Implementation system

Project Team

This project is a new initiative that combines the University’s Research and Information Center with the Safety and Security Project. The former has proven achievements in research on environmental monitoring using Earth observation satellite data while the latter actively collaborates with local governments in disaster response.

Not only will the project share the experiences of the Kumamoto Campus, which was severely damaged by the recent Kumamoto Earthquake, but also researchers from campuses all over Japan will participate in a variety of fields encompassing both humanities and the sciences. Departments, schools, and research institutes will collaborate in this project under the leadership of the main researchers. The project will be implemented with the approval of the Administration Committee of the Tokai University Institute of Research (chair: president), which is responsible for review and decisions on the university’s basic research policies. The branding of this project has also been approved at the Dean’s Meeting, which is attended by all the deans and heads of administrative departments to determine various policies of the university.

Based on these internal approvals, this project will collaborate with the following four divisions: the Public Affairs Division, which is responsible for public relations for the university as a whole; the Administration Division, which is responsible for the university’s overall management strategy and liaisons with various organizations outside the university; the Head Office of International Affairs, which is responsible for public relations and liaison with overseas organizations; and the Research Promotion Division, which is responsible for disseminating research results and industry-academia-government collaborative research activities. Each of these four divisions has its own unique achievements and expertise. It is thanks to their support that this project can be effectively promoted, and that it is possible to establish a smooth collaboration system with various domestic and international organizations, thereby creating a university-wide system to promote branding.

The PDCA cycle associated with the self-inspection and evaluation system and with external evaluation
This project is designated as project research to support strategic and focused interdisciplinary research by the Tokai University Institute of Research. In accordance with university regulations, research in this program must be conducted based on research plans created every school year, and then its progress (numbers of papers published, presentations given at academic societies, research results covered in the mass media, etc.) must be reported in written or oral form to the Tokai University Institute of Research. The research plan will then be reconstructed based on how it is evaluated there. This is how the PDCA cycle is implemented during the research period. In addition, workshops, international symposiums, and international conferences are used to gather opinions from experts at domestic and overseas universities, research institutes, and companies, as well as the organizations and local governments to which the project outcomes will be provided. Because these opinions and evaluations are added to the annual report to the Administration Committee of the Tokai University Institute of Research, the PDCA cycle is inclusive of external evaluations. The oral progress report should include a discussion of the scientific and social significance of the research content. This is how the project has established a self-assessment and self-evaluation system that takes into account the opinions of people both inside and outside the university.
Organic external cooperation

This project has established a system for participating researchers and groups to take full advantage of the opportunity to engage in joint research and social collaborations with organizations and institutions inside and outside Japan. The Research and Information Center has a track record of collaborative research with overseas universities (National Central University of Taiwan, University of the Philippines, etc.) on satellite data reception and immediate sharing, as well as collaboration with researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences on atmospheric monitoring. In addition, the Safety and Security Project has constructed a social cooperation system including exchange of opinions with neighboring municipalities such as Kanagawa Prefecture and Shizuoka Prefecture. This has built very strong relationships that will be utilized in the implementation of this project.
Also, the project’s aim is to effectively provide disaster and environmental information to neighboring municipalities and residents, and to spread such efforts overseas. Project participants will complement each other’s achievements, cooperate with the university’s departments, and seek new collaborations.

Branding Efforts

The Uniqueness of Tokai University

Tokai University is a comprehensive university system with 8 campuses, 18 schools, and 77 departments, majors, and courses across Japan. It covers a wide range of academic domains, including the schools of Engineering, Information Technology, Science, Marine Science and Technology, and Agriculture, which make up a suitable system for interdisciplinary collaborative research . The university places great importance on giving back to society with the knowledge assets obtained through its research activities, leading to its many international and social contributions, including those mentioned above. In recent years, the university has been advocating for the development of people who can succeed on the global stage and who can contribute to local communities. This project is an effort to link these aspects together organically and put them into practice, and to strengthen the university’s brand power and uniqueness.

