Japan Prize
Selection Process
Nomination and Selection Process
- Every November, the Field Selection Committee of The Japan Prize Foundation designates and announces two fields in which the Japan Prize will be awarded two years hence. At the same time, the Foundation calls for over 15,000 nominators, strictly comprised of prominent scientists and researchers from around the world invited by the Foundation, to nominate the candidates through the web by JPNS (Japan Prize Nomination System). The deadline for nominations is the end of February of the following year.
- For each field, a Selection Subcommittee conducts a rigorous evaluation of the candidates’ academic achievements. The conclusions are then forwarded to the Selection Committee, which conducts evaluations of candidates’ achievements from a wider perspective, including contributions to the progress of science and technology, and significant advancement towards the cause of world peace and prosperity, and finally the selected candidates are recommended for the Prize.
- The recommendations are then sent to the Foundation’s Board of Directors, which makes the final decision on the winners.
- The nomination and selection process takes almost two years from the time that the fields are decided. Every January, the winners of that year’s Japan Prize are announced. The Presentation Ceremony is held in April in Tokyo.
Members of the 2019 Japan Prize Selection Committee
| Chairman | Makoto Asashima | Research Professor Academic Advisor, Teikyo University |
|---|---|---|
| Vice Chairman | Yoshinao Mishima | Former President, Tokyo Institute of Technology |
| Members | Yoshinori Fujiyoshi | Distinguished Professor, Advanced Research Institute Tokyo Medical and Dental University |
| Yoshihiro Hayashi | President/Director General, National Museum of Nature and Science |
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| Yoshio Karita | Former Grand Master of the Ceremonies, Imperial Household Agency |
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| Kazunori Kataoka | Professor Emeritus, Project Professor, The University of Tokyo |
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| Yoichiro Matsumoto | President, Tokyo University of Science |
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| Masayuki Matsushita | Director, The Japan Prize Foundation |
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| Shojiro Nishio | President, Osaka University |
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| Tadatsugu Taniguchi | Professor Emeritus, Advisor to the Office of President, The University of Tokyo |
( alphabetical order, titles as of April, 2019)
| Selection Subcommittee for the “Materials and Production” field | ||
|---|---|---|
| Chairman | Kazunori Kataoka | Professor Emeritus, Project Professor, The University of Tokyo |
| Deputy Chairman | Toru H. Okabe | Professor, Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo |
| Member | Katsuhiko Ariga | Principal Investigator, WPI Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science |
| Kazunari Domen | Special Contract Professor, Research Institute for Supra-Materials, Shinshu University |
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| Koji Ishibashi | Chief Scientist, Advanced Device Laboratory, RIKEN |
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| Yasuhiro Koike | Professor, Faculty of Science and Technology, Keio University |
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| Toshihiko Koseki | Professor, Kyoto University of Advanced Science |
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| Kazue Kurihara | Professor, New Industry Creation Hatchery Center, Tohoku University |
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| Kazuyuki Kuroda | Professor, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University |
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| Atsushi Maruyama | Professor, School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology |
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| Kyoko Nozaki | Professor, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo |
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| Tamio Oguchi | Professor, The Institute of Scientific and Industrial Research, Osaka University |
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| Selection Subcommittee for the “Biological Production, Ecology” field | ||
| Chairman | Yoshihiro Hayashi | President/Director General, National Museum of Nature and Science |
| Deputy Chairman | Hiromichi Nagasawa | Professor Emeritus, The University of Tokyo |
| Member | Kazuyuki Inubushi | Professor, Graduate School of Horticulture, Chiba University |
| Futoshi Nakamura | Professor, Graduate School of Agriculture, Hokkaido University |
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| Taikan Oki | Professor, Institute for Future Initiatives, The University of Tokyo |
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| Masakazu Shimada | Project Researcher, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo |
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| Tatsuya Sugawara | Professor, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University |
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| Katsumi Tsukamoto | Professor Emeritus, The University of Tokyo |
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| Tetsukazu Yahara | Professor, Department of Biology, Kyushu University |
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| Keitaro Yamanouchi | Associate Professor, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo |
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( alphabetical order, titles as of April, 2019)
The Japan Prize Nomination System
The Foundation’s JPNS (Japan Prize Nomination System) on the Web facilitates the process of the nomination by the Japan Prize Official Nominators around the world. Additional details are available here.
