The Nippon Foundation, JASTO, and Leave a Nest run the Marine Challenge Program to help young people discover challenges in the marine field and build a future with the ocean. The program supports teenage researchers working on research related to the ocean, fisheries, and aquatic environments through research grants and research coaches.
The program has launched the Young Research Coach Community, a community centered on research coaches. It is designed to create a cycle in which participants continue their research after competitions and high school graduation and then support the next generation. The community held its first special event at Science Castle World on December 13, 2025, creating an opportunity for graduates and research coaches to interact with junior and senior high school researchers.
About the Young Research Coach Community
Research coaches are young researchers, including graduate students, who use their own research experience to support the development of the next generation. They work with Leave a Nest to support teenage participants in advancing their daily research. More than 180 research coaches have participated to date, including former participants who returned as coaches after entering university or graduate school.
The community will build connections across generations and fields, support the career development of research coaches, and create roadmaps that allow young researchers to continue their work after entering university.
The founding members are Hiromichi Sato of the University of Tokyo Graduate School, Naoki Fujita of Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School, and Mei Miki of Shimane University Graduate School.
First activity as a community
At Science Castle World 2025, the community held a special program with JASTO titled “Connect your interests and take on research in the marine and aquatic environment.” Sato and Miki joined a panel discussion and shared their research and connections with the marine and aquatic-environment fields with junior and senior high school researchers.
The Marine Challenge Program will continue working with research coaches to find challenges in the marine field and build a community that creates a future for people and the ocean.