Keio Research Institute at SFC

Objectives

In December 2017, the Odakyu Group’s Odakyu Electric Railway Co., Ltd., Kanagawa Chuo Kotsu Co., Ltd., and Keio University all signed a collaboration agreement with regard to the research for cutting-edge technologies, revitalizing local communities, human resource development, and educational activities. This laboratory was established to expand and objectify the collaboration agreement within the framework of joint research and sponsored/consigned research.
The Odakyu Electric Railway completed multiple double tracks spanning 10.4 km between Higashi-Kitazawa and Izumi-Tamagawa in March 2018. This endeavor took approximately 50 years after initial plans were made, and about 30 years after construction first began. The completed tracks have created new possibilities between environments for work and academia, living and enjoyment.
On the other hand, ever since its foundation in 1990, the Keio University Shonan Fujisawa Campus (SFC) has created new concepts in society, such as fostering “exchange students from the future”, conducting education and research in the form of discovering and solving problems, and interdisciplinary action research in which technology development and policy development collaborate. Especially, with regard to the internet which was put into practical use in Japan in 1995, the SFC has been leading the research and application of the internet in Japan since its early days until today. The internet’s evolution to social use was achieved through exploratory research and education conducted at the SFC.
Accordingly, this laboratory will create new “Future Fields” based on the Odakyu Electric Railway and SFC’s achievements until now.
“Future Fields” is a term coined within the Odakyu Group’s new medium-term management plan announced in April 2018. It’s a concept that was expressed through an image of a tree, with “Excitement x Innovation” as the trunk from which four leaves grow, namely living, mobility, tourism, and community development. In the future, the leaves and branches of the tree are expected to grow and take form through free-minded ideas. Through this concept, at the present stage, this laboratory also intends to work together with the international community to create a guiding model for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the UN Sustainable Development Summit.
The concept of Future Fields cannot be achieved by a single organization alone. Its strongest theme is coexisting together (in an ecosystem). Future Fields will be complete once the following three requirements are met: 1) the externalization of one’s own organization’s growth to local communities; 2) collaboration with local communities; and 3) the internalization of local community development within one’s own organization.
Furthermore, this laboratory will collaborate with the Next Generation Campus Village Creation Consortium, which studies community development based on future lifestyles created by the SFC through the use of new technologies such as IoT and AI, to demonstrate exploratory models, which are created as needed, in local communities.

Outline of Research Activity Plan (First Fiscal Year)

• Mainly driven by researchers selected during the idea creation phase
  
• Idea Creation Phase: Recruit within the university, have researchers present their research ideas, then determine research themes to be pursued by the laboratory.
• Research Initiation Phase: Decide the issues to work on, research goals (mid- and long-term), research systems, implementation schedule, and budget for implementation after coordinating with the secretariat, then begin research.
• Symposium: Introduce activities as an ORF session (open to the public).
• Briefing Session: Announce the first year’s results and plans for next fiscal year.
  

  Category	Entry Qualifications
  I FS research	Faculty member / Doctoral Course Students
  II Basic research	Undergraduate Students / Master’s Course Students

Researchers, managers and professors