Profiles

in Japanese

Staff Profile

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  Takanobu AikawaSenior Researcher

  Takanobu Aikawa joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2016. Previously he was at Mitsubishi UFJ Research and Consulting and conducted research and consulting on the forestry industry. Spurred by the Great East Japan Earthquake, he began to engage in a variety of bioenergy projects, mainly focusing on woody biomass. From early on, he has paid attention on bioenergy sustainability issues, and since April 2019 he has been a member of the Bioenergy Sustainability Working Group at the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. He holds his master’s degree in forest ecology from the Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University and received a doctorate in agricultural studies on human resources development policy in the forest management at the Research Faculty of Agriculture, Hokkaido University.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, he specializes in bioenergy policies and focuses on research on sustainability of woody biomass, the development of medium to long-term strategies and is also responsible for collaborating with local governments for promoting renewables.

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  Djibeyrou BaResearcher

  Djibeyrou Ba joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2024. His research expertise is in power market operation and power system operation and planning. He received his bachelor's degree in electrical and electronic engineering from Ashikaga Institute of Technology in 2018. Following this, he joined Yokohama National University as a research student in 2018, and received his master's degree in electrical and computer engineering in 2021. In 2024, he obtained a double degree Ph.D. from Yokohama National University and Waseda University through the PEP program. Throughout his master's and Ph.D. studies, he actively participated in various local and international conferences organized by IEEJ and ICEE related to renewable energy and power markets.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, his research focuses on exploring the dynamics of the electricity supply and demand system to facilitate the integration of 100% renewable energy resources.

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  Tomomi HirakamiLiaison Coordinator

  Tomomi Hirakami joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2023. Previously, she worked for Sumitomo Corporation, where she was involved in the OCTG trading business and worked with Japanese steelmakers and global energy companies. She was also in charge of ESG and CO² emission measurement.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, she supports companies, local governments and NGOs to drive their engagement in climate change actions, as part of the Japan Climate Initiative (JCI) secretariat.

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  Emi IchiyanagiSenior Research Fellow

  Emi Ichiyanagi joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2015. She specializes in the German energy policy and citizen participation. She obtained a master's degree in Public and Private Environmental Management at Free University of Berlin.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, her research focuses on Germany's renewable energy and climate change policies and is also responsible for delivering latest news on Japan's current energy situation to the Institute's overseas network.

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  Masaya IshidaSenior Manager, Business Alliance

  Masaya Ishida joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2017 to lead research on the deployment of renewable energy for business activities. Since April 2018, he has been responsible for the activities of Renewable Energy Users Network (RE-Users), a network of corporate energy users aiming to accelerate the procurement of renewable energy, and the publication of the "Renewable Electricity Procurement Guidebook" and the "Corporate PPA Guidebook." He has been a member of the Technical Advisory Group at RE100 since September 2021.
  Prior to joining the Institute, he was Executive Producer at “Smart Japan,” a leading online media in Japan focusing on renewable energy deployment and electric power market reformation. He has held senior positions at several technology information media and internet businesses, including “EE Times Japan” and “Nikkei Computer.” He holds a B.S. and M.S. in Information Engineering from the Tokyo Institute of Technology.

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  Toshikazu IshiharaSenior Research Fellow

  Toshikazu Ishihara joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2021. Previously, he worked for Sanyo Electric, where he took part in the Moonlight project, a government-sponsored R&D project investing in the development of new energy and energy efficient technologies, to develop high thermal load and low emission combustors. He was also responsible for the development of thermal activated heat pump using natural refrigerant and CO² heat-pump water heaters and refrigeration systems. In 2012, he joined NEDO and was responsible for driving energy-saving technology projects in both the industrial and commercial sectors, and managed public offering R&D projects. From 2015, he joined Panasonic Corporation to work on joint research projects on energy-efficient healthy homes, and helped planning mid to long-term R&D projects for energy management aimed to realize a decarbonized and resource-recycling society.
  In 1982, he obtained his M.S. in Energy Conversion Engineering from the Interdisciplinary Graduate School of Engineering Sciences at Kyushu University. He holds a P.E. Jp (Mechanical Engineering) and is a Qualified Energy Manager.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, his research focuses on carbon neutrality in the heavy chemical industry and green hydrogen strategy.

