On April 15 at the Keidanren Kaikan facility in Tokyo’s Chiyoda City, the 13th Grant Award Ceremony of the Canon Foundation was held. There, the fifteen individuals finalized as recipients of grants-in-aid were awarded a Grant Award Certificate by Canon Inc. Chairman & CEO Fujio Mitarai, who also serves as Councilor & Chairman of the Canon Foundation.

In his congratulatory greetings, Councilor & Chairman Mitarai expressed his congratulations and future expectations towards the researchers, saying, “Significant expectations are being placed on technology as a means of confronting the challenges that mankind faces on a global scale. At the same time, new innovation is also strongly expected of technology. We look forward to your continued contributions as researchers who overcame considerable hurdles to have their themes selected.” Canon Foundation Chairman Hiroyuki Yoshikawa followed this with an expression of hope and encouragement towards the researchers, saying, “Over time, mankind has given birth to knowledge and passed it down through the generations. A leading example of that knowledge is science. While publicly available and everlasting knowledge of science is mankind’s greatest asset, to overcome the various social challenges in our modern world, curiosity for new knowledge in various fields of study as well as social curiosity that goes beyond that are crucial. The research themes chosen for these awards all constitute research that is steeped in such an approach and is truly needed by society. My hope is that you will keep pressing on vigorously with your research so that you contribute to the resolution of those social challenges.”

Afterwards, Shinichiro Ogaki, Chairman of the Screening Committee for the “Science and Technology that Achieve a Good Future” Research Grant Program and Yoshihito Osada, Chairman of the Screening Committee for the “Science and Technology that Create New Industries” Research Grant Program, gave comments on the screening process and words of encouragement to the researchers selected to receive grants-in-aid. This was followed by the conferment of a Grant Award Certificate by Councilor & Chairman Mitarai to the fifteen researchers finalized to receive grants-in-aid and statements on behalf of the researchers by Mie University Professor Kiwamu Takemoto and The University for Tokyo Associate Professor Shuntaro Takeda, who expressed their gratitude for the grants-in-aid and their ambitions for the future.

At the end of the presentation ceremony, a guest lecture titled “The Challenge of Single Molecule Nonvolatile Memory Operating at Room Temperature” was given by Hiroshima University Professor Sadafumi Nishihara, one of the recipients of grants-in-aid under the 7th “Creation of Industrial Infrastructure” Research Grant Program, who said, “As data volumes handled around the world increase, the recording density of nonvolatile memory is approaching its limit. With the aid of the Canon Foundation, I became the first person in the world to successfully create materials through which memory properties could be obtained with a single molecule. Those materials, I learned, are memory materials that have a density one thousand times greater than conventional levels and are capable of high-speed operation on par with DRAM. After my grant-in-aid ended, my research resonated considerably on a social level as well, and I have been continuing to pursue it having secured further funding. Going forward, I hope to produce new memory that leverages the properties of these materials completely in Japan, and cultivate new markets for nonvolatile memory.” In his lecture, Professor Nishihara enthusiastically shared anecdotes from the time he was selected to receive a grant-in-aid, his wonderful research results and stories of subsequent development, providing the newly-chosen researchers with considerable encouragement.

At the social gathering that followed the Presentation Ceremony, the researchers were the center of vibrant interaction with the Foundation officers and Screening Committee members who were on hand, bringing the proceedings to a successful close.