Dr. Ryo Kohsaka was born in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan.  He completed a Bachelor’s degree in Rural Development at the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Tokyo, Japan.  After he graduated from the University of Tokyo, he served as Project Officer at the Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe (REC) in Szentendre, Hungary.   In 2000, he was honored as a Life Fellow of REC.  He finished his Master degree in Environment and Development at the University of East Anglia, United Kingdom in 2000, and earned his PhD. degree in Forestry Economics, Freiburg University, Germany in 2004.  After he worked for the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Montréal, Canada from 2006 to 2008, he served as Associate Professor at the Graduate School of Economics, Nagoya City University from 2008 to 2012.  He then served as Associate Professor at the Graduate School of Human and Socio- Environmental Studies, Kanazawa University, Japan from 2012 to 2016. He is currently a professor at Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Tohoku University.

Dr. Kohsaka’s recent books include: “Chiiki Saisei, Gyakkyo kara Umareru Aratana Kokoromi” (Local Regeneration, New Trials born from Adversity) (Iwanami Booklet, Iwanami Shoten Publishers, in Japanese), “Seibutsutayousei to Watashitachi, COP10 kara mirai e” (Biodiversity and us – from COP10 to the Future) (Iwanami Junior Shinsho, Iwanami Shoten Publishers, in Japanese) and “Shitte okitai Chitekizaisan Katsuyojyutsu, Chiiki ga Ikinokorutameno Chie to Kuhu” (Application of Intellectual Property We Should Know, Knowledge and Innovation for Local Survival) (Gyosei Corporation, in Japanese).

Dr. Kohsaka also served as Advisor to the COP10 Support Committee from 2008 to 2010.  In 2010, he attended the International Youth Congress supported by the AEON Environmental Foundation that youths from more than 50 countries joined.  He has made great contributions to the evaluation of satoyama as a Visiting Fellow of the United Nations University.