   Language：Japanese   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

Based on analysis of the articles published in the Japanese Journal of Environmental Education since its launch in 1991, this article illustrates the characteristics and challenges of environmental education research in Japan, with reference to the role of Kowgai education research, one of the two pillars of the history of environmental education in Japan. This article finds that the Journal is skewed against Kowgai education, non-positivist methodologies and qualitative methods. It is also argued that these issues are related to each other, and that drawing on the past and the present Kowgai education research is significant for the sound development of environmental education research in Japan.

Authorship：Lead author   Language：Japanese   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

Language：English   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the contributions of the Asia-Pacific region to leading practice in sustainability in higher education (HE), as prelude and orientation to this special issue collection from different countries and regions.
Design/methodology/approach: This is a critical review that includes international and regional policy contexts in sustainability and "education for sustainable development" (ESD), whilst exploring the trajectories of key initiatives across the region and considering the broader context of sustainability innovation within the HE sector.
Findings: The Asia-Pacific region offers many creative initiatives and shows considerable progress in ESD and in understanding the learning dimensions of sustainability. At the same time, it mirrors global trends in that further work is needed to promote systemic change in educational arenas, particularly in terms of strategic integration within HE institutions. The Asia-Pacific contributions to this collection demonstrate the need to harness national policy, to develop local and regional initiatives and to work effectively towards more profound change in HE curricula and through collaboration with external communities and stakeholders.
Originality/value: This is a distinctive collection of new initiatives from the Asia-Pacific, which compensates for the comparative lack of dissemination in this area. There is considerable sustainability innovation emerging in this region which shows leading-edge responses from within the HE sector on a number of key challenges and issues.

Authorship：Lead author   Language：English   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

Purpose : The purpose of this paper is to review key developments and the role of governmental support in the field of education for sustainable development (ESD) in higher education in Japan.
Design/methodology/approach : This is an analytical review paper on policy and practice, using an evaluative perspective to consider developments, challenges and prospects for ESD in higher education in Japan and the significant drivers for existing and ongoing activities.
Findings : This paper reveals the significance of the initiatives taken by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and the Ministry of the Environment for the development of ESD in Japanese universities. Government policies and funding supports have been critical, but the current dependency on them also poses a significant challenge for the continuous development of ESD in Japanese higher education institutions over the longer term. Analysis suggests that encouraging leadership development for sustainability amongst university executive staff members is critical to continuing and strengthening efforts in this area in Japanese higher education.
Originality/value : Although environmental education and awareness is well developed in Japan, the engagement of higher education with the more inclusive field of ESD has been less well researched and documented. This review foregrounds the distinct historical platform for ESD in Japanese higher education and the strength of government support, to examine the role of these drivers for ESD and to inform understanding of sustainability efforts in higher education worldwide.

Authorship：Lead author   Language：Japanese   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

Authorship：Lead author   Language：Japanese   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

Authorship：Lead author   Language：English   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

This article examines the historical development of environmental education (EE) in Indonesia with emphasis on the non-formal sector, and applies its findings to the discussion on education for sustainable development (ESD), which seldom draws on case studies from developing countries. Local socio-economic and political conditions have made EE in Indonesia similar to `ESD' in terms of its topical scope involving various social issues, although whether it should be referred to as ESD remains unclear. In contrast to the existing concerns about ESD, it involves critical views on the prevailing models of (neo-liberal) economic development. This article also shows that EE, like ESD, is at risk of exploitation by vested interests.

Authorship：Lead author   Language：English   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

The rapid expansion of the Indonesian pulp industry has caused considerable environmental problems. Some argue that the state and the industry have addressed this issue rather successfully through technological amendments and effective civic involvement without hindering economic growth, which could be described as a path towards ecological modernization. However, the problems caused by Indorayon, Indonesia's first pulp and rayon company, show that this path can neglect the social aspects of sustainable development, without fully respecting the political rights of the local people, even after the end of authoritarian rule. In both the Suharto and post-Suharto periods, the state and Indorayon successfully prevented the civil society movement from making effective claims relating to their environmental concerns through oppression and a 'scientific' discourse emphasizing the economic and environmental aspects of the factory operations. Recognizing that such efforts have resulted in long-lasting social conflicts, this article illustrates the limit of the impact of democratization on environmental policy making in Indonesia, and the difficulties in using ecological modernization as a policy guideline for a sustainable society in the global South.

Authorship：Lead author   Language：English   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

The Japanese government provided various political opportunities for non- governmental groups and individuals in Japan to `jointly propose' policy on education and sustainable development at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg, 2002. These opportunities resulted in the emergence of the Japanese education for sustainable development (ESD) movement, and the crystallisation of a broader proposal that led to the initiation of the UN Decade of ESD (2005–2014). In this paper, we trace the history of these two outcomes, arguing that the opportunities, developed through the coordination of non- governmental groups by government, took place within, rather than broadened or confronted, the government's scope of interests. While the paper illustrates how the government's continued support was crucial to the development of the ESD movement and the UN Decade, and the movement has met with considerable achievements thus far (via its collective challenges to conventional education in a sustainability context in Japan), we argue that recognition of the political opportunity structures that affect the movement's further development remains crucial. In particular, we argue for close attention to the significance of a corporatist framing of this emerging civil society movement in Japan by the national government, and call for further political and historical analysis of ESD movements and their relations with government, around the world.

Authorship：Lead author   Language：English   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

Embracing the opportunities provided by democratization and decentralization, the Wonosobo district of Central Java, Indonesia, enacted a local regulation for participatory forestry. The regulation emphasized rights-based political participation and as such entailed significant participation by civil society groups. However, this regulation faced a backlash from the remaining representatives of the old authoritarian state. They demanded a state-created utilitarian-based participatory forestry scheme, emphasizing economic and ecological consequences of participation in an instrumentalist manner. Because of legal uncertainty and the persistence of conventional political culture at the local and national levels, state actors were able to produce outcomes contrary to the established regulation. This article illustrates the importance of differentiating between distinct forms of "participation" in order to understand the political struggles concerning forest management decentralization.

Authorship：Lead author   Language：English   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

The spread of democratic ideas from the late 1980s, along with the development of the democratisation movement, contributed to the quantitative growth of environmental non-governmental organisations (ENGOs) in Indonesia. In addition, the democratisation of formal institutions after the late 1990s facilitated ENGO activities. Importantly, democratisation has also contributed to the qualitative development of ENGOs. Democratic ideas “re-framed" environmental issues, politicising ENGO activities, even before the end of the Suharto regime. Since the late 1990s, democratic ideas have further shifted ENGO strategies to conform more with democratic values and institutions, while stimulating efforts to enhance accountability and representation within ENGOs. It is argued that these developments may enhance the quality of democracy.

Authorship：Lead author   Language：English   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

Authorship：Lead author   Language：English   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

Authorship：Lead author   Language：Japanese  

Authorship：Lead author   Language：English   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

Authorship：Lead author   Language：Japanese   Publishing type：Research paper (scientific journal)  

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Book type：Scholarly book

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