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  Keiji KimuraSenior Research Fellow

  Keiji Kimura joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2013 and assumed his current position from 2022. He is also Associate Professor at Osaka Sangyo University. In 2007, he completed his doctorate course at the graduate school of International Relations at Ritsumeikan University and specializes in environmental economics and renewable energy policy theory.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, his research focuses on renewable energy policies and its institutional challenges and power generation cost analysis. He is also responsible for compiling renewable energy statistics on the Institute’s website.

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  Seiichiro KimuraSenior Researcher

  Seiichiro Kimura (Ph.D., P.E.jp) joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2018. Specializes in cost-benefit analysis, techno-economic analysis with market penetrating simulation in the energy system. He started his career at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in 2004, and was engaged in development of hydrogen energy until 2010. After working for International Institute for Carbon-Neutral Energy Research of Kyushu University, he became an associate at the Matsushita Institute of Government and Management between 2014 and 2018, where he was engaged in research on interconnecting electric power systems with the aim of increasing energy self-sufficiency through its own resources and eventually becoming a nation capable of suppling energy to other countries (energy-exporting nation). He received B.Sc. from Tokyo University of Science, M.Sc. from Tokyo Institute of Technology, and Ph.D. from Kyushu University.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, his research focuses on interconnectors and market design for electricity system reform. He has also been responsible for formulating visualized charts and maps for the Power Supply/Demand and Power Flow of Interregional Interconnections data on the Institute’s website.

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  Mika KudoSenior Researcher / Lawyer

  Mika Kudo joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2016. After graduating from the University of Tokyo, she worked as a law practitioner from 1999. She started her career as a researcher in the Research Office for Judicial Reform of Japan Federation of Bar Associations (JFBA) in 2002 when the Japanese government engaged in the judicial reform from 2001. She was in charge of research on the implementation of Saiban-in (lay judge or jury) system, reform of criminal procedure, law school system, the social impact of increasing in-house counsels, as well as judicial systems and researches in foreign countries related to those issues. While working as a staff attorney for JFBA for over 10 years, she also served in the Civil Legal Aid Division of the Japan Legal Support Center in 2010.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, her research focuses on interconnectors, market design for electricity system reform and the institutional challenges for renewable energy such as offshore wind.

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  Yuko NishidaSenior Manager, Climate Change

  Yuko Nishida joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2017. She specializes in policy making of sustainable development in cities, sustainable architecture and urban planning. Before joining the Institute, she worked for the Tokyo Metropolitan Government on climate policies and international environmental cooperation projects. She has collaborated with C40 cities, the global network of mega-cities committed to addressing climate change, and was responsible for compiling the publication of “Urban Efficiency,” a series of case studies on energy-saving measures for urban constructions. She has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Waseda University and a master’s degree in Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, she is responsible for medium to long-term strategy development and provides support for energy transition projects in the building sector as well as climate change measures for non-state actors such as local governments and the business sector.

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  Mika OhbayashiDirector

  Mika Ohbayashi is Director at Renewable Energy Institute since its foundation in August 2011. Before joining the Institute, from 2010 to 2011, she worked in Abu Dhabi for the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) as Policy and Project Regional Manager for Asia Oceania. Prior to that, she worked at the British Embassy to Japan as Climate Change Project Advisor from 2008 to 2009, and served as Director at the Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies from 2000 to 2008. She started her career in the energy field by joining the Citizens’ Nuclear Information Center in 1992. In 2017, she was awarded the ISES Global Leadership Award in Advancing Solar Energy Policy - in honour of Hermann Scheer by the International Solar Energy Society.

