Hiroshi Nakanishi
Professor
Graduate Schools of Law, Kyoto University

This year, we selected the applications for the third year of the Research Grant Program based on the theme of “Interlinkages and Innovation for Future Society.” Although the main theme is unchanged, this year we omitted the sub-theme of “Reevaluating Social Issues and Forging New Solidarity in the New Normal Era” in the hope that there would be more proposals based on a wider range of issues and interests than before.
Today, we are experiencing unprecedented changes in our social interactions and our interactions with the natural environment as well as in the state of the artificial world that we create using technology. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, over a short period of time, we experienced the shock of a drastic change in the way our society was connected, which we had previously taken for granted. Even though COVID-19 is now treated as a Class 5 infectious disease under the Infectious Diseases Control Law and the bustle of urban areas seems to have returned to its pre-pandemic level, the trend of change has continued. We face numerous issues that cannot be inferred from past experience, which include mounting international tensions on a global scale, the emergence of the Global South, changes in social demographics and attitudes to gender, and the possibilities and challenges arising from the advance of the information society, such as the practical application of generative AI. There is a need to address specific issues even if we cannot find academic or theoretical answers to the questions of what kind of society will emerge in the future or what kind of society is desirable. Based on this perspective, the Research Grant Program places an emphasis on research proposals that demonstrate a desire to disseminate research findings to society, and not only academic significance.

This year, we decided to provide grants to 10 projects out of 100 applications. Although the number of applications fell short of the 130 received in the year before last, it increased from the 82 applications we received last year. The ratio of male and female project representatives is almost fifty-fifty as it was last year, and just under 20% of the applications were in English. We felt that the quality of applications was higher on average and that there was more variety in the fields of study than last year. We were particularly impressed that several studies addressed international issues. We hope that this trend will continue in the future. In particular, we would like to see research proposals based on an awareness that even tackling familiar issues leads to knowledge that can be generalized as well as having a big vision that leads to solving issues on a global scale. 
Below we introduce some of the selected research projects.

D23-R-0028 Yumi Yamanashi (Principal Researcher, Center for Research and Education of Wildlife, Kyoto City Zoo)
"Reconsidering the Relationship Between Humans and Animals in Zoos: Animal Welfare Assessment and Practice"

The concept of animal welfare (AW), which treats the relationship between humans and animals as being more equal, has assumed greater importance in recent years. In light of this, the project will aim to improve animal welfare by examining methods for objectively evaluating the mental state of animals regardless of culture with collaboration between zoos in three countries: Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom.


D23-R-0036 Masayasu Ishikawa (Association Professor, Department of Child Psychology, Faculty of Child Studies, Kamakura Women’s University)
"Effects of Introducing Developmental Support Apps in Schools: A Case Study on 'P-LIN'”

The Japanese government has revised the Outlines of Guidance and Counseling for developmental support for students in schools to emphasize a system based on teams of teachers. This research will develop a developmental support app for the Outlines and measure its effectiveness based on trial introduction in junior high schools with the aim of establishing a new framework for educational support.


D23-R-0026 Mimiko Nakazawa (Associate Professor, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Academic Research Institute, Yamagata University)
"A Study on "Workplace that Truly Promotes Diverse Work Styles": Creating with Robots in the Field of Employment of People with Disabilities"

In view of the current difficulties in communicating in the workplace environment between able-bodied people and people with mental (developmental) disabilities, this project aims to improve workplace communication by recording and analyzing workplace dialogue through the introduction of robotic pets, which have been used in workplace environments.


D23-R-0057 Tomohiro Hara (Lecturer, Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics, Musashi University)
"Building Ethnic Coexistence and Market Opportunities for High-Risk Populations"

In this project, researchers in the field of development economics and practitioners dealing with conflict resolution will work together to determine the extent to which providing vocational training for those members of the ethnic Somali community in Kenya who are at high risk of radicalization can promote ethnic coexistence, with the aim of measuring effectiveness and contributing to wider applications.