Operation and Management of IROAST
1. IROAST Steering Committee Activities
We held our IROAST Steering Committee meetings 11 times in the academic year of 2021 todiscuss and determine various regulations and agenda items required for operating and managing
IROAST successfully. In particular, the committee has discussed and approved implementation of
the following research support programs and provided support to many researchers.
2. IROAST Research Support Programs
We have several research support programs running in parallel to promote research programs
under international collaboration, aiming to build international joint research networks andoffer/gain benefit from circulating knowledge through minds around the world.
IROAST Young Faculty Members for International Joint Research
We select outstanding young faculty members from the Faculty of Advanced Science andTechnology, the Institute of Industrial Nanomaterials, the Magnesium Research Center, and theCenter for Water Cycle, Marine Environment and Disaster Management and invite them to
IROAST for three or four years, and give them opportunities to conduct international joint researchat overseas universities and institutions for at least one year in total. The COVID-19 pandemic has
prevented them from traveling overseas since 2020, but we are promoting international joint
research online, and each has achieved satisfactory results through that avenue.
IROAST International Joint Research Travel Support
We select distinguished faculty members from the Faculty of Advanced Science and Technology,
the Institute of Industrial Nanomaterials, the Magnesium Research Center, and the Center for
Water Cycle, Marine Environment and Disaster Management and send them to universities andinstitutions overseas to conclude MOUs for promoting their international joint research and/or toperform their joint research there. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has interrupted thissupport project since 2020.
IROAST Visiting Professor and Visiting Professor Candidate Invitations
We invite Visiting Professors and Visiting Professor candidates to IROAST to promote joint
research with their host researchers. The purpose is to build international joint research networks
and to open international seminars that attract young researchers, including graduate students, tocutting-edge research activities. This program has also been suspended since 2020.
IROAST Research Awards (for IROAST faculty members only)
To encourage and reward innovative research activities, we select and award outstanding andpromising IROAST faculty members by evaluating their research activities from the previous
academic year.
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IROAST Proofreading/Publication Support
We offer financial support for proofreading/publication to IROAST-affiliated researchers toincrease the number of papers emanating from the fields of science and technology at Kumamoto
University.
IROAST Research Internship Program
We provide hands-on research opportunities for highly motivated undergraduate and graduate
students and young postdoctoral researchers keen to pursue advanced scientific research. In 2021,
we offered online internships.
Young Faculty Member Support Program for New IROAST Major Research Areas
We have launched a new support program for young researchers who are taking on pioneeringand high-potential research toward new major research areas at IROAST. The focus will be on
young researchers in the fields of science and technology who are the potential to make great
strides on the international stage.
IROAST Start-up Program to Create an Inter-Departmental Joint Research Hub
We have embarked on a new program aiming to support bold and sustainable research thattargets new areas through creating research networks by linking departments in different fields.
The program promotes cross-disciplinary and interdisciplinary fusion research to harness theUniversity’s strengths in science and technology. Five faculty members were selected to launchand coordinate joint research groups.
IROAST Symposia
We invite keynote speakers from overseas and domestic universities to hold international
symposiums two to three times a year. In 2021, three symposia took place either online or in a
hybrid of online and in-person events.
IROAST Seminars
International researchers invited through the IROAST Visiting Professor and Visiting Professor
Candidate Invitation program mentioned above give talks at IROAST Seminars organized by their
host professors. In 2021, we had a visiting professor come to Japan and hold a seminar at theUniversity, and also hosted online joint seminars with visiting professors’ laboratories. In addition,
as a multidisciplinary international joint research support program with the International ResearchCenter for Medical Sciences (IRCMS), we held a seminar at which presentations were made byjoint research groups supported by the program.
IROAST Workshop for Research Capability Building
Aiming to improve the research skills of the University’s researchers and students, weorganized a three-session workshop with a cumulative total of more than 100 participants. Eachsession covered three topics: how to write an effective abstract, which is essential for writing-015-

papers; how to send out information via social media and e-mail; and how to use appropriate
English expressions that are often used incorrectly by Japanese.
3. Enhancing IROAST’s public relations activities
To promote IROAST’s activities widely, we renewed our website, introduced social media(Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube), and published pamphlets both in Japanese and English
to provide information about what we do.
A symposium, organized by IROAST and held in Japanese, was announced to government
offices, companies, universities, and high schools in Kumamoto Prefecture, attracting participants
not only from within the University but outside it as well.
4. Preparing for the second phase (AY2022 to AY2027)
IROAST, which will enter its second phase in AY2022, has the following two goals: 1) toestablish a research hub through which we can circulate knowledge through great minds in scienceand technology that will lead the post-COVID-19, post-SDG world and generate new innovations;
and 2) to develop an environment that serves as a hub for great minds that attracts outstanding
researchers from Japan and abroad.
We will engage in international research activities that focus on the science and technology
needed to build a society that provides safety, security, and well-being. The goal is to realize
Society 5.0, which will support the next generation of natural sciences.
5. Statistics for IROAST Research Activities
The following tables indicate several indices to evaluate our research activities.
Indices for Self-evaluation of IROAST Research Activities
Indices for Self-Evaluation20172018

2019

2020

2021

26

4372

112

102

88.5

79.1

81.9

83.077.5

Rate of Top 10% Papers (~20%~)

15.4

16.3

20.8

23.2

7.8

Field Weighted Citation Index (>1.1)

1.33

1.31

1.59

2.41

0.90

813161621

Number of Visiting Professors (~40~)

26

37

41

44

49

Number of Distinguished Professors (4)

234

3

5

1

5

3

1

3

20

23

20

27(Numerical Target)
Number of Papers (30 papers per year)
Rate of Internationally Collaborated Papers(~80%~)

Number of Concluded MOU (>20 for the firstterm)

Number of International Symposia including
KU-KAIST Joint Symposium (>1)
Number of International Seminars including
IROAST&IRCMS Joint Seminars (~20~)-016-

Indices for Self-Evaluation(Numerical Target)
Number of Invited Researchers (~25~)
Number of Researchers Visiting Overseas
Universities and Institutions (~20~)
Number of Internship Students20172018

2019

2020

2021

25

28

22––

21

18

15–––

3

13–8Note) The number of papers and other paper-related data for 2018-2021 were obtained from the Web of Science
by requesting the IR office in April 2022.

Summary of Research FundFY2021Categories

Number of Grants

Amount (x 1000 Yen)

JSPS Grant-in-Aid
Commissioned ResearchContract ResearchDonated Grant

911
137,037
3,210
1,674
900

Total

1242,821

Categories

Number of Grants

JSPS Grant-in-Aid
Commissioned Research
Private Research Grant

81232,560
1,300
1,000

Total

1134,860

Categories

Number of Grants

JSPS Grant-in-Aid
Commissioned Research
Private Research Grant
Donated Grant

4
12
123,400
2,200
950
1,000

Total

827,550

FY2020
Amount (x 1000 Yen)FY2019Amount (x 1000 Yen)

*Amended some numbers for the last three years based on a revised criterion.

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