Selection Committee Chair Prof. Shigeto Sonoda

This is my third time reading application documents as the chair of the Selection Committee. As I wrote previously, I feel that people in charge of selecting projects have become very experienced in recent years, which has resulted in them having stringent selection criteria. Notably, they tend to be tough on the proposals that are similar to those that have been selected before, wondering why they did not show differences from the previous ones. Consequently, the projects they selected were all quite unique.
As in previous years, we called for proposals on any of the five themes below.

(1) Creation of an environment for maximizing the skills and potential of foreign talent
(2) Minimizing gaps among foreign residents in their access to information
(3) Examination of human and other resources in support of the care and support systems for foreign residents
(4) Attracting skilled human resources from abroad
(5) Lessons from insights and experiences gained through Japanese companies’ overseas operations

The proposal submission period was from September 2 (Mon.) to November 16 (Sat.), 2024. Approximately 100 people participated in two online briefing sessions that we held using Zoom on September 12 and September 18. While that number remains unchanged, prior consultation was sought regarding roughly 30 projects, a 1.5-fold increase from the previous fiscal year.
The total number of registered projects increased from 90 to 102. In the end, 59 project representatives applied for grants, which is an increase of five from FY 2023.
The median amount requested by the 59 applications was 9.99 million yen (with a minimum of 1.05 million yen and a maximum of 10 million yen), with slightly less than half of the applications requesting 10 million yen. This fiscal year, however, projects with relatively small requested amounts ended up being selected as I will explain later.
Looking at the attributes of the representatives, the number of university researchers increased from 17 in FY 2023 to 25, which accounts for 42% of all applicants. While the number of NPO/NGO staff members also increased from eight to 12, the increase in applications from university researchers in the last several years has been more remarkable.Last year, I pointed out that the number of selected projects related to (4) and (5) had increased. This trend continues, but we have also seen an increase in the number of applications related to contemporary issues, such as the use of AI, depopulation, gender, and disaster risk reduction, as well an increase in the number of projects that cross fields. This has made it difficult to judge which one of the themes (1) to (5) is applicable, which created issues for Selection Committee members.

The POs first reviewed the application documents and removed those that were incomplete or did not meet the prerequisites, and then three members of the Selection Committee read all applications carefully. After reading the applications, to conduct the selection process carefully, the Selection Committee members put questions to the representatives of candidate projects, using their answers for reference.
A meeting of the Selection Committee was held on January 30, 2025, and the committee decided to award grants to the following seven projects. The number increased by one from six last year because three projects that requested around 5.0 million yen each were selected.
Below I will briefly introduce the selected projects and the comments made at the time of the Selection Committee meeting.

D24-MG-0007 Takeshi Tsuchiya, Director, International Partnership Center
“Development of a "Cultural Interpreter Training Model" to Support Companies Collaborating with Foreigners: Creating a Platform to Connect Overseas and Local Communities”
This proposal is related to themes (1) and (2). The project is aimed at fostering “cultural  interpreters” by connecting companies and other organizations in Aichi Prefecture, where the  applicant organization is based, and organizations sending human resources, universities and other  entities in Indonesia, It was highly evaluated by the Selection Committee for being a down-to-earth  proposal with sufficient measures for cooperating with companies. We hope that this project will  cover wider areas beyond Indonesia-Japan relations.

D24-MG-0012　Tazuko Nishimura, CEO, KOTONOHA Learning Co., Ltd.
“Creating a Safe and Supportive Environment for Highly Skilled Foreign Professionals and Their Families in Japan: Article Outreach and Research-Based Educational Material Development”
This proposal is related to themes (1) and (4). Aimed at ensuring highly skilled foreign professionals and their families can live with peace of mind, the goal of the project is to identify issues in their everyday lives and healthcare and then enable professionals in healthcare and welfare who are taking care of them to propose institutional reforms to local governments and other entities. While there was an opinion that the project’s ultimate goal is a bit vague, it was highly evaluated by the Selection Committee for its focus on the healthcare system.

