「龍郷町リーフチェックチームリーダー・チーム科学者養成講座」に参加しました！

こんにちは！修士1年の今宮です。

12月に奄美大島龍郷町にて開催された、「リーフチェックチーム科学者養成講座」に参加したので報告いたします。

(かなり時間が空いてしまいました)

・リーフチェックチーム科学者養成講座

　サンゴ礁の健康状態を調査するリーフチェックですが、その実施には「チーム科学者」と呼ばれるデータの信頼性を担保するメンバーが必要となります(リーフチェックについては7月のブログをご覧ください)。今回の講座は龍郷町におけるリーフチェック推進にむけて、チーム科学者を増やそう！という取り組みになります。

講習の始まりです！

　講義では調査対象種の説明やその目的、見分け方がレクチャーされ、習ったことを実際に海に出て実践する時間も設けられました。講習生はダイビングショップの方や漁師さんが多く、皆さん的確に魚を見分けていて流石でした！

リーフチェックサミットで使用した模擬海底が再登場！！

　講座は3日間に及び、最終日は講習生のみでリーフチェックにトライ！ドキドキでしたが、なんとかスムーズに実施することができました。その後学科テストを経て、、無事全員合格！！安心です。次回からは沢山活躍するぞー！

コーディネーターの安部様から認定証をいただきました

・ごはん

　奄美グルメとして有名な鶏飯、実は食べたことがなく、、！今回ついに実食しました。他にも鶏刺し丼や鶏皮餃子など、鶏肉多めの生活を楽しみました。

鶏飯丼、優しいお味でした！

・その他

　宿泊先の近くのビーチを散歩していたところ、ハートに見えるタイドプールを発見したので最後に載せておきます。

かわいいです

Exploring Tradition, Culture, and Science on Amami Island: Memories & Reflections from Amami Symposium 2024

(English follows Japanese)

10日前に海から陸に戻ってきたMiyaです〜 

去年11月に奄美シンポジウム（正式名称: 「亜熱帯Kuroshio研究教育拠点の形成と展開事業・市民参加による海洋総合知創出手法構築プロジェクト合同シンポジウム」←長いですね…)に初めて参加させていただきました。主催者と参加者の両方の立場で参加できたことは、私にとって非常に豊かな経験でした。デザイン、登録、カメラマンとしての仕事など、様々なサポート業務を通してスキルを磨き、一方で講演を聴いたり、ポスター発表「アワビの貝殻が黒潮と親潮の変動を記録するアーカイブとして」（図１）を行うことで、科学的な知識を深めることができました。

図１: 奄美大島の高校生と教師にポスターを発表している私。

このシンポジウムで特に印象に残ったのは、産・官・学が連携し、「business-as-usual」（現状維持）を超えて取り組んでいる様子でした。特に、クジラの保護活動、JACの環境保全ツアーの取り組み、JALが旅客機を使って生物多様性をモニタリングしている取り組みなどに感銘を受けました。また、与論島の学生たちと再会し、奄美大島の学生たちとも交流することができ、こちらも素晴らしい経験でした。学生からの「良い質問の仕方をどうすればいいのか」という質問は、聴衆から多くの反響を引き出し、私自身も好奇心、批判的思考、そして勇気について深く考えさせられました。

このシンポジウムを通して、奄美と沖縄の豊かな文化への繋がりが深まりました。私は、長年、元ちとせさんや中孝介さんなど、奄美出身のアーティストを通じて島唄に魅せられてきました。本物の島唄を聴くことは、深く感動しました。少し不思議かもしれませんが、私の母の故郷である中国の一つの少数民族であるペイ族の「大本曲」を思い出させました。おそらく、どちらも自然からインスピレーションを得て口承で伝わる伝統であるため、島唄を聴くたびに、私は「故郷」を感じましたかもしれません。環境省の則久雅司さんの、「21世紀の人類には、奄美・沖縄の文化が必要だ」に関する発言は、私にとって深く共感できるものでした（図1）。地球環境問題が深刻化する中、伝統的な生態学的知識（TEK）は、人間と自然が共存していく上で欠かせないものとして注目されています。特に、奄美や沖縄、そして私の国の少数民族が持つTEKは、現代社会の消費主義や自然への過度な利用に対する、貴重な考え方や生き方をもたらしてくれるはずです。これらの文化を大切にし、広めることで、持続可能な社会の実現に貢献できると考えています。島唄や大島紬など、奄美や沖縄の文化がまだユネスコ無形文化遺産に登録されていないのはなぜでしょうか。これらの文化が世界に広く知られ、認識・促進されることで、より持続可能で、多様性に富み、公正な世界に貢献できると考えています。ただし、文化の盗用には慎重であるべきです。伝統的な知恵を現代の科学と融合させることで、人間と自然の調和のとれた関係を築くことができるはずです。

