Business Plan FY2020
1. Recent situations and new direction
The Institute for Future Engineering (IFENG) will celebrate its bicentennial at the end ofFY2020.
IFENG achieved a business surplus in the fiscal 2013 as a result of management
reconstruction efforts following the organizational reform in the fiscal 2011, including
restructuring of the activities and enhancement in the research management after its
qualification as a public-interest corporation in 2013. The financial situation of theinstitute has since been stable, though with some fluctuations; a surplus is expected in
FY2019. IFENG's position in the GGTTI think tank ranking in the science and technology
area has risen to the fourth place in 2017 and 2018, up from the eighth in 2012-2013, thesixth in 2014, the fifth in 2015-16, and the fourth in 2017-19.
From the fiscal 2015 on, IFENG has been shifting its target from management issues backto the mission proper to a think tank and its enhancement. Activities in the fiscal 2020
will, in line with this, include expansion of research teams and a program forstrengthening the manpower and training of the recently recruited researchers.
IFENG's history and feature have been described as follows:
IFENG, one of the first-generation think tanks in Japan, was created in the period when
the country was facing new and universal problems of environmental pollution and limits
in resources and energy. "Soft science", or science of political decision making, wasproposed 47 years ago as a field to study complex and interdisciplinary problems
concerning social and political issues, involving interactions of humans, society, natureand technology. The activities of IFENG, a nonprofit organization, have been focusedexactly on soft science, particularly on the fields of science and technology as well as
research and development, which was a unique feature in Japan.
The institute has thus developed original methodologies for analysis of social trends,identification of essential issues in society, and development of comprehensive strategy
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to settle them, as well as conception, implementation and evaluation of relevant policies.
These methodologies have proven to be effective in application to policy issues andsocioeconomic problems.

IFENG has recently been extending its activities to include the "mode 3" policy studies,i.e. future technologies involving human and social factors as essential elements. Studies
in these subjects, deeply rooted in the human nature, must be based on insights inepistemology and theory of knowledge. Specific subjects relevant to IFENG's
independent studies include next-generation AI, brain science, genome editing, synthetic
biology and behavioral psychology.

The purpose of the Institute is summarized as follows:
Our research activities start from gaining insights into the developing tendency of scienceand technology and into presages of socioeconomic changes in order to predict a likely
future and its inherent problems and tasks. The goal is to conceive, design and propose
measures for solving those problems by analyzing relevant data with "engineering"
methodologies, thus contributing to advances in science and technology as well associoeconomic development at large. Subjects addressed include desirable social systems,
policy making, identification of long-term and basic tasks along with development ofsystems to address them, preferable product development and service systems, researchand development systems, and implementation of technologies,
More specifically, our research tasks and ancillary works are divided into the following
units: Research Center for Policy Analysis, Research Center for Information andTelecommunication, Research Center for Social Issues, and Programs Related to theGreat East Japan Earthquake. Studies are performed by platforms formed by internal
researchers, which are networked with external experts. Results are released in forms
sharable with the general public as far as possible, for example through social media or2

on websites, in addition to conferences, lectures and publications. The external networks
include Japan Society for Future Research and Japan Society for Research Policy andInnovation Management (IFENG serves as the secretariat), whose activities are closely
related to ours, as well as a number of domestic and overseas specialist groups that havebeen formed in the course of our technology forecast and other activities.
Specific activities are classified into three categories: Commissioned Investigations,
Independent Investigations, and Interactive Research. Within each category, balance iscontrolled between Nonprofit Activities for the general public and For-Profit Activities
for specific parties.
Based on our history and general guidelines for activities described above, IFENG willcontinue and expand the activities since 2015. Particularly, the Interactive Research,relatively inactive so far, will be enhanced in order to "create wisdom for society".
Furthermore, nonprofit Independent Investigations will further be expanded in FY2020
by continuing actions in FY2019. For this purpose, we intend to build up a competentbody with a variety of expertise and thoroughgoing thought, thus consolidating ourknowledge base and diversify our activities, particularly through fostering recentlyrecruited personnel.
A considerable part of activities in FY2020 will be dedicated to the preparation of theIFENG semicentenary slated in FY2021.
2. Business plans for individual categories(1) Nonprofit Commissioned Investigations (N1)IFENG performs investigations commissioned by governmental agencies, local
authorities, foundations and other organizations. The results are to be shared with thegeneral public including the originators.
Our research contracts, usually based on open application, may be either “commissioned”
or “subventionary”. While a commissioned investigation is carried out in accordance withthe specifications by the commissioning party defining the general framework of the3project as well as expected results, a subventionary investigation allows more discretionof the applicant.
Investigation projects are financed either by the commissioning parties or foundations:commissioned investigations are principally supported by government agencies, local
authorities, research institutions, or incorporated foundations, while subventionary
investigations rely on foundations for research promotion.
Activities in think tanks require a great variety of detailed leading-edge knowledge indifferent disciplines. No single organization could cover this entirely with its internal
manpower even for a project fit for its background. We adopt, therefore, a platformnetwork system where our staff works on the platform for the core activities in a project
while peripheral knowledge is provided by networked teams of external specialists. Even
non-skilled works such as questionnaire counting may be outsourced to specialized
contractors on economic ground.
(2) Nonprofit Independent Investigations (N2)IFENG also performs self-financed Independent Investigations on subjects attracting
much public attention. The results are open to public. The Special Earthquake-Related
Project started in FY2011 belongs to this category. Here the process of emergence andrecognition of the social impacts of the quake was compared with that of social response
in terms of time series, in order to explore appropriate social systems requisite for shortand mid-term response measures.
This category has been enhanced from FY2016 on: in addition to original works by ourstaff, a program for training young researchers started in that year, along with efforts tosecure financial resources for the program. Two seminars were opened in FY2017:"Thinking Methodology" for enhancement of the basic techniques for think tank activities,and "Concept of Next-Generation Artificial Intelligence" as an embodiment of "creationof wisdom for society". Similar activities will be continued or expanded further.

4(3) Nonprofit Interactive Research (N3)Interactive Research aims at sharing the results with society and, for new problems
suggested by the results, collaborating with the general public for deepening insights
into them or finding solutions through iterative dialogues.
Activities in this category are thus characterized by sharing research results and tasks,
along with continued dialogues, on an open ground. It is intended to involve the generalpublic in the process towards better understanding of problems.
We think of the digital space as a preferred venue for such interaction. The "Forum" and"Insight" sections in our website typically provide such opportunities for dialogue.
While the Forum is intended for discussion with the public, the Insight is the channel
for presenting IFENG's research results as questions to society and inviting discussions
by registered external specialists. The progress of discussions is made accessible to thepublic by timely disclosure on the website. The "Publication" section of the site
provides IFENG's publications in the past as the basis for discussion, complemented bypublic lectures and printed publications.
Following the enhancement plan started in FY2015, this category will further be
expanded to a more substantial part of the institute this year, for example bycombination with other Nonprofit Investigation projects, along with securing financial
resources and establishing appropriate organizational measures.
(4) For-Profit Commissioned Investigations (F1)This category consists of investigations performed for a specific party, mostly businesscompanies and other organizations that order the investigations. Projects assigned
through open application may also be categorized here if the outcome is unlikely to beshared publicly.
(5) For-Profit Independent Investigations (F2)5An example of Independent Investigations performed for specific parties is consulting
service based on IFENG's knowledge and findings obtained in the past think tankactivities.
(6) For-Profit Interactive Research (F3)This category includes lectures, training courses and publications based on our research
results for specific target groups.

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