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  Teruyuki OhnoExecutive Director

  Teruyuki Ohno joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2013. He has actively participated in the policy formation of Japan’s climate change measures as a member of national and local governments' committees. Before joining the Institute, he was Director General of the Bureau of Environment, Tokyo Metropolitan Government for three years, covering a broad range of environmental issues including energy, climate change, waste management, pollution control, natural environment, and sustainable development. His notable achievements include the “No Dirty Diesel Vehicle Strategy in Tokyo” which reduced the air pollution and PM emissions, and implementation of Japan’s first Cap-and-Trade Program in Tokyo in 2008, involving the industries and successfully building a grand consensus. His active leadership in promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency led to the formation of the foundation of Tokyo’s energy policy. He is also a serves as part-time lecturer at the University of Tokyo and Board Member of WWF Japan. He received the Haagen-Smit Clean Air Award from the California Air Resources Board in 2014. His publications include "Energy Strategies of Municipality Governments" (Iwanami, 2013, Japanese) among others.

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  Yuri OkuboSenior Climate Engagement Strategist

  Yuri Okubo joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2015 and specializes in developing stakeholder engagement and communication strategies, especially in the areas of coal and steel industry.
  She started her career working for a local NGO in Japan and became an assistant researcher at the Department of Political Science of the University of Zurich, where she was engaged in projects on climate finance and sustainable development in developing countries, which were funded by the European Parliament, the German Federal Environment Agency and UK-based organizations. She joined the myclimate foundation in Switzerland to set up its Japanese affiliation and support the development of a global network.
  She follows domestic coal-fired power policies and related global trends and has analyzed and authored reports including the business risk of new coal-fired power in Japan and coal phase-out in line with the Paris Agreement. Alongside working closely with international partners, she　supports Japan Climate Initiative (JCI) to coordinate climate action messaging and events with non-state actors.
  She obtained a master’s degree in International Relations at Kobe City University of Foreign Studies.

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  Yuichiro OmiSenior Researcher

  Yuichiro Omi joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2024. He completed his doctoral program at the graduate school of law at Hitotsubashi University (PhD). He specializes in U.S. diplomatic history and studied U.S. foreign policy regarding oil and the dollar. He worked as a Junior Fellow at Hitotsubashi University in 2022, and taught courses on the history of international relations and climate crisis. Since 2022, he has been a member of the voluntary group “Realizing Zero Emissions Association (Zero Emission wo Jitsugensuru Kai)”, facilitated by the international environmental NGO Greenpeace Japan. He has been in charge of engaging with local government officials and lobbying lawmakers, and advocated for mandatory installation of solar panels, setting high insulation standards, and increasing greenhouse gas reduction targets by 2030.

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  Tetsuo SaitouSenior Researcher

  Tetsuo Saitou joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2019. He started his career at Fuji Electric in 1971 designing control systems for hydroelectric power stations and electric grid systems, and from 1996 he was responsible for driving EPC for wind power plants. He served as a Board of Director of the Japan Wind Power Association since its establishment in 2001. He joined Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. (J-POWER) from 2007 where he was involved in developing wind power generation business. As the Japan Wind Power Association became a new organization in 2010, he undertook research on the potential of wind power generation in Japan formulating the targets for 2050 and recommendations for achieving the targets on its findings. From 2015, he became a Project Researcher at the University of Tokyo, Institute of Industrial Science, where he dedicated his time on research on maintaining power quality and improvement using wind power forecasting and control functions of wind power plants. Since 2005, he has been a member of various committees related to wind power plants and electric grid systems at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), Ministry of Environment (MOE), Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) and New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), among others.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, his research focuses on solar and wind power curtailment data analysis and interconnectors.

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  Kaori SakagamiSenior Manager, Public Relations & Administration

  Kaori Sakagami has been a conference coordinator since 2002. She has coordinated various levels of conferences, such as inter-governmental, international/regional organizations, and parliamentary groups. Her performed duties are extensive, ranging from promotional activities, event planning/operations, schedule and budget management and organizations of events and exhibitions. She is also experienced in public relations of governmental/organizational campaigns and corporate sales promotion. She has been involved with Renewable Energy Institute since its establishment in 2011. She graduated from Portland State University with a BA in Business Administration (Marketing and Advertising Management).

