CV
Kazuki's Profile
Dr. Kazuki (Kaz) Kagohashi is a Professor in the Faculty of Global Liberal Studies at Nanzan University, Japan, and an Honorary Senior Lecturer at the Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University (ANU). He is also an Associate Research Fellow at the Nanzan University Institute for Social Ethics, where he has led the “Social Resilience” research project since 2015, and has served as a Board Member of Global Landcare since 2021.
An ecological economist, Kaz pursues two main lines of research: community-based institutions that sustain human–nature relationships, and the comprehensive valuation of nature beyond monetary metrics. His 2024 monograph, Mizu to Daichi no Kankyōgaku: Jizoku Kanōsei no Ne o Motomete (Environmental Studies of Water and Land: In Search of the Roots of Sustainability; Kōyō Shobō), brings these themes together.
Kaz received his Ph.D. from Kyoto University in 2012 with a thesis examining, both theoretically and empirically, drought adaptation in Japan during the 1990s. He then held positions as a postdoctoral fellow at the Nanzan University Institute for Social Ethics and as a research fellow at the Graduate School of Economics, Kyoto University. He was a Senior Lecturer at Nanzan University from 2015 to 2018 and has taught sustainability studies in the Faculty of Global Liberal Studies since 2018.
In 2016, he received the Young Achievement Award from the Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies (SEEPS) for “The Effects of International Trade on Water Use” (PLOS ONE, 10(7), 2015), co-authored with Tetsuya Tsurumi and Shunsuke Managi.
Education
2006-2012
PhD
Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies, Kyoto University, Japan
I completed my PhD thesis, "Sustainable Water Management in the Drought-prone Areas" (supervisor: Prof. Kazuhiro Ueta). I analysed the effectiveness of water sharing and traditional knowledge in the pond irrigation system in Japan (Sanuki Plain) toward drought.
2004-2006
M.A
Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies,
Kyoto University, Japan
I was specifically interested in water resource management in the Pacific islands, as water is a critical natural capital in times of climate change. This interest led me to visit Tuvalu, one of the most vulnerable countries to sea level rise, and I submitted a thesis on sustainable water resources management in the Pacific islands.
2007-2014
BEc
Faculty of Economics,
Kyoto University, Japan
I studied environmental economics as an undergraduate. I wrote a paper on the theme of waste management. Specifically, I compared different municipalities (Nagoya and Kyoto) to examine the cost-effectiveness of waste management.
Professional Career
Professor, Faculty of Global Liberal Studies, Nanzan University
June 2026 - present
As a Professor in the Faculty of Global Liberal Studies at Nanzan University, Kaz teaches courses on sustainability and economics, including Introduction to Sustainability Studies, Sustainability and Economic Systems, Sustainability and Social Systems, and Economics B, and contributes to the faculty’s Introduction to Global Liberal Studies lecture series. His teaching combines lectures with active-learning exercises.
Honorary Senior Lecturer, Fenner School of Environment and Society, ANU
June 2026 - present
I am continuing my research on Landcare in Australia as an Honorary Senior Lecturer at the Fenner School of Environment & Society, ANU.
Visiting Fellow, Fenner School of Environment and Society, ANU
September 2023 - May 2026
I was on sabbatical from September 2023 to February 2025. I had a great opportunity to proceed with my research on Landcare in Australia as a Visiting Fellow at Fenner School, ANU.
Board Member, Global Landcare
2021-present
I have been part of Global Landcare as a Board Member, which aims to "encourage globally, adoption of the Landcare approach to the management of the natural environment and enhancement of livelihoods, by supporting community owned and led approaches to the protection and sustainable management of land, water and biodiversity resources."
Associate Research Fellow, Institute for Social EThics, Nanzan University
October 2019 - present
This is a concurrent position at Nanzan University for me. I am currently leading a research project on social resilience at the Institute for Social Ethics, which aims to examine the trade-off between the objects of "sustaining a society" and "increasing individual well-being" in times of adversity such as disasters, climate change, droughts, biodiversity loss and so on.
Associate Professor, Faculty of Global Liberal Studies, Nanzan University
October 2019 - March 2025
I teach sustainability studies at the Faculty of Global Liberal Studies. The faculty is highly interdisciplinary, and I collaborate with my colleagues in the courses of sustainability studies, who have backgrounds in environmental ethics and forest ecology.
Associate Professor, Institute for Social Ethics, Nanzan University
April 2018 - September 2019
As an associate professor at the Institute for Social Ethics, I led the social resilience research project with Dr. Michael Seigel.
Assistant Professor, Institute for Social Ethics, Nanzan University
September 2015 - March 2018
I led a research project on social resilience. One of the highlights was that I could be part of the steering committee and organised the 1st International Conference of Landcare Studies, Nagoya, Japan, in collaboration with Australian Landcare International.
You can download the conference report:
Global Resilience Through Local Self-Reliance - The Landcare Model (2018)
Research Fellow, Graduate School of Economics, Kyoto University
April 2015 - August 2015
I participated in a research project on natural capital management.
Project Research Fellow, Institute for Social Ethics, Nanzan University
April 2012 - March 2015
This was my first position after I received my PhD. I was part of the environmental governance research project, which Dr Michael Seigel was leading. Through participating in this project and organizing several national/international workshops, I realised the importance of landcare. I also started to get in touch with Landcare in Australia.
Reports are available: