The Graduate School of Frontier Sciences (GSFS), one of the newest graduate schools at the University of Tokyo, was established in 1998 based on discussion and collaboration among all university departments. It was designed to be a graduate school whose guiding principle is to create new fields of science through a transdisciplinary approach that pushes the boundaries of traditional interdisciplinary research. As its core mission, the GSFS seeks to lead the exploration of emerging fields of science in the midst of the 21st century’s explosion of knowledge, and to provide programs in transdisciplinary research that cultivate future pioneers of knowledge.
The GSFS is also one of the university’s largest graduate schools, comprising 12 departments and a community of more than 200 faculty members and 1,500 graduate students. Founded just a little more than ten years ago, the GSFS is still in its growth phase, yet dynamically pursues its mission in the beautiful natural setting of Kashiwa Campus.
Today, many fields of science and technology are evolving with blinding speed. For instance, my area of expertise, molecular biology, is a relatively young discipline that emerged in the 20th century when physicists began making forays into the realm of biology. It grew by assimilating a diverse array of sciences, and eventually entered the mainstream of biology in the latter half of that century, giving rise to genomic analysis, regenerative medicine, and other breathtaking advances. This is but one example of the many frontiers of science that have been born—and continue to be born—from collision and exchange between various disciplines. Rather than waiting for this fusion of disciplines to result from happenstance, the members of the GSFS proactively pursue it at Kashiwa Campus with the goal of opening up new dimensions of knowledge.
The GSFS community identifies unresolved challenges in various domains of society—such as nanotechnology, materials, energy, information, complexities, life, healthcare, environment, and international relations—and seeks to solve or advance them through collaboration between faculty members and students representing diverse disciplines. Instead of following the conventional path of step-by-step, cumulative research, both faculty and students take a task-oriented approach to their research. In doing so, they gain intellectual stimulation that inspires them toward discovery of new methodologies capable of resolving society’s challenges, and toward reshaping the paradigms of science. At the same time, students are able to gain a comprehensive perspective through on-site education and research opportunities that foster flexible research skills grounded in the fundamentals learned in undergraduate studies. In this sense, the GSFS has the power to cultivate students into scientists who are actively involved in society.
Another key focus of the GSFS is internationalization. In order to help Japan to break out of its recent trend toward introversion, Japanese universities need to foster internationally minded human resources through not only research activities, but also education. Kashiwa Campus was specifically conceived to be an international campus, and the GSFS has more than 200 students from abroad. However, since much effort and attention went into building the foundations of the GSFS, work remains to be done in developing Kashiwa Campus into an international campus. Accordingly, the Kashiwa International Office, which opened last year, the GSFS International Liaison Office, and other campus organizations are implementing various projects to build up Kashiwa Campus as a full-fledged international campus over the next ten years. One of the biggest advantages of Kashiwa Campus in this regard is its potential for internationalization based on collaboration with local communities. Cooperative efforts with local community members are now being made to develop the wide open space of the Kashiwa-no-ha Campus Station area into a cosmopolitan center of education and research where international students and researchers can live in a stress-free environment.
The pursuit of internationalization and transdisciplinary research, however, can often lead to a common pitfall—complacency with producing a mere mishmash of different elements. The important thing to remember in this quest is to use encounters with the unknown as opportunities to become aware of one’s own perspectives. At the GSFS, internationalization does not simply mean enhancing English language skills by conducting lectures and discussions in English—it more significantly involves the development of a firm sense of identity, which is a prerequisite for becoming able to communicate original ideas and viewpoints. Also, in order to acquire an understanding of the whole picture, one must be able to stand solidly on one’s two feet. For this reason, studying and researching at the GSFS demand the possession of a well-defined sense of identity. As such, it is important to further solidify one’s identity through contact with other fields of knowledge, and to constantly use that contact as feedback for acquiring the power to think critically and creatively. It is through this approach that the GSFS pioneers new realms of science and nurtures internationally minded human resources.

Takuya Ueda
Dean
Graduate School of Frontier Sciences
The University of Tokyo