On July 3rd, the Faculty of Environmental Science and Technology hosted a lecture on water and environmental management in collaboration with the US Department of State Critical Language Scholarship Program (CLS) Summer Online Course. (The CLS Program Summer Online Course was organized by the Okayama University Institute of Global Human Resources Development and runs from June 15th to August 7th.) The lecture was led by Graduate School of Environmental and Life Sciences Assistant Professor NAKASHIMA Yoshitaka and focused on themes such as biotopes, environmental conservation, and the SDGs. 
In the first hour, Okayama University students enrolled in Water and Environmental Management gave presentations on a range of topics, including “biotopes”, “how to test water quality”, and “introducing the firefly project”. 

The lecture was broadcast live from the classroom as well as from the school biotope pond, where Faculty of Environmental Sciences and Technology students donned fishing suits and waded into the pond to explain the various water plants and show the black snails that fireflies eat, as well as other aspects of the on-campus aquatic circulation facility. The CLS students listened attentively to the presentations, nodding and smiling encouragingly, after which they actively participated in a quiz based on the biotope pond plants and aquatic life. 

In the second hour, the CLS students interviewed Okayama University students based on pre-determined questions about the biotope, pollution problems in Japan and the US, water conservation efforts, and other themes related to the SDGs. 

This special lecture not only gave CLS students the opportunity to learn about nature conservation and biotopes in Japanese, but also gave students from CLS and Okayama University the opportunity to think about the importance of nature conservation as they exchanged their ideas. Some CLS students mentioned that they hope to analyze the answers from the interview and use them in a group presentation next week. Even though the course took place online, it became a meaningful opportunity for cultural exchange. 

● CLS program
The CLS program is a US Department of State initiative aimed at encouraging young Americans to become proficient in one of 15 languages, including Russian and Chinese, which have been recognized as critical to America’s national security and economic prosperity. 
Domestic acceptance to the program began in 2010, and the program is run by the American Councils for International Education, a US non-profit organization specializing in international education and exchange.