Global COE Program in Ehime University

The core department of this COE stronghold, Center for Marine Environmental Studies (CMES), Ehime University , has been found in 1999. It was designated as a “Center of Excellence for Interdisciplinary Studies on Environmental Chemistry” and has been provided with several research programs such as the 21^st Century COE program , and its creative and pioneering achievements on education and research has been recognized by several research institutions within and outside Japan.

The CMES consists of five units working on Coastal Oceanography, Environmental Chemistry, Ecotoxicology, Aquatic Biology and Ecology, and Marine Geology. The above research efforts in CMES has been very much enhanced from the year 2002, when the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Japan established “The 21^st Century Center of Excellence Program (COE)” equivalent to top ranking world standards in research and education in Environmental Sciences, at Ehime University under the leadership of Prof. Shinsuke Tanabe. Our research activities have gained the 8^th place in the Thomson ISI citation ranking of the academic publications in 2003 (Environment/Ecology) and usually ranked around 10th position in the same before and after of this year and obviously obtained the top place in Japan, since the citation ranking has started in Japan. During the period of 21^st Century COE Program, we have published 2,047 papers in academic peer reviewed journals and international/national conferences. With these excellent academic achievements in this period, Prof. Shinsuke Tanabe received the internationally highly reputed prize “The 2005 SETAC (Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry) Founders Award” and ten other professors of CMES also received honors and awards from various Japanese academic societies, righteously indicating the high quality research and other activities of our COE.

As one of the most concrete appraisals of our research and academic activities, we requested for the evaluation by eleven reputed keynote speakers participated in the last International Symposium on “Pioneering Studies of Young Scientists on Chemical Pollution and Environmental Changes” held at Ehime University in November, 2006 and some excerpts of those comments are given below:

I believe your program is one of the top 2 to 3 programs in the world in ecotoxicology and is unique in that exhibits excellence in environmental chemistry as well as physiological and molecular toxicology. Your es-BANK is today a major worldwide resource, that will only grow in value over the coming years.
The coverage of the topics fits well with the word “pioneering studies” that is relevant for the COE program. No doubt that it is truly pioneering. The presentations of the students were highly professional and this certainly shows the amount of training that they have undergone.
It was clear to me that they (young scientists) are conducting cutting-edge research and giving presentations suitable for international symposia anywhere in the world. The CMES should be very proud of the achievements of its young scientists and their laboratory leaders.
I think I am most impressed with how you are so clearly dedicated toward helping ‘set the stage’ for the next generation of talented younger scientists from Japan and around the globe to make a important impacts on various aspects of the environmental challenges that face us now and into the future.
You have created a world-class institution that is conductingvery important research on the impact of various chemicals and other “stressors” on the environment. Your scientists are publishing at a very impressive rate in the best environmental journals, and the quality of the publications is extremely high.

All these activities and achievements in CMES and comments from outsiders clearly indicate that our team has a potential to establish interdisciplinary stronghold of Environmental Chemistry in Asia and to make this Global COE program a grand success.

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