Societal Issues Research
The Second and Third Societal Issues Workshops (June 29th and July 8th)
The ICF Secretariat wishes to thank everyone who participated in the second and third societal issues workshops. They were held in a hybrid form with online and face-to-face sessions. There was lively discussion in both the conference room and the Zoom breakout rooms.
The second workshop was held primarily discussing the themes of the “new types of community” and the “prevention of presymptomatic disease and the need for nursing care.” After topics were introduced from experts on the issues and technologies, participants held discussions within small groups. Based on the concept of “weak robots,” which was introduced by Professor Okada, the participants discussed the ideal ways to communicate in modern society and ideal multi-generational communities to eliminate loneliness. In the next theme, “prevention of presymptomatic disease and the need for nursing care,” discussion covered solutions and implementation methods by considering, for example, what kind of environments would allow people to be healthy both mentally and physically without proactive effort on their part.
In the third workshop on the more general theme of “food and health,” participants discussed the personalization of diet and communication through food. They came up with many interesting ideas, such as a sensor implanted in a tooth that could record the user’s meals. In the next theme, “climate change measures,” participants discussed what system would be needed for individuals to internalize the broader goal of climate neutrality and thus be incentivized to change their behavior.After each of the second and third workshops, a small social gathering was held at the venue, providing an opportunity for the participants to interact and network with each other.
Based on the discussions in the workshops, the ICF Secretariat is planning a follow-up event.
■ Outline of topics
| Workshop | Theme expert | Topics |
| 1. New types of community: Solving the issue of loneliness of the elderly living alone (June 29) | •Hiroshi Namba, Japan Science and Technology Agency •Prof. Michio Okada, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Toyohashi University of Technology | •Tolerant society, “meddlesome” society •Weak robots |
| 2. Prevention of presymptomatic disease and the need for nursing care: Prevention of lifestyle related diseases, mental health, and a reduction of the need for nursing care(June 29) | •Norimasa Fujii, Mitsubishi Research Institute •Aoi Kusaka, Japan Science and Technology Agency •Associate Prof. Seiji Kumagai, Institute for the Future of Human Society, Kyoto University | •Toward a sustainable society for health and longevity •Eight key measures in order to realize a desirable future •Overview and outlook of Moonshot Goal 9 |
| 3. Food and health (July 8) | •Seiichi Kizuki, Mitsubishi Research Institute | •Creating new value through a food digital transformation |
| 4. Climate change measures (July 8) | •Dr. Ryusuke Shida, Mitsubishi Research Institute •Hiroshi Namba, Japan Science and Technology Agency | •Roadmap to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 •Personalization |
Activity Report
BAP 2022 Application Opens (from July 1st to August 26th)
The ICF’s 8th business acceleration program, BAP 2022, started on July 1, Friday, by accepting applications for business ideas that can resolve societal issues.
BAP 2022 website: https://eiicon.net/about/icf-acceleration2022/
ICF members will be invited to the pitch contest (final review meeting) and DEMODAY (presentation of the results of discussions about the possibility of co-creation businesses). During the review period for co-creation businesses, ICF members who are considering collaborating with startups will also have the opportunity to discuss the possibility of co-creation with the finalists.In addition, Co-Creation Members will have the opportunity to review applications and be meet with applicants on an individual basis.
[Schedule]
Applications will be accepted until August 26. Afterwards, following a period for review and mentoring, a pitch contest will be held on December 9. Then, there will be a period for reviewing co-creation businesses between Mitsubishi Research Institute and applicants. In early March 2023, DEMODAY (results presentations) will be held.
Release of Entrepreneurial Stories of Impactful ICF Members
In order to tackle societal issues through business, entrepreneurs must have excellent interpersonal skills and strong organizational capabilities. What do they think and how are they trying to achieve the world they want? The ICF has published a series of articles that sheds light on the personalities of entrepreneurs who are striving to resolve societal issues The goal of these articles is to share with readers the philosophies of and the issues being tackled by these business founders, which in turn should lead to accelerated social breakthroughs in the future. The list of articles is here.
Since June, new articles in Japanese on HERALBONY Co., Ltd., Liquitous Inc., and Sustainable Lab Inc. have been released. In English, articles on Tokyo Factory, Inc., Public dots & Company, Co., Ltd., HERALBONY Co., Ltd., and Liquitous Inc. have been released. Please take a look!