Interdisciplinary research activities have begun at the International Research Institute of Disaster Science, established at Tohoku University, to clarify the reality of the devastating tsunami disaster caused by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and to resolve future disaster prevention and mitigation issues. I would like to introduce what approaches we have taken and what we have been doing in response to this unprecedented complex disaster.

After East Timor became independent in 2002, a dispute arose between Australia and East Timor over the delimitation of maritime areas in the Timor Sea and the ownership of resources. Although the Maritime Boundary Treaty was concluded in 2019 and the maritime area was demarcated, the development of gas fields that span the waters of both countries is to be resolved in the future.

“2023 IMO Strategy on Reduction of GHG Emissions from Ships” , adopted at the 80th Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC80) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) held in July 2023, is a stringent one, calling on the international shipping sector to make greater reduction efforts than ever before. The Planning and Design Center for Greener Ships (GSC) is working on developing ships with advanced environmental performance that comply with these environmental regulations. This paper introduces the development at GSC of ships that achieve carbon neutrality.