D24-MG-0017　Kiyoto Tanno, Professor, School of Humanities, Tokyo Metropolitan University
“Establishing a method for calculating the costs of implementing Japanese language education programs for foreign residents in local governments and creating a sustainable support organization”
The proposal is related to theme (2). The project aims to calculate the costs related to Japanese language education programs, which is needed mainly for seeking the sustainability of the programs. While it is unknown what effects this calculation will bring about, we selected it hoping that, in the future, it will positively affect the policy decisions of local governments which are in charge of managing Japanese language education programs.

D24-MG-0020　Maho Hadano, Secretary-General / Board Member, Door to Asylum Nagoya
“Analyze case studies of companies that employ refugees and create work experience opportunities for refugees”
This proposal is related to theme (1). The project plans to improve the employment environment of refugees living in the Tokai area. Its goal is to analyze cases where refugees obtained employment opportunities and sharing information about these cases externally, thereby increasing the number of partner companies hiring refugees. The Selection Committee highly evaluated the project for its having been advanced steadily with the intent to strengthen its cooperative relationships with companies. This is the only one proposal that was granted previously.

D24-MG-0032　Kota Abe, Representative Director, General Incorporated Association Pantanal
“Development of schemes for coexistence between foreign workers and local communities in depopulated areas”
This proposal is related to theme (1). The goal of the project is to apply the lessons learned in the activities to develop multicultural communities in Tosa City, Kochi Prefecture, and other depopulated areas. Partly because this project has already been started, the proposal was highly evaluated for its practicality. On the other hand, depopulated areas vary in terms of their industrial structure and financial conditions. Therefore, the Selection Committee requests the applicant to exchange ideas with people implementing similar projects in other depopulated areas.

D24-MG-0037　Sachiko Nakano, Lecturer, International Student Center, Yamaguchi University
“Developing and Implementing Disaster Prevention BCP for Companies Employing Foreign Workers: A Cross-Cultural Psychological Education Approach to Transform 'Understanding' into 'Action' through Disaster Preparedness Plans and Training”
The proposal is related to theme (2). The goal is to have companies employing foreign workers formulate disaster prevention BCPs and develop and implement practical disaster preparedness training. While the project involves issues such as how to implement cross-cultural psychological education by critically evaluating previous attempts, the project was highly evaluated for its focus on the fishing industry and its applicability to other industries.

D24-MG-0054　Namiko Matsushita, Professor, Faculty of Global and Regional Studies, Suzuka University
“Applying Lessons from Japanese Companies in Dalian to the Acceptance of Highly Skilled Migrants: Policy Recommendations for Enhancing Public Education Standards”

This is a proposal related to themes (4) and (5). It is an attempt to study the 40 years of history of Japanese companies in Dalian City, Liaoning Province, and provide the lessons and knowledge it gains there to local governments and other entities that want to hire highly skilled human resources, etc. However, FDI in China has changed greatly during those 40 years, and it is unclear what lessons and knowledge will actually be gained at present.

As I pointed out at the onset, the Selection Committee members recommended a variety of projects this fiscal year, and it was hard for us to reach a consensus. The content of the applications varied greatly. This also means that there were no eye-catching proposals that the Selection Committee members found outstanding. In recent years there has been an increase in the number of applications focused on highly skilled human resources. While solid proposals are valuable, it is also necessary for applicants to present new visions which will go beyond current institutional frameworks.
Generally, in a research grant application, the applicants will claim the novelty, significance, feasibility and other benefits of their research plan by critically evaluating previous research. I hope future applicants will fully explain how their projects differ from ones that have been implemented by other operators, NGOs, NPOs, and other entities, and tell us how their project will be innovative. If these explanations are provided, the Selection Committee members will be more confident in choosing the applications to be granted. 
Admitting that it is hard to write an application with a big vision while addressing a concrete real-life problem, I expect more applications will be submitted by those who desire to proceed with their projects with support from the Toyota Foundation, hopefully by non-academicians from a variety of backgrounds.