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About The Tokyu Foundation for Better Environment

About The Tokyu Foundation for Better Environment

By 1974, water pollution of the Tama River had become a serious problem, due to a sharp increase in population density resulting from high economic growth. Noboru Goto, then President of Tokyu Corporation, established the Tokyu Foundation for Better Environment to provide grants to fund water quality studies and research focused on the Tama River, as he believed that the company had a major responsibility to support environmental cleanup activities in and around the Tama River, which flows through Tokyu's core region of business.

The Tama River's water quality gradually improved and it was more or less restored to its earlier condition in the 1980s, when the waters ran clear again. The Foundation subsequently expanded its remit beyond water quality to include grants for a wide range of activities, such as research focused on environmental conservation and improvement throughout the Tama River area.

The Tokyu Foundation has taken on the initiatives of the Tokyu Foundation for Better Environment and undertakes the following diverse array of projects.

1. Research Grants

Themes
  1. Studies and experimental research concerning the impact of industrial activities or people’s daily lives on the Tama River and its basin
  2. Studies and experimental research concerning efforts to prevent the pollution of the Tama River with waste and wastewater
  3. Studies and experimental research concerning water use in the Tama River and its basin
  4. Studies and experimental research concerning the conservation or restoration of the natural environment around the Tama River
  5. Studies and experimental research more broadly associated with environmental conservation and culture in the Tama River and its basin, including environmental enlightenment activities undertaken via symposiums, concerts or publications, and campaigns to maintain, conserve, and restore historical heritage or social systems
Eligibility No limits
Amounts awarded
  1. Academic research: Research requiring a high level of expertise and academic experience in the field concerned
    Maximum grant per project: ¥4 million. Maximum project grant per fiscal year: ¥2 million
  2. General research: Research that can be undertaken by the general public, without requiring any special academic experience
    Maximum grant per project: ¥1 million. Maximum project grant per fiscal year: ¥1 million
Duration of research Up to 2 years
Selection method Determined by the Selection Committee based on documents submitted
Publication of results Reports on research findings will be donated to schools, libraries, and research institutes, among others, and will also be compiled into a database published on the official website
Application period September through mid-January each year

The application guidelines and application form can be found here
(Applications must be submitted in Japanese)

The list of reports on the findings of grant-funded research can be found here
(Reports are available in Japanese only)

The results of the research grant selection for each fiscal year can be found here
(The Presentation Ceremony Synopsis features the overview of the research provided at the time of applying for the grant (Japanese only)).

2. Support for Activities

The Tokyu Foundation Academia Award for Social Contribution to the Environment for the year of 2021 will also be pended.

 (1)This support takes the form of assistance and financial support for courses for local citizens, lectures, and events relating to the environmental restoration of the Tama River and its basin.
(2) The Foundation presents the Tokyu Foundation Academia Award for Social Contribution to the Environment.
  1. Eligible candidates: Researchers who have made a particularly outstanding academic and social contribution in the environmental field in Japan
  2. Details of award: Commendation certificate and ¥1 million prize money
  3. Nomination method: The Foundation issues requests for nominations to institutions to which environmental researchers belong
  4. Selection method: Determined by the Selection Committee based on documents submitted

The list of award winners can be found here
(The Presentation Ceremony Synopsis features a profile of the award winner and an overview of the research (Japanese only)).

3. Awareness Raising

(1) The Foundation publishes a newsletter.

The Foundation's Newsletter “Tama River” was discontinued in March 2021.

The Foundation's Newsletter “Tama River”: Back issues can be found here

This Foundation Newsletter #165 will mark its end.

(2)  The Foundation publishes a supplementary reader for environmental studies classes.

The Foundation prepares the supplementary reader for environmental studies classes and distributes it free of charge to elementary schools in the Tama River area, among others.