Future Earth is an international research collaboration platform with a mission to accelerate the flow towards a sustainable society through research and innovation. It was proposed at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development in 2012, and its activities began in 2015 with a 10-year plan.

As of October 2021, 40 institutions are participating in the Future Earth Japan Committee, including ICLEI Japan, various universities, research institutions, foundations, companies, and non-profit organizations.

With UNFCCC-COP26 taking place in Glasgow, UK, in 2021, the movement towards a climate crisis is more active than ever, including among many young people around the world. Future Earth, which aims to promote collaboration and cooperation between science and society, discussed with ‘multilateral and diverse generations’ the future direction of global society, with a view to a decarbonized society and how to tackle the critical situation of the global environment, symbolized by the Anthropocene.

Togo Uchida, Executive Director of ICLEI Japan, participated in Section 2 (Future Earth and the Anthropocene – Considering the past, present, and future of the Earth and human society) and gave a lecture on local governments’ management in the Anthropocene era.