"I first visited OIST for the Science Festival when I was in junior high school. Back then, I never imagined I would one day be doing research here."
These are the words of Naano Nagahama, a current OIST PhD student from Uruma, Okinawa. Fellow student interviewer Junho Lee chose OIST for its international research environment and high standard of research. Together, the two students asked longstanding OIST community members about the university's journey so far and their hopes for its future.
Watch the full conversation in the video below.
An experiment in building a new university in Okinawa
Professor Kenji Doya, who joined the initial research project that preceded OIST in 2004, describes the initiative as something of an experiment to test whether a world-class research university could truly be established in Okinawa. It began by bringing researchers from around the world together to see whether they could produce research results in Okinawa. After steadily building a track record, OIST was established as a graduate university in 2011.
Using English as its official language and welcoming researchers and students from around the world. Enabling researchers to pursue questions of their own choosing, without departmental boundaries. And rethinking what a university can be by drawing on experiences from different countries and regions, rather than being bound by established university practices. Professor Doya identifies these as defining features of OIST. While its early research focused largely on fields such as neuroscience and physics, the research scope at OIST has since expanded to include chemistry, marine science, computational science, and mathematics. Even as it has grown, he says, OIST has remained "a community where you can talk to anyone" - another quality it can be proud of.
Exploring the unknown across disciplines
At OIST, interdisciplinary research means more than adopting techniques from other fields. Encountering different ways of thinking can also lead researchers to reconsider how they frame their questions and find new inspiration. As AI and computational science become integral to many areas of research, and science and technology transform society, dialogue between natural sciences and humanities and social sciences is becoming increasingly important.
Nagahama, whose research on ADHD combines psychology and neuroscience, is herself an example of OIST's interdisciplinary environment in action.
When asked what young researchers need, Professor Doya emphasized that, rather than following a predetermined career path, they need the intellectual and physical stamina to explore uncharted territory and the ability to identify their own questions. Gathering information, trying different approaches, and reaching out to people across disciplines - OIST's flexible educational environment is designed to help students develop these capabilities.
OIST was built by each and every member
Maki Thomas, who joined OIST's third cohort of PhD students in 2014, remembers "a close-knit, family-like community of professors, students, and staff." While balancing research with raising a child and navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, she found support in an environment where she could speak openly about her concerns and in peers with diverse backgrounds.
When Kozue Higashionna, who has helped develop OIST's PhD program and student support systems, was asked which students had left a lasting impression, her answer was "all of them." The early students in particular were partners in building OIST: they discussed and sometimes disagreed with staff as they worked together in an environment still taking shape. What Higashionna hopes for students is that they will make the most of the possibilities OIST offers. By proposing ideas, seeking advice, and involving peers beyond their own universities and affiliations, she hopes they will grow into scientific leaders who connect diverse people and open new paths.
One example of such behavior is iGEM Okinawa, an initiative led by Lee. Bringing together students from OIST, the University of the Ryukyus, the National Institute of Technology, Okinawa College, and other educational institutions in the prefecture to take part in an international synthetic biology competition, iGEM Okinawa is opening opportunities for young people in Okinawa to experience the global stage.
The next 15 Years: Giving back to society
What emerged from the conversation was a picture of OIST's first 15 years as a period of exploring a new model for a university and building the foundations for research and education through trial and error.
So, what should OIST aim for over the next 15 years?
Higashionna hopes to share the knowledge and experience OIST has gained in supporting an international student body with other universities in Japan. Thomas envisions connecting research and data to environmental conservation and sustainable development in Okinawa. Doya sees a role for OIST in sharing insights from its international research and educational environment more widely, helping to improve research and education across Japan.
"I hope the next 15 years can be a time for giving back."
Sharing not only research findings, but also education, student support, internationalization, innovation, and the networks of people nurtured in Okinawa with society: OIST is now moving from exploring what kind of university it can be toward sharing the value it has created with Okinawa, Japan, and the world.
OIST's first 15 years have also been 15 years of creating opportunities for people. The students who have benefited from those opportunities are now beginning to launch new endeavors of their own.