図２：「21世紀の人類には、奄美・沖縄の文化が必要だ。それが何なのかを探せ！」

今後、奄美島で研究を行いながら、地域の人々と交流し、科学と文化を融合させることで、地域の活性化に貢献したいと考えています。そして、地域の方々にも研究に参加していただき、研究者と地域が一体となって研究を進めていきたいです。最後に、今回の奄美での素敵な思い出を写真にまとめましたので、ぜひご覧ください。

図3：奄美の思い出。A：シンポジウム会場で見つけた、奄美の女性の刺青「ハジチ」に関する本。 B：空港で見つけた奄美紬のピアス。 C：宿泊先の近くで見つけたアダン。 D：初めて奄美三線を弾いてみた時の笑顔。 E：シンポジウムの受付での笑顔。 F：JACの飛行機に乗る前の笑顔。 G：帰りのJAC機内で笑顔。

[ENGLISH]

Coucou~ This is Miya who just returned to the land from the ocean 10 days ago~

Last November, I was honored to participate in Amami Symposium 2024 (the super long full name is "Implementation of the Subtropical Kuroshio Research and Education Center for Evaluating the Japanese Environmental Changes and Ecosystems in Anthropocene"😂), both as an organizer and a participant. , It was an incredibly enriching experience for me. Supporting tasks like design, registration, and working as a cameraman honed my skills, while listening to the lectures and presenting my poster, “Abalone Shells as an Archive for Kuroshio and Oyashio Variability” (Figure 1) deepened my scientific knowledge.

Figure 1: Me presenting my poster to high school students and teacher from Amami Island.

The symposium deeply impressed me with the collaborative efforts between industry, government, and academia to move beyond “business-as-usual”. I was especially inspired by whale conservation efforts, Japan Air Commuter (JAC)’s ecotourism initiatives, and Japan Airlines (JAL)’ biodiversity monitoring using passenger aircraft. On November 16th, reconnecting with students from Yoron Island and engaging with Amami Island students was equally rewarding. A student’s question, “How can we ask good questions?” left a lasting impression, sparking a lot of response from the audience, as well as my personal reflection on curiosity, critical thinking, and courage. 

The symposium deepened my connection to the cultural richness of Amami and Okinawa. I have been drawn to shima-uta (local folksongs in Amami) for many years through contemporary artists from Amami Islands like Chitose Hajime and Kousuke Atari. Listening to authentic shima-uta was profoundly moving, reminding me of “Daben Qu,” a Bai ethnic narrative art from my mother’s culture in rural China. Perhaps because both are nature-inspired traditions passed down orally, listening to shima-uta always gives me a sense of belonging and home. Mr. Masashi Norikazu’s remarks on the importance of Amami and Okinawan cultures in the 21st century resonated deeply in me (Figure 1). Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) is increasingly recognized as crucial for human-nature coexistence amid global environmental challenges. I believe Amami, Okinawa, and ethnic minority communities in my home country hold valuable TEK that offers alternatives to mainstream consumerism and nature domination. We must rediscover, preserve, and promote these cultures to counterbalance unsustainable societal values. I also wonder why these cultures of Amami and Okinawa, such as shima-uta, oshima-tsumugi, and hajichi, are not yet registered as UNESCO intangible cultural heritage. I suspect that these cultures may not be widely known within Japan, and I wonder whether registering them could help with their preservation and awareness. Personally, I think we can contribute to a more sustainable, diverse, and just world by recognizing and promoting these cultures while being cautious of cultural appropriation. Furthermore, integrating traditional wisdom into modern scientific practices can help us restore the balance between humanity and the environment.

Figure 2: “Humanity in the 21st century needs the cultures of Amami and Okinawa. Explore what that means!”

