Arata Katayama is a professor at the Institute of Materials and Systems for Sustainability, Nagoya University, Japan. He received a Ph.D. in Environmental Chemistry and Engineering from Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan, in 1986. After studies and experiences as a faculty member in the School of Agriculture, Research Center for Advanced Waste and Emission Management and the EcoTopia Science Institute in Nagoya University, he has been in the present position since 2015. His research interests are the microbial remediation of contaminated soil and groundwater, compost microbiology, and the bioelectrochemical activation of anaerobic micro-organisms with humic substances for bioremediation and synthesis of resources. He has received the Young Scientist Award of the Japanese Society of Soil Science and Plant Nutrition (1993), the Achievement Award of the Pesticide Science Society of Japan (2000), and the Takeda Excellent Entrepreneur Award (2002).