PRESENTER.
Dr. Atsushi Watanabe studied geography and earth and planetary science at the University of Tokyo. He worked as a postdoctoral fellow at Nagoya University from 2004 to 2008, and as an assistant professor at Tokyo Institute of Technology from 2008-2018. Dr. Watanabe studied carbon cycles in coral reefs and coastal blue carbon ecosystems and the impact of climate change or local stressors on these ecosystems. Since 2018, he has been working as a senior research fellow of the Ocean Policy Research Institute of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, leading the blue economy and blue carbon policy research. Dr. Watanabe is Director of the Japan Blue Economy Association. He also acts as a councelor of the International Coral Reef Society and a representative of the Japanese Coral Reef Society.