In the future, I hope to conduct research in Amami, engage with local communities, and contribute to area revitalization through bridging science and culture. I also aspire to involve citizens in my scientific endeavors, strengthening the connection between researchers and community. At last, I would like to present a collage of the pictures that highlights some of my favorite memories in Amami during this trip. Please enjoy :)

Figure 3: Collage of my trip to Amami. A: A book on hajichi (traditional tattoos worn by women in Amami) I found at the venue of the symposium. B; Amami-tsumugi earrings I found at the airport. C: Adan I found near our accomodation. D: Happy me trying Amami shamisen for the first time. E: Happy me at the reception of the symposium. F: Happy people before boarding JAC’s plane back home. G: Happy people on JAC plane back home.

Better Late Than Never: A Throwback to the R/V Mirai MR24-02 Research Cruise (March 2024)

哈咯～ D1のMiyaです！It’s February 2025, and I’m finally writing about a cruise that happened in March 2024. Why now? Because I’m heading on another one next week and, and instead of packing, I’m reminiscing. Call it procrastination or call it "mentally getting into the ocean zone"—either way, here we are.

The Struggle is Real (But Temporary)

Last March, I boarded JAMSTEC’s R/V Mirai (未来, "future" in Japanese) for my second-ever research cruise. We set off from Mutsu, Aomori, drilled 6-meter piston cores from the Chishima Trench (~6000m deep) near the Kuril Strait, and ended in Shimizu Port, Shizuoka, next to the legendary Chikyu (地球, “Earth”)—IODP’s deep-sea drilling vessel.

The first five days? Rough. Literally. I had just said my last goodbye to my grandmother in Beijing, was running hourly water sampling solo, and was severely sleep-deprived while trying to instruct others on something I was still figuring out myself. Large waves, constant motion, and self-doubt hit all at once. But as the days passed, I found my rhythm.

Finding Joy in the Deep

The moment I started getting along with everyone, and leaning on my shipmates for support, things shifted. I wasn’t just surviving—I was enjoying it. The student-led workout sessions every night became a mental health lifesaver (even some professors joined in!). Watching "Deep Blue" while the ship rocked in a storm was surreal. The footage of penguins stumbling on land after returning from sea had me laughing way too hard—because honestly, I could relate.

Watching documentary among the waves~ (I feel lucky that I didn't get seasick)

There was also a magic show performed by a fellow student (who happens to be a semi-professional magician), spontaneous chats with professors, students, and the crew from マリンワーク and 日本海洋事業, and deep-dive lectures on turbidites and contourites that rekindled my love for sediments. (I had drifted away from sedimentology after working on Antarctic sediments for my bachelor's thesis, shifting to seawater and then abalone shells—but this cruise reminded me why I loved it in the first place.)

Another super fun thing is I experienced using mouth to suck out some water in from the top of the pilot core to let the flow begin. I tried it once and accidentally drank a little bit of seawater from >5000m! How amazing!!! 

Oh one more thing, the first split of the piston core is like teppanyaki (if you know what I mean)

Water Sampling as Main Job, Sediment Subsampling as Side Job

This time I am in charge of water sampling. We only collected pumped up water of surface ocean with no CTD. Surface seawater is pumped into the vessel from the bow and can be collected from a faucet in the laboratory. Water sampling and discharging from the stern is done constantly so that local seawater can be sampled in real time. We sampled samples for dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) at 72 sites and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and particulate organic carbon (POC) at 14 sites. 

During my free time, I helped with core splitting. Playing with mud is so much more fun than staying up all night for water sampling! Not that I don't enjoy water sampling at all :p Or maybe, it's because there were so many people helping with sediment core splitting and chatting with them was fun.

Captain’s View & Learning to Lead

Since I was the only person doing water sampling, I had to track the ship’s location, speed, and direction to decide my sampling frequency. That meant I had the privilege of visiting the captain’s room multiple times—easily the best view on the ship.

Most importantly, I grew a lot on this journey. I learned that asking for help isn’t a weakness—it’s a skill. Learning when to take responsibility on myself and when to delegate tasks is a skill I still have to polish. 

Group photo at the beginning of the cruise (when I didn't know anybody on board)

Group photos at the end of the cruise (when I knew almost everyone on board). I was late for the first one where more people were in :p

What’s Next?

I once dreamed of working on Chikyu and even got accepted for a part-time job last year with マリンワーク, but then could not end up going since my residency in Japan caps work at 28 hours/week. Boarding Chikyu also requires helicopter evacuation training, where they drop a full-scale helicopter into a pool, flip it upside down, and make you escape. For several times in various scenarios! Sounds wild, but I still want to try someday.

