Fieldwork and Cooperation within the Keio Gijuku Shachu | Gen Miyagaki, Assistant to the Dean of the Faculty of Policy Management
March 5, 2024
The campus is on spring break. While there are few people around, this is actually an extremely busy season for faculty and staff, with "end-of-semester odds and ends," meetings, entrance exams, and more (thank you all for your hard work). Undergraduate and graduate students also seem to be engaged in various activities, and I often receive consultations about their research. Especially at SFC, it's not uncommon for research activities to take place off-campus, so many things are unfolding at fieldwork sites and other locations.
Speaking of fieldwork, it can be costly in terms of both travel and accommodation, but as Mr. Kamo also introduced in this column, SFC has research grants for undergraduate students. These are all valuable systems that broaden the scope and deepen the substance of research activities, and many of these grants are made possible by various donations.
Here, I would like to introduce one of them: the fieldwork grant from the SFC Policy Research Support Organization.
The name "Organization" might give the impression of a very formal body, but its members are all Keio University alumni (graduates). It was established in 1999. I hear that it was founded when Keio University alumni from Mita (class of 1956), who had reached retirement age, called on each other, saying, "Let's all chip in one month's pension for our juniors." The "juniors" they referred to were the current students at SFC. In other words, this organization was established solely for the purpose of senior alumni from Mita supporting the activities of their juniors, the current SFC students, and this grant began as a collection of donations from individuals' own pockets.
Looking at the names from that time, such as Keita Asari, Kohei Kobayashi, Kenji Kosaka, Yotaro Kobayashi, and Reijiro Hattori, it is clear that participants came from various positions and industries. In particular, many individuals, including Masamichi Hanabusa, Masayoshi Kojima, Toshikuni Hirai, Yasushi Okada, and Takeo Sato, volunteered their time and effort to advance this initiative. On the faculty and staff side, I happen to be the point of contact now, but many faculty members, including the dean, have passed the baton over the years. Although it was forced to pause during the COVID-19 pandemic, the significant efforts of the administrative office were instrumental in its successful resumption. Keio University has a term, "cooperation within the Keio Gijuku Shachu," and this must be what it refers to.
As with any grant, there is an application, a selection review, and a results report. At the Organization, members gather for three presentations a year—at the time of selection, a mid-term review, and a final report—to ask students various questions. Some questions can be tough, but with the aim of supporting young students from a different generation, they often extend beyond questions to include advice and suggestions. There have been cases where a project on a remote island was supported for many years, and another where a student's research plan in Okinawa led to introductions to many relevant people, resulting in rich interviews. Yet, it strikes a good balance, as they don't seem to be imposing their "lofty opinions." Rather, it seems the Organization's members also gain inspiration and learning from the students, making it a place for intergenerational exchange and "learning while teaching, teaching while learning." This interaction fosters a desire to "support them" and leads to future assistance, which is only possible because of the students' efforts to meet these expectations.
Going out into the field involves a great deal of support in various aspects. Direct involvement in the field is one, of course, but research grants that provide a push are another. While the scope of cooperation should not be limited to within Keio, it is reassuring to know that there are people who are genuinely cheering for your research activities. Speaking of which, during last year's "Camp for Designing the Future" in Nagasaki, we also received the support of the Nagasaki Mita-kai. When I look around, I see that I am surrounded by this kind of support.
The SFC Policy Research Support Organization celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. I believe it is deeply significant that for this quarter-century, senior alumni from Mita have come together to continuously support the research activities of SFC students. No buildings or plaques remain (though there are tax deductions!), but people certainly do. And recently, the faces of SFC graduates and former faculty members have begun to appear among the Organization's members. There have even been times when former grant recipients have joined the meetings. I hope that inspired alumni will continue to join, one by one, in the years to come.