My name is Marvin Kibalama Bogere, I am from Uganda. My academic background is Forestry and conservation science, and Urban forestry and city greening. My speciality is Urban Forestry and city greening. My passion and doctoral research are about helping cities and Urban places to become greener and more sustainable. I now pursue my Doctoral Degree at the Tokyo University of Agriculture (NODAI).

Uganda, my country of origin is located in the eastern part of Africa, Uganda is blessed with all year round balanced climatic and weather conditions hence named “The Pearl of Africa”. Uganda has magical wildlife animals and scenes that attract hundreds of thousands of tourists a year. Uganda has only two distinct weather seasons i.e. the Dry season and the Wet season. The annual temperature ranges between 16 Degrees to 30 Degrees.

On coming to Japan, I was very surprised by the changing colours of the tree leaves and plants in different seasons of the year, it was completely new to me. In autumn, Momiji (maple) leaves change to red, orange, and brown colours. The Sakura (Cherry Blossom) trees have very beautiful white and pink flowers which are seen in the spring season in most of Japan. I have also discovered a very deep connection between the people and nature - typically trees in Japan.

I chose to study at Tokyo University of Agriculture (NODAI) because of the numerous academic resources it possesses i.e. the well-stocked library, the conducive academic environment, the knowledgeable and experiences professors who teach students. Tokyo NODAI’s Setagaya Campus is surrounded by urban Tokyo areas and that offers me a good research environment to learn more about urban greening.