Despite the struggles, the exhaustion, and questioning my life choices mid-waves, ocean science keeps pulling me back. The adventure, the unknown, and the deep-sea secrets make it all worth it. For now, I’m gearing up for my next cruise—hopefully with a little more sleep, a little more balance, and just as much excitement. I will bring ukulele this time heehee 🌺

Until next time—
Bon voyage! 🚢💙🌊

Jumping again!

P.S. Here are more information if you wish to learn more about this cruise~

If you want to see interesting stories of what happened on board, please check out my Instagram story archive.

If you want to learn more about the science on board, please check out the cruise report.

The Amami symposium - A little personal report

Hi zusammen, 

this is Ida an exchange student from Germany, currently doing a research internship at AORI.

This is a timy little report about my participation at the Amami symposium held in November this year at Amami Oshima. The symposium brought together scientists and local people and consisted of various speeches, a panel discussion, and a poster presentation. The poster presentation featured 12 scientists and 8 students from a local high school presenting their research.

As this was the first symposium I participated in, it felt like a great setting to gain some initial experiences, meet people in this field of research, and gain insights into research in Japan. Although I’m learning Japanese, my comprehension is still quite basic, and especially in the scientific context, it’s definitely まだまだです. 

Although I experimented with Google Translate, I had some difficulties following the content of the speeches. Depending on the person speaking, and especially on the amount of text on the slides, it was sometimes easier, sometimes harder to follow.  Even though I would always agree that slides shouldn’t contain too much text, in this case I was quite happy about full slides, which I could translate using Google Lens ;) Additionally, I gained some confidence on the second day and was able to talk to some of the speakers after their speeches, to get a mini-English summary and the opportunity to ask some questions, which was a great opportunity.

In the beginning, I was quite intimidated talking to new people due to my lack of experience regarding cultural and social rules in this new setting, my basic level of Japanese and the fact that a lot of people seemed to know each other already. After the first day, a joint dinner, and a little boost in self-confidence, I got to talk to more people on the second day and had the opportunity to also talk to some local people like, for example, a woman working for the local newspaper. I really like the idea of bringing local people and scientists together, and I wished I could have talked even more to people from Amami. 

 

The poster presentation went well and ended up being quite lively. Preparing the poster in advance already taught me a lot about how to structure and present my own scientific ideas. On the first day, the explanation of the poster was mostly in English, and it felt like a good practice to talk about research with new people. It got better with each time presenting, and I’m grateful that I was able to have the experience in this setting without much pressure. On the second day, we presented our posters again in front of some of the high school students. This again challenged my Japanese skills, but it was a lot of fun, and with a lot of Katakana English Japanese, some help from a very kind English teacher, and some laughs we got there in the end. I think the vocabulary I was missing the most might have been 放射性炭素 (radiocarbon). I can recommend looking up some basic words in advance, but even without, it somehow worked out and we got to laugh a lot.

 

On both days, we went to a joint dinner together. For me, this was one of the most impressive experiences. The culture of eating out and drinking together after work was already a new experience for me as a non-Japanese student. Especially impressive was getting to hear the島歌 (island songs) accompanied by traditional local instruments, the 三線 (a three-string instrument), and even being able to try the instruments ourselves. We were highly recommended to learn to play the 三線, as you’re supposed to be able to learn it in only one month. The local food was amazing too, and even being vegetarian there was plenty of different flavorful food to try.

During the symposium, we also got to talk a little bit about the organization and brainstormed on how it might be possible to make the event even a little more diverse in the upcoming years. I really like the idea of holding the symposium in Amami and therefore making it accessible to local people and especially high-school students. I would have been interested to hear even more the perspectives of local people in the speeches (e.g., about topics like: ‘How has climate change affected Amami in the last few years?’ or ‘How to find a balance between tourism and preservation?’). However, I might have also missed parts of that due to the language barrier. I think it is essential as s scientists to learn from local people and focus on incoporating a local and culturaly sensitive perspective. 

I was also wondering how far it might be possible to invite more women as speakers to create a balance between women and men speaking. If possible, I think it would be great to encourage even more young students to participate too, as I think this is a great setting to gain first experience, get some first contacts, and receive feedback on one’s own work. This might change the dynamics a little bit but could make exchange between different groups of people and approaching new people a little easier, as it could mix up the group dynamics a bit. As diversity in (natural) sciences is a topic that I’m also very interested in, I would be very interested to brainstorm together and think of different possible approaches.

