Rate My Professor Hiroaki Akiyama

Hiroaki Akiyama is a Professor at the Institute of Innovation Initiatives at Wakayama University, where he also serves as Advisor to the President and Director of the Collaborative Education and Research Office. He earned a Bachelor’s degree from the Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Wood Products Engineering at Kyoto University between 1990 and 1994, and a Doctor of Science degree from the University of Tokyo’s Graduate School of Science, Department of Earth and Planetary Science in 2002. His academic and professional experience includes positions at Nishimatsu Construction Co., Ltd. from 1994 to 2003, Akita University from 2003 to 2008, and PD Aerospace Co., Ltd. in 2008, before joining Wakayama University as Professor in October 2008. He has held concurrent roles such as Chief Researcher at the Planetary Exploration Research Center of Chiba Institute of Technology from 2016 to 2024 and Expert Member of the Space Policy Committee in the Cabinet Office’s Space Development Strategy Promotion Secretariat from 2018 to 2024.

Akiyama’s research interests center on solid planets, the politics of space development, and space education. He is affiliated with the Japanese Planetary Society, the Erosion Control Society, and the Astronomical Society of Japan. His teaching includes courses in astronomy, space development, disaster information engineering, and various liberal arts seminars. He has contributed to projects such as the UNIFORM micro-satellite initiative for forest fire monitoring.