University of the Ryukyus

Dean NAKACHI Soushun

The Faculty of Agriculture is the only academic institution in Japan's subtropical zone. The Faculty provides excellent education opportunities and conducts research on global issues like the food and environment problems and local agricultural development. In April 2009, we reconstructed four departments to meet the recent demands and needs of the local community: the Department of Subtropical Agro-Production Sciences, the Department of Subtropical Agro-Environmental Sciences, the Department of Regional Agricultural Engineering, and the Department of Subtropical Biochemistry and Biotechnology.

The Department of Subtropical Agro-Production Sciences provides comprehensive education and conducts research in the fields of agricultural development and production, livestock products, and reasonable usage and circulation of local biological resources in order to establish sustainable agriculture and harmonize nature with agricultural development. The Department of Subtropical Agro-Environmental Sciences provides education and conducts research on the explication and functional control of living organisms related to agriculture and forestry, and environmental preservation and control of the ecosystem in subtropical areas in order to achieve harmony between human beings and the natural environment. The Department of Regional Agricultural Engineering deals with education and research in the field of sustainable recycle-oriented agriculture, which works in harmony with the subtropical island environment, and develops rural space and regional biomass-recycling systems so as to create a symbiosis environment of soil, water, plants, and human beings. The Department of Subtropical Biochemistry and Biotechnology provides education and conducts research in the fields of biochemical properties and functions of traditional and fermented food and bioresources of the subtropical area, and the development of components that can be used for functional foods and supplements to improve human health.

The graduate School of Agricultural Sciences offers Masters' degrees in the disciplines of Bioproduction, Environmental Sciences and Technology, and Biosciences and Biotechnology. We also offer academic courses for developing professional experts. In addition, a doctoral program at the United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Kagoshima University, is open to exceptional students who aim to be professional researchers in advanced agricultural technologies.

In the field of education, academic staff members rely on the results of student evaluation systems to revise and strengthen their teaching designs, methods, and implementation of the curriculum, and to increase students' motivation for learning. The curriculums comprise well-balanced lectures, experiments, seminars, and thesis research aimed at developing professional skills in students; this is highly appreciated by outside organizations. Moreover, we offer high quality career-oriented education, including an accredited program for functional food consultant.

In the field of research, the focus is mainly on the development of agricultural sciences for tropical and subtropical regions. We have significantly contributed to local agriculture and forestry through the development of a sperm preservation technique for the Ryukyu wild pig, an effective application technique for subtropical woody plants, a sugar measurement system for mangos, etc. The results of our research on termites have been published in the famous journal “Science,” and our other research achievements on biodiversity in tropical and subtropical islands and biomass as an alternative energy-source are highly appreciated both nationally and internationally. In the area of social contribution, we have established a new approach for conducting human resource development program related to the Awamori (an alcoholic beverage indigenous to and unique to Okinawa) industry through a collaborative research project among the industry, university and government. Moreover, we are continuing our cooperation with JICA (the Japan International Cooperation Agency) in training program for foreign researchers in the field of effective biomass utilization.