At the end this trip also helped me to get to know some new people and grow closer to friends I knew already before. I got the best teachers for revising kanji and explaining Japanese grammar and even found somebody who would run into the ocean together during a warm rainy day. I would like to thank everybody who participated, organized and contributed to this event and who made this experience possible. It was a pleasure to participate, and I’m glad I got the opportunity to have had this experience.

Amami Symposium - Short Report

Hi! This is Ryuu!

I joined the Amami Symposium in November. This was my first time attending the Amami Symposium and my first visit to the Kagoshima area. We first flew to Kagoshima airport and stayed there overnight before flying to Amami the next morning.

On the way to Amami from Kagashima Airport

The local climate is warm and humid, making me feel like I'm back home. It's also worth mentioning that the lush greenery of subtropical plants against the evening sunsets along the coastline is also a delight!

Asani Beach on Amami Island

The sunset near Amami City Ohama Seaside Park

During the symposium, I listened to many researchers as well as professors presenting, and I had a lot of feelings. One of the things that struck me was the concept of locally-centered cooperation between industry, schools, government, and local people, which was introduced in the symposium. I think events such as these will benefit multiple parties. In addition to that, I've also heard that this symposium is the first time that local high school students have been included in the program. This will also help local students broaden their horizons and stimulate their research interests.

Amami Symposium site

As a graduate student at the University of Tokyo, I'm currently studying the specific causes of the northward shift of the Kuroshio-Kuroshio mixing zone by tracking the dynamics of the ocean currents through carbon 14. This study is also closely related to Amami, which is located in the Kuroshio basin. I hope to interact more closely with the local community in my research in the future.

That's all about my trip to Amami Symposium this time. Thanks for your time reading this blog!

与論高校・大槌高校・古仁屋高校サイエンスキャンプ

　「海と希望の学校 in 奄美&三陸」プロジェクトの一環として与論高校・大槌高校・古仁屋高校合同のサイエンスキャンプが7/29-31に開催されました！与論島・大槌町・奄美大島から12人の高校生たちがAORIに集まり参加しました。自分たちで採取した水や土壌、レンガのサンプルを誘導結合プラズマ発光分光分析装置や蛍光X線分析装置などを用いて分析を行いました。本記事では三日間にわたるキャンプの様子をお伝えします。

AORI見学

　AORI所長・兵頭先生がネコザメやカブトガニなどさまざまな海棲生物の飼育室を案内してくださいました！

実験の様子

　サンプルをこぼさないように慎重に作業しています。実際に自分たちで手に入れたものですから実験にも力が入ります。

　見知らぬ分析機器の説明に興味深々の様子です。

 

　出力された実験結果を前にしてどう解釈してストーリーを作ればいいか頭をつきあわせる三人。文殊の知恵を発揮したいところです。

　途中、息抜きに「水利き大会」が開催されました。3種類のコップの水がそれぞれ軟水か硬水かを当てるというもので、富士山の天然水、コントレックス、エビアンがエントリーしていました。コントレックスは一つだけ硬度が極端すぎて苦虫を潰したような味がしました。また、普段飲んでいる水と一番近いものを選んでもらったところ、大きく地域差が出たのが印象に残っています。

研究発表会

　どの班も発表の直前まで資料作りやリハーサルを続けていました。その気概に圧倒されるばかりです。

　それぞれの町役場や先生方とリアルタイムでつないでの発表でした。たくさんの大人たちが見守ってくれています。

　最後はそろって集合写真。緊張から解放されてみんないい笑顔です。三日間おつかれさまでした！

本郷キャンパス巡り

　AORIのある柏キャンパスから本郷キャンパスまで移動しました。

　東京大学副学長の矢口先生にお話をうかがいました。私たちもお会いするのは初めてのことで新鮮な心持ちでした。

　本郷キャンパスのAMS（加速器質量分析計）を見学しました。この分析機器は特定の元素の同位体を検出するために使用されます。5階建ての建物にすっぽり入ってしまうほどの大きさです。

　今回のサイエンスキャンプでは去年までと違い、複数の高校から生徒さんが来てくれました。発案から成果発表まで研究の流れを学ぶだけでなく、バックグラウンドが大きく異なる相手と同じプロジェクトを進行させる方法についても大きく得るものがあったのではないかと思います。TAである私たちにとっても学ぶところが多かったです。また来年も成功させたいですね。