About us - Tokyo College
東京カレッジ

ABOUT US

Shaping a Shared Future Together

Tokyo College aims to generate new knowledge to contribute to the creation of an inclusive society and spark deeper public engagement with the University.

OVERVIEW

About Us

Tokyo College is an organization like no other. Founded in 2019 to serve as an interface between the University of Tokyo and overseas researchers and research institutions, our core philosophy centers around the “Joy of Discovery and Power of Knowledge.” We are committed to the advancement of critical research questions related to “The Earth and Human Society in 2050,” and to that end, the College engages primarily in the following four activities.

1. Inviting distinguished researchers: Either in cooperation with the various departments of the University or in accordance with the research plan of the College, we invite distinguished researchers and intellectuals from both abroad and within Japan to stay at the College for a set period of time.

2. Cultivating early career researchers: We recruit excellent early career researchers who advance research relating to one of our primary themes and foster them in cooperation with researchers within the university.

3. Research collaboration: We advance cutting-edge, cross-disciplinary collaborative research between invited researchers and intellectuals and the University, as well as between researchers affiliated with the College, in order to produce new knowledge needed by the modern world.

4. Knowledge sharing: Through lectures and symposia by invited researchers, intellectuals, and affiliated researchers, we promptly share cutting-edge, cross-disciplinary research with students and the general public. We also make an effort to encourage dialogue among researchers, students, and the public.

Tokyo College focuses on the following five interdisciplinary research themes.

1. Digital Revolution and Future of Humanity

2. Tackling the Planetary Boundaries through Interdisciplinary Approaches

3. Japan Viewed from Inside and Outside

4. Humanities in 2050 – World Philosophy, World History, and World Literature

5. Life and its Value for Future Society

Researchers at Tokyo College take a central role in forming cross-disciplinary research groups to conduct collaborative research on specific issues relating to these five themes. The outcomes are then shared with students and the general public through on-campus lectures, symposia, and a variety of online events.

Tokyo College is part of the University of Tokyo Institutes for Advanced Studies, a university-wide organization that promotes academic excellence and the internationalization of research environments. The College also works closely with the Future Society Initiative (FSI), which is headed by the President of the University. Though Tokyo College is an independent academic unit, by deepening its relationship with the many researchers and sections of the broader University, the College both promotes cutting-edge, cross-disciplinary research and contributes to the internationalization of research activities at the University of Tokyo as a whole.

Tokyo College also serves as a liaison for joint projects, such as the mutual exchange of faculty members between the University of Tokyo and the Collège de France, a French academic institution with a long history. Moving forward, the College will further strengthen ties with research institutes at overseas universities.


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