Significance of initiatives from a global perspective

Since environmental changes and disasters occur and spread beyond national and regional boundaries, we need to work to realize mutual safety and security in an international framework through analysis and sharing of satellite data. The National Central University of Taiwan and the Tokai University Research and Information Center have signed a research collaboration agreement. The receiving ranges of the satellite data receiving stations of both sides cover both Taiwan and Japan, and the sharing of satellite data is being promoted. We also have a longstanding relationship with the Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth (RADI) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. RADI now has a professor who is a Chinese researcher who did a postdoctoral fellowship at Tokai University’s Research and Information Center. Within the framework of this project, a joint research agreement was signed in 2016, and there is joint research underway to share information and overcome the problems that East Asia is facing, such as air pollution. We also signed a cooperative agreement with NASA in March 2016 to collaborate on research on sea ice observation using satellite data, and had NASA researchers stay at Tokai University for a month and a half. The project feasibility is extremely high because, as described above, its international cooperation is premised on collaborative research with the advanced organizations with which we have cooperative relationships. The specific achievements obtained through international collaboration will contribute to the international branding of Tokai University.

Significance of initiatives from a local perspective

In the area of regional cooperation, teachers and students collaborate with local residents and local governments to establish a system for sharing disaster information using social media and the Internet, and promote the use of this system. This enables public achievement (PA) education (a learning program that uses social activities to instill in young people a sense of involvement as a citizen in a democratic society), which is one of Tokai University’s aims. Our research and social activities related to safety and security are already contributing to enhancing the university’s brand. This is evidenced by the fact that the Twitter-based disaster information sharing system developed by the university as part of its regional cooperation activities was adopted as a tool for a training program for people who were stranded in Hiratsuka City, Kanagawa, and has been introduced in the mass media. In this project, we will take advantage of our nationwide campuses to proactively incorporate the opinions of neighboring municipalities and residents, and to proactively disseminate our research results overseas as an advanced initiative in Japan, a disaster-prone country. In this way, the project will contribute to enhancing the brand power of Tokai University at home and abroad.

Public relations strategies and methods

A survey of related organizations conducted by Tokai University found that there were high expectations for the university to implement such a project, as an institution that suffered damage in the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquake. Considering the achievements of the international collaboration, this project will be widely introduced to experts in various countries to demonstrate the importance of efforts in disaster and environmental monitoring. Specifically, this will be achieved as follows.

(1) Launching websites and publishing newsletters:

The websites will widely introduce this project’s activities, and will be linked with social media. Information will also be distributed in English. Regular newsletters will also be issued to widely disseminate the latest research outcomes.

(2) Student events and cooperation in international conferences:

Workshops for the general public and international symposiums will be held at campuses and other locations to disseminate our research results to the world. Special sessions will also be held at international conferences to report the results and to start new international cooperation. To promote this project and further expand its framework, there will be a workshop on this project, with the project leader in charge, at the Asian Conference on Remote Sensing (ACRS), one of the largest international conferences on remote sensing in Asia.

(3) Interaction among researchers:

Every year, one or two Tokai University faculty members involved in this project will be dispatched for the short to medium term to overseas research institutions and international academic conferences. There will also be one to two researchers from overseas every year. This will allow us to establish a more robust joint research system with overseas institutions, and the overseas presentations will enhance the international presence of Tokai University and help improve university rankings.

Prospects to be reflected in university management

In terms of initiatives from a global perspective, to promote interaction among researchers within the university beyond the boundaries of undergraduate departments, cross-disciplinary research teams will be organized by interdisciplinary theme, such as environmental changes. In addition, Tokai University will promote international contributions and the development of global human resources through satellite data sharing and research cooperation with overseas universities and research institutes. In terms of initiatives from a local perspective, we will strengthen the university’s unique system of integrating humanities and the sciences by forming teams that transcend the boundaries of the natural and social sciences to cover areas such as social media, care for disaster victims, and community collaboration. We will also promote internal collaborations with the following organizations.

(1) Collaboration with the Public Affairs Division:

We will actively conduct public relations activities through Tokai University’s PR magazines, such as the university guide to help attracting prospective students, taking advantage of how relatable topics such as disaster prevention, social media, remote sensing are to high school students.

(2) Collaboration with the Head Office of International Affairs:

Disclosing our research outcomes overseas contributes to improving international university rankings. In cooperation with the Head Office of International Affairs, which is in charge of international collaboration, the university will strive to improve its ranking and attract international students and new international research.

(3) Collaboration with the Administration Division and the To-Collabo Promotion Office:

As the point of contact for nearby companies and local governments, the Administration Division and the To-Collabo Promotion Office work together to carry out actual community contribution activities. The achievements of these external collaborations will be utilized to achieve effective regional collaboration and results.

Having suffered damage during the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquake, the entire university will remain aware of the need to recover from the earthquake damage. There are plans to brand the entire campus as “Tokai University: Contributing to the Safety and Security of Society”.