Nature-Positive
Nasunogahara Alliance

Nasushiobara City is working to realize the “2050 Sustainable Vision Nasushiobara – Declaration on the Implementation of Environmental Strategy” by promoting “Nature-Positive” urban development that not only protects nature but also restores or creates biodiversity, which is rapidly being lost. To pass on the rich biodiversity of “Nasunogahara” to future generations, we hope that various stakeholders—including companies, NPOs, educational and research institutions, individuals, and local governments both within and outside the city—will utilize this framework. Through collaboration among participants and diverse approaches, we aim to realize “Nature-Positive” together. In addition to Nature Positive, we are also comprehensively advancing initiatives in the fields of carbon neutrality and the circular economy. By pooling the wisdom and resources of stakeholders across various sectors and working together, we may be able to achieve what was previously impossible on our own. We hope that as many of you as possible will participate and help expand this network of collaboration.

Michitaro Watanabe, Mayor of Nasushiobara

National Institute for Environmental Studies The Center for Climate Change Adaptation intends to collaborate with other research institutions to assess the impacts of climate change on multiple sectors—including natural ecosystems, agriculture, business activities, citizens’ lives, and flood damage—through the water cycle in the Nasu-no-hara region, and to work on developing optimal adaptation strategies. Through this research, we aim to contribute to the promotion of Nature Positive in collaboration with various stakeholders in the Nasu-no-hara region, and ultimately to the sustainable development of the region. To put nature-positive initiatives and climate change adaptation into practice, scientific knowledge and information alone are insufficient. We need a forum where stakeholders from diverse backgrounds can understand each other’s perspectives, transcend their respective positions and interests, and collaborate to discuss the best solutions for the region. We hope that the “Nature-Positive Nasunogahara Alliance” will serve as such a forum, and I would be honored to support it in my capacity as the secretariat, however modestly.

Masahiro Akutsu, Chief Coordinator, Climate Change Adaptation Center, National Institute for Environmental Studies

In April 2025, the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) established the Nature Positive Technology Implementation Research Center. By combining AIST’s technological resources, we provide technologies for assessing impacts on biodiversity and natural capital, technologies that contribute to ecosystem conservation, restoration, and monitoring, and the development of data infrastructure related to biodiversity and natural capital, thereby providing scientific and technical support for Nature Positive initiatives. We are honored to have been given this opportunity to participate in the “Nature Positive Nasunogahara Alliance” as the secretariat. Nasunogahara is a region rich in nature, yet there is so much we do not know. We look forward to learning from the local community and providing support in our role as the secretariat.

Tetsuo Yasutaka, Deputy Director, Nature Positive Technology Implementation Research Center, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST)