Strategic Professional Development Program for
Young Researchers
Tokai Pathways to Global Excellence
FY2023 Annual ReportTable of contents
1 Preface3

2. Target People for Training
2-1 Adopted in FY2023

51) T-GEx Fellow
2) T-GEx Associate3) T-GEx Company Associate
2-2 Ended in FY2023

71) T-GEx Fellow
2) T-GEx Associate
3. Development Program
3-1 Transferable Skills

8

3-2 e-Portfolio

9

3-3 Retreat Camp

9

3-4 Research Outcomes Exhibition10

3-5 Role Model Seminar (Experiences in Obtaining External Funding)10

3-6 International Workshop with University of Freiburg

11

3-7 Academic Mentors/Corporate Advisors

121） T-GEx Fellow
2） T-GEx Associate3） Survey of Academic Mentors
3-8 Start-up Research Fund15

3-9 Tailor-made Research Fund15

3-10 Seeds Joint Research Fund15

3-11 Other Support

16

3-12 Questionnaire Survey on Development Programs

16

4. Monitoring
4-1 Attribute List of Adopted T-GEx Fellows

18

4-2 T-GEx Fellows' Track Selection and Goal Achievement Status

18

4-3 Research Results Produced by T-GEx Fellows

191

5. Management Structure
5-1 Implementing Institutions

211) Implementation Structure2) Management Personnel
5-2 Partner Organizations

211) Cooperative Structure2) Project Promotion Committee Members
5-3 Committees, etc.

211) Consortium General Meeting
2) Project Promotion Committee Meeting
3) Steering Committee
4) Working Committee
5) Nagoya University-Gifu University Joint Meeting
6) Regular Meeting
5-4 External Evaluation Committee

24

6. Survey of Advanced Cases Overseas

252

1. Preface
We are pleased to present the FY2023 report of the Tokai Pathways to Global Excellence (T-GEx). This
program began in October 2021, aiming to develop advanced knowledge “groundbreakers” who solve global
challenges. Again, we want to express our gratitude to all those at Nagoya University and Gifu University,
as well as partner academic institutions and companies, who have worked hard to develop the T-GEx
program since its inception. Above all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the T-GEx Fellows
and T-GEx Associates, who have been actively involved in various seminars and events from the planningstage, enriching the work of T-GEx.
With the start of the 2023 fiscal year, five new T-GEx Fellows (one of whom is affiliated with Gifu
University) and five new T-GEx Associates joined the group. Currently, a total of 28 early career researchers
are participating in this program, and T-GEx is rapidly evolving into a "bloc" of excellent early career
researchers in the Tokai region. This year, we introduced a new Company Associate system, and one
Company Associate joined. By having these new Fellows and Associates, the diversity of early career
researchers gathering at T-GEx is steadily increasing, with Fellows choosing the entrepreneurial track andengaging in the launch of industry-academia collaboration activities. On the other hand, several Fellows
have "graduated" from T-GEx by obtaining positions at other universities, and the activities of T-GEx arealso spreading across Japan and the world dynamically through these transfers of young T-GEx Fellows andAssociates.
In 2023, which is the third year of the project, we not only sought to improve events that had alreadybeen held once, such as the Retreat and Research Outcomes Exhibition but also took on new challenges,
such as hosting an international workshop inviting early career researchers from the University of Freiburg
in Germany and a seminar on obtaining external funding. The 2023 Retreat was held in Gifu City with thetheme of "Giving Gifts to Each Other." The number of Fellows and Associates who stayed overnight
increased, and it was an excellent opportunity for them to get to know each other and have in-depth
discussions about their research. We received three applications for the Seeds Joint Research Fund after the
Retreat, and we also called for applications in the spring of 2023, so five applications successfully secured
the finding. The seeds of collaborative research at T-GEx are steadily growing.
This year's Research Outcomes Exhibition was held over the entire day, and new features included shortpresentations and panel discussions. It was a huge success thanks to active participation from partner
academic institutions and companies. At the Retreat and Research Outcomes Exhibition, in response torequests from Fellows and Associates, we provided several opportunities for awards presentations. We
observed that this offered an excellent opportunity for early career researchers to be inspired, such as ayoung researcher from a partner company winning the best poster award at the Research Outcomes
Exhibition. In addition, we offer seminars throughout the year to help build better transferable skills, andwe continue to support the active research engagement of our Fellows and Associates by reviewing andevaluating Start-up and Tailor-made Research Funds applications and setting up and implementing amentoring system.
3

Through these activities, T-GEx has received a wealth of valuable advice on improving our operations,
including the need to establish the T-GEx brand. In FY2024, we are planning to undertake some exciting
new initiatives, such as holding our first External evaluation committee. We are eager to make effective useof the advice we have received so far to continue to enhance our operations. This report will not only provide
a glimpse into the accomplishments of T-GEx Fellows and Associates but also instil a sense of optimism
and anticipation for the future of the program.
June 2024
Tokai Pathways to Global Excellence
Program Manager
Hiroko Takeda

42. Target People for Training
2-1 Adopted in FY2023
1） T-GEx Fellow
The selection of T-GEx Fellows for FY2023 were recruited through public applications from Nagoya
University and Gifu University, with internal selection processes conducted at each university (1stselection), after which the final selection (2nd selection) was made by the Working Committee(Selection and Evaluation Committee). The final selection was conducted through a comprehensive
online interview, and after deliberation, the five new researchers, as shown in Table 2-1-1, wereadopted.
Table 2-1-1 T-GEx Fellows adopted in FY2023
Year of

University

AdoptionName

FY2023

Department
Title

Title of Research Subject

Nagoya Univ. IAR/Bioagricualtural Sciences

Improving plant ability to adapt to a fluctuating nutritional

Fanny Bellegarde YLC Designated Assistant Prof.

environment for a cleaner and sustainable agriculture

Nagoya Univ. Dept. of Integrated Health Science

Factors and social structure associated with social isolation of

Aiko Hoshino Lecturer

people with Severe Mental Illness (SMI)

Nagoya Univ. School of Engineering

Migration-driven Nanoscale Metallic Additive Manufacturing

Yasuhiro Kimura Assisant Prof.

for Metamaterial Fabrication

Nagoya Univ. IAR/Medicine

Integrating genomics and biophysics to develop a new drug forKoyo Tsujikawa YLC Designated Assistant Prof.

tauopathy

Gifu Univ. IAR/Drug Discovery and Medical Information Sciences

Development of artificial cell-type molecular robots to address

Sayuri Higashi G-YLC Designated Assistant Prof.

the challenges of CAR-T cell therapy

The ratio of successful applicants for FY2023 was about five times, which was the same as in previous
years.

2） T-GEx Associate
The T-GEx Associates for FY2023 were recruited and recommended by six partner academic
institutions. After the application documents were reviewed by the Working Committee (Selection and
Evaluation Committee), a decision was made to adopt a total of 12 people, including the five newresearchers shown in Table 2-1-2. The adopted T-GEx Associates were given the status of visiting
researcher at Institute for Advanced Research, Nagoya University, and were given access to thefacilities, equipment sharing system, and library at Tokai National Higher Education and Research
System before their training began.

5Table 2-1-2 T-GEx Associates adopted in FY2023
Year of

Institution

Adoption

Name

Department
Title

Mie Univ. Faculty of Education

Biochemistry, Applied Microbiology, Bioengineering,Shunske Ichikawa Associate Prof.

Enzyme Engineering

Nanzan Univ. Faculty of Economics
Yuta Ogane Associate Prof.
FY2023

Field of Expertise

Theory of finance, Entrepreneurship

Mie Univ. Faculty of Engineering

Artificial Intelligence (Multi-Agent, Auto-Negotiation),

Shun Okuhara Associate Prof.

Educational Technology

Meijo Univ. Faculty of Information
Yusuke Nozaki Assistant Prof.

Hardware Security

National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
Research Enhancement Strategy OfficeObservational Cosmology, Informatics Astronomy

Masato Shirasaki Assistant Prof.

3） T-GEx Company Associate
We decided to start a trial recruitment of young researchers from partner companies (T-GEx
Company Associates) in FY2023. Specifically, we issued a call for applications to the 11 partnercompanies participating in the consortium and requested them to select nominees. The first
application was received in November, and after reviewing it by the Working Committee (Selection
and Evaluation Committee), the decision was made to adopt one new researcher as shown in Table
2-1-3. The adopted T-GEx Company Associates were given the status of visiting researcher at
Institute for Advanced Research, Nagoya University, and were given access to the facilities,
equipment sharing system, and library at Tokai National Higher Education and Research Systembefore their training began.
Table 2-1-3 T-GEx Company Associates Adopted in FY2023
Year ofAdoption
FY2023

Partner Company
Name

Department

Title

NEOREX Co., Ltd. Technology G
Shinya Sugihara Advanced Senior Engineer

Main business and research
System Development, Informatics

6

2-2 Ended in FY2023
1） T-GEx Fellow
The basic training period for T-GEx Fellows is set at five years, but five T-GEx Fellows shown in
Table 2-2-1were ended during FY2023 due to reasons such as changing the post.
Table 2-2-1 T-GEx Fellows who ended their training in FY2023
University

End of Training

Name

Department

Year ofTraining

Title

Adoption

PeriodNagoya Univ. Institute for Space-EarthEnvironmental Research

July in 2023

FY2022

Satoko Nakamura Designated Associate Prof.
Nagoya Univ. IAR/Institute for Space-Earth
August in 2023

Environmental Research

FY2022

Shinnosuke Ishizuka YLC Designated Assistant Prof.
September in 2023
March in 2024
March in 2024

Nagoya Univ. IAR/Medicine
Hirotaka Iijima YLC Designated Assistant Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Dept. of Aerospace Engineering
Daisuke Ichihara Assistant Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Center for Gender Diversity
Naoto Machida Project Assistant Prof.

FY2022

1 year4 months
1 year5 months
1 year6 months

Reasonresignation

resignation
changing the post

FY2022

2 yearschanging the post

FY2022

2 yearschanging the post

In addition, three researchers, Hirotaka Iijima, Daisuke Ichihara, and Naoto Machida, were awarded
Certificates of Outstanding Achievements in recognition of their outstanding activities within the
program.
2） T-GEx Associate
The training period for T-GEx associates is set at least one year to five years, and training for four
people, as shown in Table 2-2-2, was ended during FY2023 due to reasons such as changing the post.
Table 2-2-2 T-GEx Associates who ended their training in FY2023
End of Training
August in 2023
March in 2024

Institution
Name

Department

Year ofTraining

Title

Adoption

PeriodMie Univ. Faculty of Engineering
Shiyu Xiao Assistant Prof.
Nanzan Univ. Dept. of Anthropology and Philosophy
Akira Nakao Associate Prof.

FY2022

1 year5 months

Reasonresignation

FY2022

2 years

self-judgment

FY2022

2 yearschanging the post

FY2023

1 yearself-judgment

Toyohashi Univ. of Technology
March in 2024

Dept. of Mechanical Engineering
Masahito Nishikawara Assistant Prof.
National Astronomical Observatory of Japan

March in 2024

Research Enhancement Strategy Office
Masato Shirasaki Assistant Prof.

In addition, Assistant Professor Masahito Nishikawa was awarded a Certificate of Outstanding
Achievements in recognition of his outstanding activities within the program.

7

3. Development Program
3-1 Transferable Skills
The T-GEx training program organizes and categorizes the various transferable skills acquired by TGEx Fellows and associates as advanced knowledge “groundbreakers” skills framework consisting of six
competencies (“advanced expertise,” “ability to collaborate,” “ability to discover issues,” “ability to grasp
global trends,” “sense of setting the future direction,” and “ability to promote research.”). T-GEx Fellows,
Associates, and Company Associates will improve these competencies through participation in Skill
Booster Modules, research activities, social implementation, outreach etc.
In FY2023, 21 Skill Booster Modules were held. Details are as shown in Table 3-1.
Table 3-1 Skill Booster Modules implemented in FY2023

20-Jun-23

PI development seminar `Grant-in-Aid Strategy Seminar for Early Career Researchers 2023’ Management Skills

18-Jul-23

PI development seminar `Creating a Research Portfolio - Beginner's Guide to Creating a
Website’27-Sep-23

PI development seminar `- How to use SciVal for Researchers - Analyze your own research
Management Skills
results’20-Oct-23

PI development seminar `Consideration of leadership style as a PI’

21-Nov-23

PI development seminar `How to write a "press release" that catches the media's attention' Communication Skills Social Engagement

19-Dec-23

PI development seminar `Methods of Smooth Communication (Part 1) - Considering Anger
Management Skills
Management’PI development seminar `Methods of Smooth Communication (Part 2) – Active Listening

Management Skills

Management Skills

Management Skills

Communication Skills

Communication Skills

Communication Skills

Communication Skills

Management Skills

Communication Skills

6-Feb-24
20-Feb-24

PI development seminar `The basics of patenting for career advancement and why you
should patent your research results’Management Skills

Social Engagement

16-Sep-23

Leadership Program for Researchers2023`Thinking about your career’

Role Model Study

17-Oct-23

Leadership Program for Researchers2023
Management Skills`Deepen self-understanding, leading to understanding of others and mutual understanding’

10-Nov-23

Leadership Program for Researchers2023’Action Plan for Career Development - Step 1’

Management Skills

15-Dec-23

Leadership Program for Researchers2023`Time Management for Researchers’

Management Skills

12-Jan-24

Leadership Program for Researchers2023`Action Plan for Career Development - Step 2’

Management Skills

21-Dec-24

Role Model Seminar `Experiences in obtaining external funding’Management Skills

1-Sep-23

Seminar on Intellectual Property `Regarding the introduction of the Consent System underManagement Skills
the Trademark ACT’

Social Engagement

4-Feb-24- 9-Feb-24

Retreat Camp Project 1：Promoting Beneficial Interdisciplinary Collaborative Research

Networking

Retreat

4-Sep-23
5-Sep-23

Retreat Camp Project ２：Gifts: the research survival guide

Networking

Retreat28-Nov-23

T-GEx Exhibition of Research Achievements 2023

Networking

Communication Skills

8-Feb-24- 9-Feb-24

The International Workshop2023：Overlapping crises and pathways to solutions

Networking

Communication Skills

and Assertive Communication’Ability to promote research

PI development seminar `Design Terakoya for Researchers’

Sense of setting the future
direction

6-Jun-23

Ability to grasp global
trendsJST Strategic Basic Research Programs (CREST, PRESTO, ACT-X) Seminar on Strategy’ Management Skills

Ability to discover issues

Module Classification

25-Apr-23

24-Jan-23

FY2023

TitlesAdvanced expertiseDates

Ability to collaborate

Fiscal Year

Communication Skills

83-2 e-Portfolio
We developed an e-portfolio for T-GEx Fellows as a tool to analyze how they will improve six
competencies of advanced knowledge through participation in the T-GEx program. In the e-portfolio, TGEx Fellows will record 1) the competencies they have improved through their research activities and 2)
the competencies they expect to improve through participating in the Skill Booster Module. In addition,③ the mentoring with academic mentors and corporate advisors were also recorded. These areconstructed so that they can be used as a tool to reflect on overall research activities. In 2023, we verified
the input method for (1), (2), and (3) and asked T-GEx Fellows to actually input the data.

3-3 Retreat Camp
●Date and time: September 4th to 5th, 2023 (Day 1: 9:30am to 7pm, Day 2: 9:30am to 3pm)
●Location: Hotel Resol Gifu
A retreat camp was held for T-GEx Fellows and Associates to understand each other's research content
and the image of researchers, to explore interdisciplinary collaborative research units that can belaunched in the near future and to build a network of T-GEx researchers that can cooperate on apermanent basis. The planning and management of this event was positioned as a task force and washandled by three T-GEx Fellows and two T-GEx Associates.
In 2023, we carried out Project 1, "Promoting complementary and mutually beneficial interdisciplinary
collaborative research," and Project 2, "Advice session on research life concerns." In Project 1,
participants provided feedback to presenters on their research presentations, and presenters thenprovided feedback to participants' comments, which helped to raise consciousness of interdisciplinary
collaborative research. Based on the evaluation results of Project 1, six award winners (four T-GEx
Fellows and three T-GEx Associates) were selected, including the Best Presentation Award. In Project2, participants shared three concerns (student guidance, research funding, and time management) anddiscussed ways to solve them. A total of 22 people participated (21 on-site and 1 online), which deepened
mutual understanding and led to a proposal for a seeds joint research fund.

93-4 Research Outcomes Exhibition●Date and time: November 28, 2023, 10:00-18:00●Venue: Nagoya University, Research Center for Materials Science, Noyori Memorial Hall
Opportunities to disseminate research results, collect and exchange information for researchdevelopment and social implementation, and build personal connections as a part of this initiative, a
research results exhibition was held. The planning and management of this event was positioned as atask force and was handled by three T-GEx Fellows and two T-GEx Associates. The theme of this year's
symposium was " "Transcending the Boundaries of Research Fields," and approximately 100 people
participated.
The first half of the event featured two special lectures (by Professor Sotaro Uemura of the
University of Tokyo and Professor Yasuhiro Oyama of the Open University of Japan), followed by apanel discussion featuring the two professors, T-GEx Fellows, and T-GEx Associates. One memorable
moment was when many participants were taken aback by a comment that "the barriers between fields
don't really exist, but perhaps researchers create them in their own minds." In the second half of theevent, there were short presentations and a poster session on a total of 23 topics, including fivepresented by corporate company researchers. There was a lively and enthusiastic exchange of opinions,and the Best Presentation Award went to Takuya Igashira (DENSO Corporation).

3-5 Role Model Seminar (Experiences in Obtaining External Funding)●Date and time: December 21, 2023, 3:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
●Venue: JR Gate Tower Conference (Nagoya Station)
We chose "Experiences in Obtaining External Funding" as a theme that young researchers can
immediately apply to their own research activities and organized an opportunity for two lectures anddiscussion. This was also positioned as a second role model seminar, and the first speaker was Dr. Akira
Yokoi, a lecturer at Nagoya University Hospital who is a member of the first batch of T-GEx Fellows andhas been successful in obtaining a wide range of large-scale funding from programs such as "FOREST(Fusion Oriented Research for Disruptive Science and Technology)," "AMED (Japan Agency for Medical
Research and Development)," and "Kakenhi (Grants in Aid for Scientific Research)". He shared his
experiences and thoughts on preparation and strategy.
The second speaker was Mayuko Kumasaka, Lead URA of Academic Research and Industry-AcademiaGovernment Collaboration in Nagoya University, who is involved in the operation of T-GEx. She has
many years of experience supporting various applications from researchers in a wide range of fields andspoke about the important points of their preparation.
All of the content was extremely informative, and not only did participants engage in lively Q&A
sessions, but the Working Committee members, Professor Sakakibara and Professor Shima, also provided
very thought-provoking comments and advice, making for a very productive session.

10

3-6 International Workshop with University of Freiburg●Date and time: February 8-9, 2024
●Venue: Nagoya University, NIC, large conference room and small conference room
We held an international workshop with the Young Academy of Sustainable Research (YAS) of the
University of Freiburg, one of the universities visited in 2023 to collect best practices from overseas.
Organizers from the T-GEx Fellows and YAS members jointly planned a program on global issues via
web conference. The participants were 13 people onsite, including 3 YAS members invited to Nagoya
University, and about 7 people online, including from overseas.
The first day began with two-minute self-introductions by each participant, followed by two oralpresentation sessions ("Understanding our environment" and "Sustainable urban development") and aposter session. After the introduction of the session by the moderator, research presentations (10 minuteseach) were performed, followed by time for general discussion. During the poster session, there was acontinuation of the Q&A and discussions that had not been covered during the oral presentation session.
On the second day, we had a lab tour of Nagoya University's Disaster Mitigation Center and ITbM in
the morning. Next, we welcomed Dr. Awaga, Director of the Institute for Advanced Research (IAR) of
Nagoya University, and he spoke about the future grant between IAR and YAS. Afterwards, the third oralpresentation session entitled "Human health and well-being." was held.
Finally, there was a general discussion in a World Cafe format (small groups of 3-4 people discuss the
topic, followed by a moderator summarizing the discussion) on two themes: "Global challenges andregional/scientific specification" and "Early career researchers' difficulties to tackle such challenges." In
the former theme, it was confirmed through discussion that the global issues being addressed areproblems that involve the overlap of multiple fields, and the keywords raised for solving these problems
were "being proactive/engaging/involved/communicating knowledge." In the latter theme, many
opinions were expressed regarding employment instability, research funding, and evaluation, which
proved to be common issues.
Although this workshop was relatively small in scale, it was packed with content over two days andprovided a good opportunity to consider individual research projects from a bird's-eye view, transcending
national and specialized boundaries. The above format (short presentations and longer discussions) was
decided upon after much discussion among organizers in charge of planning and running the event.
Specifically, because the participants were from a wide range of research fields, from humanities andsocial sciences to science and engineering, the priority was to communicate their research in an easy-tounderstand manner in a limited time. Although many of the researchers had plenty of experience giving
presentations in English, they were not used to open discussions, so we incorporated World Cafe format
that allows for casual conversation in small groups. Although the YAS members seemed more used to
discussions than the T-GEx members, the format that allowed all participants to share their opinions
seemed to be effective.

11

3-7 Academic Mentors and Corporate Advisors
1） T-GEx Fellow
In Phase 1 (first year), an academic mentor with expertise in the field is appointed, and in Phase 2(second year), a second mentor is appointed taking into account the training track selected, providing
a double mentoring system. The first mentor is generally decided by the Working Committee, but thementee's preference is also taken into consideration for the second mentor or corporate adviser. We
recommend that Fellows actively appoint an overseas researcher if they are choosing the International
joint research track, a researcher from a different field if they are choosing the Interdisciplinary joint
research track, and a corporate advisor if they are choosing the Industry-Academia collaboration track
or Entrepreneurship track. In FY2023, academic mentors and corporate advisors were assigned to the
18 T-GEx Fellows, as shown in Table 3-7-1.
Table 3-7-1 Academic mentors and corporate advisors for T-GEx Fellows
Year of

Name

Adoption

Institution

Title
Department

Track

Naoki Azuma Assisant Prof.
Nagoya Univ.
Dept. of Micro-Nano Mechanical Science andID

Engineering
Hanako Hagio YLC Designated Assistant Prof.
Nagoya Univ. IAR/Bioagricualtural Sciences
Yuki Hattori Associate Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Anatomy and Cell Biology
Nagoya Univ. IAR/

IN, ID, IA
IN, ID

Nagoya Univ. IAR/Humanities
Matthew Paul Su YLC Designated Assistant Prof.
Nagoya Univ. IAR/Science
Hironao Miyatake Associate Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Kobayashi-Maskawa Institute
Akira Yokoi

Lecturer

Nagoya Univ. Hospital

IN, ID
IN, IDIN

IN

IAIN, ID

Drug Discovery and Medical Information Sciences
Hirotaka Iijima YLC Designated Assistant Prof.
Nagoya Univ. IAR/Medicine
Daisuke Ichihara Assistant Prof.
FY2022

Nagoya Univ. Dept. of Aerospace Engineering

Naoto Machida Project Assistant Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Center for Gender Diversity

IN
ID

IN, ID

Satoko Nakamura Designated Associate Prof.
Nagoya Univ.

Nagoya Univ. IAR/Bioagricualtural Sciences
Aiko Hoshino Lecturer
Nagoya Univ. Dept. of Integrated Health Science
Nagoya Univ.
Dept. of Micro-Nano Mechanical Science andIN
IN, ID

Nagoya Univ. IAR/Medicine

ES

Drug Discovery and Medical Information Sciences

Microbiology and ImmunologyーNaoyuki Yamamoto Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Dept. of Animal Sciences

Kei Yamamoto Chargé de Recherche
Centre national de la recherche scientifiqueHiroaki Wake Prof.

Nagoya Univ. Anatomy and Cell Biology

Nagoya Univ. Anatomy and Cell Biology

Nagoya Univ.
Yukiko Kawamoto Associate Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Dept. of Humanities
Azusa Kamikouchi Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Dept. of Biological Science
Kiyotomo Ichiki Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Kobayashi-Maskawa InstituteHiroaki Kajiyama Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Medicine in Growth and Aging

Yoshiyuki Suto Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Dept. of Occidental History
Lioba Theis University Prof.
University of Vienna（Austria）

ーーー

Tsuyoshi Hirota Designated Prof.
Nagoya Univ.

ーInstitute of Transformative Bio-Molecules
Yoshitaka Itow Prof.
Nagoya Univ.

ーInstitute for Space–Earth Environmental Research
Satoko Takizawa
Senior Manager

ー

Toray Industries

Takashi Mori Prof.

Takamitsu Kato Associate Prof.

Gifu Univ. Faculty of Applied Biological Sciences

Colorado State University（USA）

Yuske Matsui Associate Prof.

Fabrisia Ambrosio Director

Nagoya Univ. Institute for Glyco-core Research

Harvard Medical School（USA）

Hosei Nagano Prof.

Kazuo Osada

Nagoya Univ.

Nagoya Univ.

Dept. of Mechanical Systems Engineering

Dept. of Earth and Planetary Sciences

ー
ー

Prof.
ー

Kenji Hiraishi

Kohei Kozuke

Nagoya Univ.

Nagoya Univ.

Dept. of Psycology and Human Developmental

Dept. of Psycology and Human Developmental

Sciences

Sciences

Nagoya Univ.

ー（France）

Takaki Miyata Prof.

Associate Prof.
ー

Katsuya Hashizume
ーExecutive Officer
Beyond Next Ventures

Hitoshi Sakakibara Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Dept. of Applied Biosciences
Yasuhiro Uemura Associate Prof.
Nagoya Univ.

Nagoya Univ.
Dept. of Micro-Nano Mechanical
Science and Engineering

IN, ID, IA

Sayuri Higashi G-YLC Designated Assistant Prof.
Gifu Univ. IAR/

Nagoya Univ.

Dept. of Micro-Nano Mechanical Science andDept. of Social and Human Environment
Yuki Toku Associate Prof.

Engineering
Koyo Tsujikawa YLC Designated Assistant Prof.

Nagoya Univ.

Institute for Space-Earth Environmental Research

Yasuhiro Kimura Assisant Prof.
FY2023

Keigo Shibayama Prof.

Yoshizumi Miyoshi Prof.
IN, ID, IA, ES

Institute for Space-Earth Environmental Research
Fanny Bellegarde YLC Designated Assistant Prof.

（Name, Title, Corporate）

Kenji Fukuzawa Prof.

Institute for Space–Earth Environmental Research

Kazuki Heishima G-YLC Designated Assistant Prof.
Gifu Univ. IAR/

Corporate Advisor(Name, Title, University, Department)

Kanya Kusano Prof.

Institute for Space–Earth Environmental Research
Ryo Higuchi YLC Designated Assistant Prof.

Academic Mentor 2(Name, Title, University, Department)

Engineering

Hisashi Hayakawa YLC Designated Assistant Prof.
FY2021

Academic Mentor 1

IN, ID

Masahisa Katsuno Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Clinical Neuroscience
Masato Ikeda Prof.
Gifu Univ. Faculty of Engineering

Abbreviations:IN, International Joint Research; ID, Interdisciplinary Joint Research; IA, Industry-Academia Collaboration; ES, Entrepreneurship122) T-GEx Associate
In response to requests from partner academic institutions, T-GEx Associates who wish to have amentoring were also able to assign one academic mentor from FY2023. In FY2023, four T-GEx
Associates from three partner academic institutions requested the appointment of an academic mentor,
and we assigned them based on their requests as shown in Table 3-7-2.

Table 3-7-2 Academic Mentors for T-GEx Associates
Year of

Name

Adoption

Institution

Title
Department

Seine A Shintani Lecturer
FY2022(Name, Title, University, Department)
Hironobu Fujiyoshi Prof.

Chubu Univ. Dept. of Biomedical Sciences

Chubu Univ. Dept. of Robotic Science and Technology

Hideki Tamura Assistant Prof.

Masahiro Hirai Prof.

Toyohashi Univ. of Technology

Nagoya Univ.

Dept. of Computer Science and Engineering
Shunske Ichikawa Associate Prof.
FY2023

Academic Mentor

Mie Univ. Faculty of Education
Shun Okuhara Associate Prof.
Mie Univ. Faculty of Engineering

Dept. of Cognitive and Psychological Sciences
Masaki Kita Prof.
Nagoya Univ. Dept. of Applied Biosciences
Kazuhisa Miwa Prof.
Nagoya Univ.
Dept. of Cognitive and Psychological Sciences

3) Survey of Academic Mentors
In April 2024, we conducted a survey of 27 academic mentors of T-GEx Fellows regarding theachievements of the T-GEx Fellows and their abilities grown, and received responses from 20 of them.
<Achievements of T-GEx Fellows>
The survey in this year did not involve a quantitative evaluation of the level of T-GEx Fellows’activity. But in response to the free text question, "How do you assess the mentee's performancecompared to other researchers of the same generation in your field within your country? (Mentors
in Japan only)", approximately 60% responded with "excellent" (extremely high level, outstanding,etc.), approximately 30% with "very good" (superior, high, etc.), and the remaining 10% with theimpression that their activity is "good." Similarly, in response to the free text question, "How do you
assess your mentee’s performance internationally compared to other researchers of the samegeneration in your field of study?", approximately 25% answered "excellent," approximately 40%
answered "very good," and approximately 25% answered "good," with approximately 5% expressing
the impression that they are "mediocre." From these responses, it can be inferred that while themajority of T-GEx Fellows are performing extremely well domestically, only a limited number ofthem are also performing extremely well internationally, and that many of them have room to further
excel internationally.

13

<Abilities that have developed significantly over the past year>
The abilities that showed significant growth over the course of FY2023 (advanced knowledge“groundbreakers” competencies, up to a maximum of three), are shown in Figure 3-7. “Ability tocollaborate,” was significantly higher than the others and also showed significant growth comparedto the previous year. One possible reason for this is that face-to-face events, which had been limited
due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic until FY2022, were able to be held more frequently in
FY2023, increasing opportunities and motivation for collaboration. In addition, the tendency for“advanced expertise, and “ability to promote research.” to be relatively high has not changed
significantly since FY2022.

Figure 3-7 Greatly developed abilities (advanced knowledge “groundbreakers” competencies)143-8 Start-up Research FundAs part of the support for building an independent research environment in Phase 1, we provided
research funds of up to 500,000 yen per Fellow for research aimed at solving the global issues that thisproject aims to tackle. The research fund can be used according to individual needs. Specifically, a totalof 2.5 million yen was paid to the five T-GEx Fellows adopted in FY2023.

3-9 Tailor-made Research Fund
T-GEx Fellows select their desired track from among five training tracks (international joint research,
interdisciplinary joint research, industry-academia collaboration, entrepreneurship, and extension) andconduct research to solve global issues under this program. As one of the supports for the cultivation ofcollaborative development capabilities from Phase 2, the research funds are provided for the research. In
FY2023, the Working Committee (Selection and Evaluation Committee) reviewed applications for tailormade research funds submitted by T-GEx Fellows and determined the amount to be allocated, up to 3
million yen per T-GEx Fellow per year. Specifically, a total of 35.15 million yen was granted to 14 TGEx Fellows adopted by FY2022.

3-10 Seeds Joint Research FundThe program encourages joint research and joint projects between T-GEx Fellows and T-GEx
Associates and supports their research expenses. The applications from teams led by T-GEx Fellows arereviewed in the Working Committee (Selection and Evaluation Committee), and the selected teams andtheir amounts of grants are decided. From FY2023, the opportunities of application was increased totwice (July and October) to improve convenience. Through the review process, the following five projects(two in the first round and three in the second round) were selected and a total of 2.5 million yen wasawarded.
<Selected Project 1>[Project Leader] Kazuki Heishima (T-GEx Fellow, Gifu University)[Collaborating Researcher] Yuki Hattori (T-GEx Fellow, Nagoya University),
Seine Shintani (T-GEx, Associate, Chubu University)[Research title] Live imaging analysis for the mitochondrial metabolism-associated mechanism ofmetastasis<Selected Project 2>[Project Leader] Yasuhiro Kimura (T-GEx Fellow, Nagoya University)[Collaborating Researcher] Naoki Azuma (T-GEx Fellow, Nagoya University)[Research title] Development of nanoscale hybrid additive manufacturing for mechaless-metalens15

<Selected Project 3>[Project Leader] Aiko Hoshino (T-GEx Fellow, Nagoya University)[Collaborating researcher] Shunsuke Ichikawa (T-GEx Associate, Mie University)[Research title] Developing pilot prevention model for severe mental stress in teachers based on stresscheck in Japan<Selected Project 4>[Project Leader] Aiko Hoshino (T-GEx Fellow, Nagoya University)[Collaborating Researcher] Hideki Tamura (T-GEx Associate, Toyohashi University of Technology)[Research title] Illusory-induced brightness perception in schizophrenia and its application to social
function assessment<Selected Project 5>[Project Leader] Hironao Miyatake (T-GEx Fellow, Nagoya University)[Collaborating Researcher] Masato Shirasaki (T-GEx Associate, National Institutes of Natural Sciences)
Seine Shintani (T-GEx, Associate, Chubu University)[Research title] Preparatory Research for the Development of Dark and Baryon Emulator (DaBE)

3-11 Other Support
For T-GEx Fellows who request space support and are able to secure space, a research space fee isprovided up to a maximum of 50 m2. In FY2023, support was provided to six Fellows.

3-12 Questionnaire survey on training programs
An anonymous satisfaction survey regarding the various skill booster modules and support provided in
FY2023 was conducted on a 5-point scale (1: Very dissatisfied, 2: Dissatisfied, 3: Average, 4: Satisfied, 5:
Very satisfied) among T-GEx Fellows, T-GEx Associates, and T-GEx Company Associates. As shown in
Table 3-12, the majority of the programs were rated as 4 or above, confirming that they were in a goodcondition.

16

Table 3-12 Survey results regarding various training programs implemented in FY2023
Fiscal Year

Titles of seminars or events'JST Strategic Basic Research Programs (CREST, PRESTO, ACT-X) Seminar on Strategy’
PI development seminar`Design Terakoya for Researchers’
PI development seminar`Grant-in-Aid Strategy Seminar for Early Career Researchers 2023’
PI development seminar`Creating a Research Portfolio - Beginner's Guide to Creating a Website’
PI development seminar`- How to use SciVal for Researchers - Analyze your own research results’
PI development seminar`Consideration of leadership style as a PI’
PI development seminar`How to write a "press release" that catches the media's attention'
PI development seminar`Methods of Smooth Communication (Part 1) - Considering Anger Management’PI development seminar `Methods of Smooth Communication (Part 2)– Active

Listening and Assertive Communication’PI development seminar`The basics of patenting for career advancement and why you should patent your research results’
Leadership Program for Researchers2023`Thinking about your career’
Leadership Program for Researchers2023`Deepen self-understanding, leading to understanding of others and mutual understanding’
Leadership Program for Researchers2023’Action Plan for Career Development - Step 1’
Leadership Program for Researchers2023`Time Management for Researchers’
FY2023

Leadership Program for Researchers2023`Action Plan for Career Development - Step 2’
Role Model Seminar`Experiences in obtaining external funding’

Average
score
4.0
4.1
4.1
4.3
3.0
4.0
4.7
5.0
4.0
5.0
4.3
4.3
4.3
3.3
4.3
4.9

Retreat Camp Project 1：Promoting Beneficial Interdisciplinary Collaborative Research

4.8

Retreat Camp Project ２：Gifts: the research survival guide

4.6

T-GEx Research Results Exhibition 2023

4.3

The International Workshop 2023：Overlapping crises and pathways to solutions

3.8

Task Force：Retreat Camp

4.0

Task Force：Research Results Exhibition 2023

4.3

Task Force：International Workshop 2023

4.3

Mentoring by Academic mentors and Corporate advisors

3.9

Support by URAs

4.6

Start-up Research Fund

4.7

Tailor-made Research Fund

4.7

Seeds Joint Research Fund

4.6

Use of common facilities and library at Nagoya University

4.1

17

4. Monitoring
4-1 List of Attributes of T-GEx Fellows Adopted
Five T-GEx Fellows were adopted in FY2023, bringing the total number of Fellows adopted since thestart of the program to 19. Their attributes are shown in Table 4-1. Their average age is relatively young
at 33.7 years old, and most of Fellows are non-tenured Assistant Professors (i.e., specially Designated
Assistant Professors). Additionally, the female ratio is relatively high at approximately 30%, and 10% of
Fellows are of foreign nationality.
Table 4-1 Attributes of T-GEx Fellows adopted by FY2023
FY2021

FY2022

FY2023

Total

8

6

5

19

Female

2

1

3

6

Male

6

4

2

12

Not applicable

0

1

0

1

Japan

7

6

4

17

Foreign

1

0

1

2

Naogya

8

5

4

17

Gifu

0

1

1

2

Associate Prof.

1

0

0

1

Lecturer

0

0

1

1

Assistant Prof.

7

6

4

17

Tenured

2

1

2

5

non-tenured

6

5

3

14

33.1

33.5

35.0

33.7

Number of Fellows
GenderNationality
University

Position

TenureAverage age(years)

4-2 T-GEx Fellows' Track Selection and Goal Achievement Status
The training tracks selected by T-GEx Fellows adopted by FY2023 are as shown in Table 4-2-1.
"International joint research" and "Interdisciplinary joint research" were selected in about 70% of cases,
indicating that many young researchers are interested in basic research. Additionally, about 20% of TGEx Fellows chose "Industry-academia collaboration" with the aim of implementing research results insociety, and this year we were able to adopt one researcher who chose "Entrepreneurship," which had
been an issue for us.

18

Table 4-2-1 Selection of training track by T-GEx Fellows
Selection of training tracks (%)*Multiple selections available

International
joint researchInterdisciplinary Industry-academia
Entrepreneurshipjoint researchcollaboration

Extended track

1st year

68

63

21

5

42

2nd year

73

73

18

0

55

3rd year

75

63

25

0

75

As shown in Table4-2-2, the rate of T-GEx Fellows who achieved the major goals linked to theirselected training track (achievement rate) increased with the increase in the training period, reaching
88% by the third year, indicating that they are successfully producing results. We want to help everyone
achieve their goals during the five-year training period.
Table 4-2-2 Achievement status of major goals tied to the training track
Percentage of major goals tied to the training track achieved (%)
Integrated

Up to the 1st year

International or Interdisciplinary
joint research

Industry-academia
collaboration

Entrepreneurship

Achievementrate(%)At least two Q1
journal articles

External
competitive
funding

Fundingfromcompany

Joint patentapplication with acompany

Entrepreneurshipcontest awards

Funding
related toentrepreneurship

42

12

41

0

0

0

0

Up to the 2nd year

64

20

60

50

0

-

-

Up to the 3rd year

88

57

71

50

50

-

-

4-3 Research Results Produced by T-GEx Fellows
The status of research achievements produced by T-GEx Fellows since their adoption (average value
per person) is shown in Table 4-3. Outcomes include journal articles, books, invited talks, awards, press
releases and media coverage. The number of peer-reviewed original papers by 1st or corresponding
author and the number of international co-authors of papers have been found to be increasing as thetraining period increases. Additionally, an increasing trend has been observed in the number of invitedlectures at both international and domestic conferences. These factors suggest that international
collaborative research is steadily increasing and that research results that attract international attention
are being produced.
On the other hand, there are relatively large annual changes in books, awards, press releases, and media
coverage, making it difficult to predict changes over time. However, because the research fields of T-GEx
Fellows are broad and diverse, it will be necessary to continue to closely monitor changes in the numbers,
with increase the number of Fellows and the training period.
19

Table 4-3 Research results produced by T-GEx Fellows
Peer reviewed
original papers
n authorAt the time

coauthorBooksinternational
collaboration

Invited lecturesinternationaldomesticAwardsPress
Releases

Media coverage
Newspaper

TV

10.2

13.4

8.2

0.7

1.4

2.3

3.6

0.7

1.6

0.2

1st year

1.2

5.3

2.3

0.2

0.2

1.0

0.8

0.5

0.3

0.1

2nd year

1.5

2.9

2.9

0.5

1.0

1.0

0.3

0.6

0.8

0.5

3rd year

2.3

5.1

3.9

0.3

2.1

1.5

0.5

0.5

0.4

0.0

of adoption

20

5. Management Structure
5-1 Implementing Institutions
1) Implementation Structure
The representative institution for this project is Nagoya University and the joint implementing
institution is Gifu University, with no changes in FY2023.
2) Management Personnel
In FY2023, there were 16 changes in management personnel, including one Working Committee
member.

5-2 Partner Organizations
1) Cooperative Structure
There were no changes in partner academic institutions and partner companies during FY2023.
2) Project Promotion Committee
In FY2023, there was a change of two Project Promotion Committee members in partner academic
institutions, Chubu University and Nanzan University.

5-3 Committees, etc.
1) Consortium General Meeting●Date and time: March 4, 2024, 16:00-18:00 (Information exchange session 18:10-19:30)●Participants: Chief Executive, Director, Co-Director, Program Manager (PM),Working Committee members, Project Promotion Committee members from Partner
Organizations (Academic Institutions, Companies, International Cooperation),
External evaluation committee members (domestic), secretariat (faculty, URA,
administrative staff)●Venue: Nagoya University, Environmental Studies Hall, Lecture Hall
●Meeting style: Hybrid
After the PM gave an overall explanation of the project's performance in FY2023, three topics werereported by three task force leaders; (1) Retreat Camp: Dr. Sayuri Higashi of Gifu University, 2)
Research Outcomes Exhibition: Dr. Naoto Machida of Nagoya University, 3) International Workshop:
Dr. Fanny Bellegarde or Nagoya University. The PM also explained the program plan for FY2024 basedon improvements from FY2023 activities and FY2024 new members of T-GEx Fellows, T-GEx
Associates, and T-GEx Company Associates. Overall, there was a lively Q&A session and exchange of
opinions between the presenters and participants.

212) Project Promotion Committee Meeting●Date and time: November 28, 2023, 12:20-13:30●Participants: Chief Executive, Director, Co-Director, Program Manager (PM),Working Committee members, Project Promotion Committee members from Partner
Organizations (Academic Institutions, Companies, International Cooperation),
External evaluation committee members (domestic), secretariat (faculty, URA,
administrative staff)●Meeting style: Face-to-face
The PM shared information on the content of the preliminary hearing on T-GEx Associates
conducted with each partner institution. In addition, there was a lively exchange of views on theenvironment surrounding the T-GEx Associates, the status of their participation, and ways toparticipate in the consortium more proactively.

3) Steering Committee●Date and time: February 21, 2024, 10:30-12:00●Participants: Director, Co-Director, Program Manager (PM), Working Committee members,
secretariat (faculty, URA, administrative staff)●Meeting format: Online
The PM gave an explanation of the performance of FY2023 program and the T-GEx Fellows, T-GEx
Associates, and T-GEx Company Associates adopted for FY2024, and an exchange of opinions took
place. Subsequently, the key points of the program plan for FY2024 and the program for the FY2023
Consortium General Meeting were discussed and approved.

224) Working Committee●Frequency: 15 times a year (irregular, including email deliberations)●Participants: Program Manager (PM), Working Committee Members,
secretariat (faculty, URA, administrative staff)●Meeting format: Online
The Working Committee discussed important matters related to program operations. The Program
Development and Audit Committee, established within the Working Committee, discussed thedevelopment of skill booster modules of various seminars and events aimed at improving transferable
skills, as well as the effect of Academic Mentors and Corporate Advisors. In addition, the Selection and
Evaluation Assessment Committee recruited, selected, and evaluated the training status of T-GEx
Fellows, T-GEx Associates, and T-GEx Company Associates, and also reviewed applications forcompetitive Tailor-made research fund and Seed joint research fund.

5) Nagoya University-Gifu University Joint Meeting● Frequency: Once a month (regular)●Participants: Program Manager (PM), Working Committee Members,
secretariat (faculty, URA, administrative staff)●Meeting format: Online
In order to ensure timely and smooth information sharing and exchange of opinions between Nagoya
University, the representative institution, and Gifu University, the co-implementing institution, theJoint Meeting was established in FY2022. The meeting included improvements to the cooperation
structure, including the expansion of partner institutions, the enhancement of various training
programs, confirmation of budget usage, and sharing of various plans, and involved a frank exchangeof opinions.

6) Regular Meeting● Frequency: Once a week (regular)●Participants: Program Manager (PM), Working Committee Members and secretariat (faculty,
URA, administrative staff) of Nagoya University●Meeting format: Online
In order to quickly identify and address issues in program operations, Regular Meetings have been
established at Nagoya University, the representative institution, from FY2022. From formulating
training plans for early career researchers to adjusting operational schedules, various issues related toprogram operations were identified in a timely manner and opinions were exchanged to respond in aplanned manner.

23

5-4 External Evaluation Committee
As shown in Table 5-4, seven external evaluation committee members (five academics (two of whom
are from overseas) and two from the business sector), who were appointed in FY2022, continued theirpositions in FY2023. We announced the "Research Results Exhibition" and the "Consortium General
Meeting" to the domestic committee members, and received advice on how to improve operations fromthe members who attended on-site. In addition, in June 2023, we issued an "Annual Report" summarizing
the program activities for FY2021 and 2022, and reported our program status.
Table 5-4 External Evaluation Committee Members

NameCountry

Affiliation

Official title

Takaho AndoJapan

Chubu Univ.

Visiting Professor

Akira Iwabuchi

Japan

Iwate Univ.

Emeritus Professor

Shigeaki Zaima

Japan

Meijo Univ.

Professor

Roger Goodman

UnitedKingdom

Univ. of Oxford

Professor

Yi-Fang Tsay

TaiwanInstitute of Molecular Biology,
Academia Sinica

Distinguished Research
Fellow

Mika Agatsuma

Japan

IBM Consulting/IBM Japan, Ltd.

Director

Masayoshi Murase

Japan

NIPPON STEEL CORPORATION

Director24

6. Survey of advanced cases overseas
As mentioned in 3-6, an international workshop was held with the University of Freiburg, one of theoverseas universities visited in FY2022. At that time, members of YAS and T-GEx who are actually
managing in the training program exchanged opinions on the theme of "Early career researchers' difficulties
to tackle such challenges" and we surveyed what young researchers want for the training program.
YAS offers two types of programs: an employment program for young researchers at the Institute forAdvanced Studies at the University of Freiburg, or a program that includes travel expenses and participationin three events per year. This time, YAS members who had experience in either or both were participating,and in response to the question, "What do you need?", they cited long-term employment, research funding,time, optimal mentors, a research support environment, a good network, and communication skills.
Furthermore, participants shared their reasons for their requests and the obstacles they face. Some of theopinions expressed were the impact of short-term employment on personal life, the lack of research funding
and journals for interdisciplinary research and low recognition of teaching activities. Regarding mentors, it
was pointed out that it is difficult to find suitable candidates when working on interdisciplinary research,and that there is a gap in thinking between generations. It is interesting that the most common opinion was
improvement of mentors' mentoring skills. It was also pointed out that choosing the right evaluator is also
important in nurturing young researchers. In particular, in the case of interdisciplinary research, theevaluator is also required to have interdisciplinary knowledge, so it is easy to imagine how difficult it canbe.
Many of the challenges faced by researchers in Japan and Germany were the same, such as balancing
research, teaching, and other duties in academia, work-life balance, and exploring career paths outside ofacademia. However, employment in overseas fellowships tends to be short-term, and the situation in Japan
seems to be relatively good. In addition, in Germany, competitive research grants are generally applied forby the PI, and there is little competitive research grant available to young researchers, as in Japan. Therefore,
there was a demand for improvements to the system. Overall, it does not appear that Japan is necessarily
the only country with a harsh environment for young researchers to take on new challenges.
Finally, as a side note, the expression "early career researcher" seems to be inappropriate for postdoctoral
researchers in Germany, and they seem to prefer to use "post-doc." Therefore, in the future, when
promoting international collaboration, we should be careful to use appropriate language taking into accountthe circumstances of each country.

25