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  Akihiro SandoSenior Researcher

  Akihiro Sando joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2022. He specializes in environmental and regional economics. Since 2012, as a local resident of Obama Onsen, Nagasaki Prefecture, he has been involved in small-scale geothermal power generation projects led by the local community. From 2014, he took part in the Research Project on Renewable Energy Economics at the Graduate School of Economics at Kyoto University as a post graduate student. From 2018, he carried out research on the economic analysis of carbon pricing as a researcher at the Kyoto Institute of Economic Research (KIER). From 2019, he was appointed as a member of JOGMEC Geothermal Resource Development Advisory Committee (Regional Economy). In 2021, he obtained his Ph.D. in Economics from Kyoto University and wrote his doctoral thesis on "Regional Economic Value-Added Analysis for Renewable Energy Coexisting with Local Communities". He co-authored "22 Jobs to Change the Energy World" (2015) and "Using Geothermal Energy in Harmony with Communities" (2018).
  At Renewable Energy Institute, his main research focus is offshore wind.

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  Hiroshi TakahashiSenior Research Fellow

  Hiroshi Takahashi specializes in public policy and energy policy. He obtained a master’s degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, MA, USA and a doctoral degree from the University of Tokyo, and currently serves as Professor at the Faculty of Social Sciences at Hosei University. His former career includes Deputy Director at IT Policy Office of Cabinet Secretariat, Assistant Professor at the University of Tokyo, and Research Fellow at Fujitsu Research Institute, and Professor at Tsuru University. He has actively participated in the policy formation of Japan’s electricity system reform and renewable energy policy as a member of the Advisory Committee for Natural Resources and Energy, a special advisor to the Cabinet Office and a member of Regulatory Reform for renewable energy deployment. He is the author of "International Political Economy of Energy Transition" (2021, Nihon Hyoron Sha), "Energy Policy Studies" (2017, Iwanami Shoten) and "Market Liberalization of Electric Utilities" (2011, Nihon Keizai Shimbun Shuppansha), among others.

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  Kae TakaseSenior Coordinator

  Kae Takase joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2023. Previously she was Associate Director at CDP Worldwide-Japan, where she was responsible for helping Japanese companies and investors to set science-based targets (SBT), procure renewable electricity (RE100), and disclose TCFD-aligned sustainability information. She worked as a modelling analyst at the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan, the Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth, and Center for Low Carbon Society Strategy under the Japan Science and Technology Agency, built and ran Integrated Assessment Model for Climate Change, Computable General Equilibrium Model, Econometric Model, Energy System Model, bottom-up model for the energy system. She also initiated and conducted pilot projects for 'Pay as You Save' scheme for solar power and other energy efficiency improvement measures in several municipalities. She graduated from Keio University (B.A., M.A.) and the University of Tokyo (PhD). She has also spent a year in Yongin University in South Korea to devote herself to taekwondo and take a break from research.

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  Yuhei TsukamotoResearcher

  Yuhei Tsukamoto joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2023. In 2016, he participated in the United Nations Climate Conference (COP22) and continued to do so in the following years, working as a full time intern at Kiko Network, an NGO in Japan, where he was involved in lobbying activities for climate negotiations and publishing of articles. He received grants from private funds to carry out research on renewable energy procurement and climate-related disclosure at Japanese universities. He then worked as Project Manager at CDP Worldwide-Japan where he supported Japanese companies to disclose environmental information and encourage them to join the UN-backed global campaign, “Race to Zero.” He obtained a master’s degree from Kyoto University Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies.

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  Tatsuya WakeyamaSenior Research Fellow

  Tatsuya Wakeyama (Ph.D.) is Associate Professor at the School of Environment and Society, Tokyo Institute of Technology from 2022. Prior to that he was Associate Professor at Kyushu University Platform of Inter/Transdisciplinary Energy Research. He joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2012, and is Senior Research Fellow since 2018. He specializes in energy scenario analysis with the case of high integration of renewables by using AMPL: A Modeling Language for Mathematical Programming, as well as resource engineering, geothermal energy and geographic information system (GIS). He holds a Ph.D. from Kyushu University on renewable energy potential evaluation by using GIS.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, he commits to the research projects on domestic/foreign grid system managements including interconnectors.

