金鲨银鲨_森林舞会游戏-集团平台

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Establishment Background

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  3. Establishment Background

There are many challenges lying in the resource sector, related to rare metals, rare earths, intensifying development competition or technological renovation such as shale renovation. On the other hand, the resource industry faces a shortage of young engineers who can work in the global arena.
For these reasons, calls have been growing louder among resource companies for workers with advanced skills to lead resource exploration and development, and negotiate with resource countries.
Against this background, the Faculty of International Resource Sciences was born in 2014, with the aim of fostering global leaders who can be at the forefront of resource sciences. We pursue cutting-edge studies and research as a center of resource science education in Japan.

International Situation

We cannot ignore the world’s trends surrounding resources, especially since Japan largely depends on imports to meet its energy demand. In recent decades, there have been not a few movements taking place that may affect future energy supply, such as;

  • Arab Spring
    It spread across the Middle East region, which is one of the biggest energy suppliers in the world. Due to its wavering state of political affairs, we need to get a deeper understanding of the religion, people, economy and culture in the area.
  • Russian Invasion of Ukraine
    International sanctions against Russia, which supplied Japan with 10% of its LNG before the invasion, have caused energy-related issues in Japan and around the world, especially in Europe. This event is increasing the move to alternative energies and causing resource stockpiling in vulnerable countries.
  • Shale renovation
    A new technology for extracting oil directly from oil shale (a sedimentary rock contains kerogen) were invented in the United States. This innovation is expected to produce a new global oil market.

Domestic Situation

Japan’s energy self-sufficiency rate is only 12.6%, showing how heavily we rely on imports. Therefore, ensuring a stable supply of resources is vital for us to fulfill a sustainable economic development.

  • Review of energy structure
    Ever since the Great East Japan Earthquake and the subsequent Fukushima nuclear disaster, momentum for re-assessing the national energy structure is growing.
  • Methane hydrate
    Following a ground-breaking discovery of a large amount of deposits of methane hydrate, aka “fire ice”, existing in the seabed of the Sea of Japan, Japan succeeded in producing methane gas from methane hydrate in March of 2013, for the first time in history. This has raised expectations for a new natural gas resource.

Corporate Demand

There is a high demand in the resource industry for highly skilled workers, ready to operate globally.
Causes include:

  • A decrease in the number of students majoring in resource sciences
    From the 1990s onward, many of resource-related university departments in Japan have been integrated or closed, diminishing the number of students who study resource sciences.
  • A labor shortage in the resource development sector
    Because of the surge in global resource consumption, the world needs more workers who engage in resource development. The competition for talent is intensifying, causing issues such as wage escalation.