International Alumnus Masaaki Yamada: Agroforestry Expert
Masaaki Yamada, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (TUAT) in Japan. He is on the faculty of TUAT’s Department of International Environmental and Agricultural Science, in the Graduate School of Agriculture.
Yamada has worked in several different countries, giving him a variety of cultural experiences. Yamada credits this wide-ranging, multi-cultural experience, beginning with graduate studies at UF/IFAS and continuing with his work in Latin America and Asia, with giving him a unique global perspective. He added that such experiences have helped him develop cultural flexibility and tolerance.
Those are important qualities in the modern workplace, either in the business world or the academic setting. Whether conducting research, developing projects that extend academic knowledge to the world’s communities, or teaching tomorrow’s professors and professionals, a truly global perspective allows people to make lasting contributions that benefit others far beyond one’s own culture.
This is certainly true in Yamada’s case. Trained at UF/IFAS as a Ph.D. in agroforestry in the School of Forest Resources and Conservation, Yamada conducts his own research and has worked on cooperative rural development projects in Latin America and Asia. Currently
Yamada is teaching graduate students interested in agroforestry research.
What exactly is agroforestry? It is a land-use pattern very common in tropical
regions worldwide. Agroforestry systems combine traditional kitchen- or market-garden agriculture and backyard animal husbandry, usually a dairy animal or two, with forestry. Trees in these agroforestry systems are primarily fruit and nut trees.
The gardens, trees, and animals co-exist on a small patch of ground immediately surrounding a family’s home, making it an intimate part of a family’s daily life. The land size ranges from an acre or two upwards to enough land for a small working orchard.
In addition to producing food, this common tropical land-use pattern has proven to be an important carbon “sink” that pulls atmospheric carbon out of the air and sequesters it in the soil, helping regulate global temperatures. This may give future generations of decision-makers a way to manage global temperature change at a local level.
UF/IFAS is proud to claim Masaaki Yamada, an alumnus making important contributions on issues with a truly global impact. Yamada, with UF/IFAS training, has launched a successful and important career.
Contact: Masaaki Yamada