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  Jiyang WangSenior Research Fellow

  Jiayang Wang joined Renewable Energy Institute as Research Associate in 2018 after which he became Senior Researcher and assumed his current position from 2022. He is also Assistant Professor at Aichi Gakuin University. In 2010 he started his research on renewable energy development in China, and in 2013 he joined a project on “Determinant Factors of Dispersed Photovoltaic Installation among China companies” supported by the Chinese government. In 2017 he was a Project Researcher at the Policy Alternatives Research Institute, University of Tokyo, where he worked on multi-model assessment of long-term climate policy, as well as developments in renewable energy in China. He obtained a Ph.D. from Nagoya University in 2017. He specializes in environmental economics.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, his research focuses on energy transition and expansion of renewable energy in China.

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  Romain ZisslerSenior Researcher

  Romain Zissler joined Renewable Energy Institute in 2014. He specializes in studies on the progresses of renewable energy deployment around the world. He is also the lead country contributor for France in the Renewables Global Status Report, a flagship publication of the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21). He obtained a doctoral degree in energy science and engineering at Tokyo Institute of Technology in 2021, and a master degree in energy finance at Paris-Dauphine University in 2012.
  At Renewable Energy Institute, his research focuses on studies on the current global efforts towards carbon neutrality. He is also responsible for compiling international energy statistics on the Institute’s website.

Advisors

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  Norio MurakamiAdvisor

  Norio Murakami joined Google in April 2003 as Vice President of Google Inc., as well as President & Representative Director of Google Japan Inc. and was responsible for all aspects of Google's business in Japan. He became Honorary Chairman of Google Japan in 2009 and retired from Google in 2011 to set up Norio Murakami Office. In 2012, he was appointed to Board Director of Eneres and served as Representative Director from December 2014 through to March 2017.
  Prior to joining Google, he spent five years at the AI Technology Center of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) headquarters in Massachusetts. He was also President & CEO of Northern Telecom Japan (later re-named to Nortel Networks Japan) where he successfully merged and integrated the company with Bay Networks Japan.
  Murakami graduated from Kyoto University with a B.S. in engineering. From June 2014 through to August 2016, he was board member of Renewable Energy Institute. Today he is President of Norio Murakami Office, Professor at Graduate School of Osaka City University, President of Institute for HyperNetwork Society, Visiting Professor at Osaka Institute of Technology, Visiting Professor at Center for Global Communication of International University, and Councilor to Aizu University.

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  Bo NormarkSenior Policy Advisor

  Bo Normark is an Industrial Strategy Executive at EIT InnoEnergy, catalyzing and accelerating the energy transition. He was instrumental in creating the industrial value chain of the European Battery Alliance with a strong focus on sustainability and supply chain topics. He is a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences and Dr.h.c. at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. He has broad experience of the power system and the industrial implications of the energy transition in commercial, public, private, and policy environments. He has previously 38 years of experience in ABB where he served in many managerial roles including global responsibility for High Voltage DC (HVDC), Flexible AC Transmission (FACTS) and High Voltage Cables.

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  Sergio Shigeo KatoSenior Advisor

  After assuming several senior executive positions in Europe and Japan at Ricoh, Sergio Shigeo Kato was appointed General Manager of the Sustainability Management Division in 2015, where he was responsible for developing Ricoh Group‘s decarbonization declaration, driving Ricoh to become the first company in Japan to join RE100, and integrate SDGs values into business, leading the company to adopt ESG-oriented management. Since then, he has collaborated with companies across industries in Japan to resolve social issues related to climate change. He held roles as Co-Chair of the Japan Climate Leaders’ Partnership (JCLP), Board Member of the World Environment Center (WEC) and Board Member of Global Compact Network Japan (GCNJ). He also served as member of the Advisory Panel of Experts on Climate Change established by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and contributed in the launch of the Japan Climate Initiative (JCI) in July 2018.