Shinji is originally from Japan. He earned a Master’s degree in Pomology at OSU and a Ph.D. in international development studies in Japan after running a community development program for four years in the Indonesian territory of New Guinea. He is currently working for the OSU horticulture department as a Faculty Research Assistant in the vegetable breeding and genetics program. Shinji has mostly worked with horticultural crops and related issues concerning the interaction between crops, human activities and the environment. He enjoys observing and capturing the beauty of nature through his camera lens. One of his favorite places in Oregon is the Rain Dance Ranch where nature reveals its intricate relationship with human activities, including agriculture and native habitat restoration efforts.