Overview

Japan is committed to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050. This has been complicated by the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident which has raised concerns about ensuring the country’s energy security in the coming decades. As a result, Japan is now facing the great challenge of meeting its energy demand while at the same time achieving its ambitious long-term mitigation targets. The choices Japan faces now include whether to focus more on cutting its energy demand or relying more on decarbonising on the supply side, how to generate electricity, and what types of technologies to use.

Japan 2050 Low Carbon Navigator (Low Carbon Navigator) was developed jointly by the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) and the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES) with various support from domestic experts, the 2050 Pathways Calculator Team at the UK Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC), the British Embassy Tokyo and the Ministry of the Environment of Japan.

The Low Carbon Navigator is built on the modelling framework of the UK 2050 Pathways Calculator. The UK Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) published the first 2050 Pathways Calculator in 2010. Since then, it has been used as a practical tool by policymakers, academia, the business sector, the general public and teachers at schools to help explore the various options on how the UK can best meet energy needs while achieving the ambitious 80% GHG reduction target by 2050. Over the past three years, another five national or regional 2050 Pathways Calculators were developed in China’s Mainland, Republic of Korea, Belgium (Wallonia region), Taiwan and India.

As a pathway simulation tool, the Low Carbon Navigator allows users to develop their own pathway combinations to achieve emissions reduction and ensure energy security based on available resources, technologies and behavioural changes. This transparent and handy tool can help answer the fundamental questions of how the energy system can evolve over the coming decades and its impact on GHG emissions, energy security, energy mix for electricity generation and related costs.

The Low Carbon Navigator helps everyone engage in debates about the energy choices we will have to make to meet our 2050 carbon target. It can also be used as an education tool at schools and universities and for the communications with the business sectors and the general public.

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