Qualifications
Ph.D (Area Studies)
Personal/work Web page addresses
https://www.hss.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/archives/professors/18674
Background
2009-2022 Osaka Sangyo University (Visiting Lecturer, Lecturer, Associate Professor)
2022- Nagasaki University (Associate Professor)
Research
- Anthropological research on bananas
- Interdisciplinary research on epilepsy “nodding syndrome” in Africa
- Research on human-animal relationships in hippotherapy
The country/countries where you work currently
- Uganda, Japan, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, Taiwan
Five MOST IMPORTANT/INTERESTING recent publications
- Robert Colebunders, Joseph Nelson Siewe Fodjo, Olivia Kamoen, Luís-Jorge Amaral, Amber Hadermann, Chiara Trevisan, Mark J. Taylor, Julia Gauglitz, Achim Hoerauf, Yasuaki Sato, Katja Polman, María-Gloria Basáñez, Dan Bhwana, Thomson Lakwo, Gasim Abd-Elfarag & Sébastien D. Pion 2024. Treatment and prevention of epilepsy in onchocerciasis-endemic areas is urgently needed. “Infectious Disease of Poverty” 13-5.
- Odani Shingo, Tanaka Keisuke, Kitalong Christopher, Yin Nwe Yin, Komatsu Kaori, Sato Yasuaki, Kitanishi Koichi, Shikata-Yasuoka Kagari 2023. A Regional history of Oceania viewed through the genealogy of banana cultivars of Japan and Palau. “People and Culture in Oceania” 38:17-33.
- 佐藤 靖明(2022)「ウガンダにおける遺伝子組み換えバナナと農民の受容」『アフリカ研究』101: 35-47.
Yasuaki Sato 2022. Farmers’ receptiveness to genetically modified bananas in Uganda: In relation to the landrace diversity and variety selection practices. “Journal of African Studies”, 101:35-47. (in Japanese) - 佐藤靖明・池谷和信（2020）「人類とバナナ」『ビオストーリー』34:6-11.
Yasuaki Sato and Kazunobu Ikeya 2020. Humankind and bananas. “Biostory” 34:6-11.(in Japanese) - 佐藤靖明・池谷和信(2020)「バナナから見た地球―『３つの波』の人類誌」『ビオストーリー』34:32-33.
Yasuaki Sato and Kazunobu Ikeya 2020. The earth viewed from bananas: An anthropology of “three waves. “Biostory” 34:32-33. (in Japanese)
Message
One of my fields is ethnobiology, which deals with the relationships between people and plants or animals. In particular, I am interested in bananas as a global crop and food, examining their cultivation, use, and classification in different regions as well as their genetic diversity. Through this research, I illustrate the world created by the relationship between humans and bananas and highlight our situation in the modern world.
My other specialty is African area studies. In particular, in Uganda of East Africa, I research the causes of “nodding syndrome,” a spacial form of epilepsy, and how to care for its patients and patients families. As epilepsy as a whole is widespread worldwide, it is also linked to the challenges of humankind.
These research questions cannot be solved in a single segmented field. I approach planetary health through a “holistic understanding” of the regions through fieldwork.