ANNUAL
REPORT
2022
Yamada Shintaro D & I Foundation
Greetings from the Chairperson
Creating a society with fewer women giving up on studying in STEM fields due to various social contexts.
In 2022, the Yamada Shintaro D & I Foundation became a public foundation. Additionally, in this year, the government has been promoting the advancement of women in science and engineering fields, and more universities have introduced quotas for female students, especially in science and engineering where female students are underrepresented. Over the course of the year, increasing attention on the issue of female underrepresentation in the sciences and engineering in our society was brought to bear.
The Foundation expanded the scope of the STEM Girls Scholarship Program, extending applicant eligibility up from only the 9th to also include the 10th and 11th grades in high school, resulting in an increase to a total of 600 recipients, (100 from the 9th Grade and a further 500 from the 10th and 11th.)
In addition, the Foundation has engaged in building an ecosystem around supporting female participation in STEM fields, by fostering partnerships with companies, non-profit organizations, and universities dedicated to addressing the challenges faced by girls in STEM. Moving forward, we will use our Foundation's creativity and agility to continue supporting young women under the slogan "Do What You Love". We aim to reduce the number of women giving up on STEM, thus contributing to society by making a more significant impact.
Shintaro Yamada
Chairperson, Yamada Shintaro D & I Foundation
Director, Representative Executive Officer and CEO, Mercari
Born in Aichi Prefecture in 1977, Chairman Yamada graduated from the School of Education at Waseda University. While in university, he was involved in the launch of "Rakuten Auction" as an intern at Rakuten, Inc. After graduation, he founded Unoh Inc., a company engaged in website planning, development, and operation, and social gaming. In 2010, Unoh was sold to Zynga, and Chairman Yamada left Zynga Japan in 2012.
In 2013, he founded Mercari Inc., and launched the shopping app 'Mercari'. The company went public on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers Market in 2018 and upgraded to be traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Prime Market in 2022. In 2021, he established the Yamada Shintaro D & I Foundation.
Our Mission and Vision
By promoting diversity and inclusion (D & I), we will contribute to the realization of a society in which everyone, regardless of gender, race, age, religion, etc., can realize their full potential.
What We Do 1
Scholarship Grant
In Japan, despite there being no gender gap in science and mathematics performance at the middle school level, many female students tend to choose liberal arts when applying for high school and university even if they have an interest in studying in STEM fields. This is influenced by various factors, such as peer pressure, the lack of role models, and the fear of being a minority within certain academic departments. At our foundation, we aim to increase the number of female students pursuing STEM fields and, ultimately, bridge the gender gap in STEM careers. To achieve this goal, we provide non-repayable scholarships to female students aspiring to study in STEM fields.
Student Eligibility
In 2022, we provided scholarships to:
(1) 100 female students in 9th Grade who are enrolling in technical schools and/or science and mathematics courses; and
(2) 500 female 10th and 11th Grade students opting for science courses/subjects in 2023 and aiming to enroll in STEM fields at the university level.
2023 Events
Grants of 100,000 yen were awarded in May and June of 2023 to eligible students. Additionally, recipients were invited to join the three online 'Scholarship Student Reunions'. We also invited professional women employed in major corporations, as well as science graduates as guests to dialogue with the grant recipients about their careers and plans for the future.
How are the grants used?
The grants are used in a variety of ways to help recipients take their first steps in their chosen STEM fields of study. The scholarships are typically used to pay for tuition and books, as well as the purchase of devices and research materials. However, some students have also used the money to pay for travel expenses for study abroad.
Selection Committee Members
The Selection Committee of FY2022 consisted of the following people.
Noriko Osumi(Committee Chair)
Vice President, Tohoku University
Director, Tohoku University Library
Professor, Tohoku University Graduate School of MedicineYusuke Arai
President, Sankakusha (a Japanese non-profit organization)Junji Ito
Adjunct Instructor, Faculty of Business Administration, Yokohama National UniversityMasayoshi Kase
Adjunct Lecturer, Graduate School of 21st Century Design, Rikkyo UniversityAtsuko Suzuki
Co-founder, and Senior Coordinator, Entrepreneurial Training for Innovative Communities (ETIC) (a Japanese non-profit organization)Kazuhiro Takeda
Co-founder, Willdoor General Incorporated AssociationYuki Tanaka
Professor, Graduate School of Economics, Hosei UniversityHitomi Kuma
Director, Advanced Developmental Disorders Support (ADDS) (a Japanese non-profit organization)Eri Mizutani
Representative Director, Kazetotsubasa Inc.Kazuo Yamamoto
President, Asknet (a Japanese non-profit organization)
What We Do 2
Ecosystem Formation Initiative
The Ecosystem Formation Initiative aims to build a comprehensive support system, promoting STEM education for girls through fostering a variety of relationships. To begin with, we promote research and engage in policy advocacy in partnership with numerous corporations. We also establish solid support platforms in collaboration with universities and technical schools, as well as contributing to STEM events with non-profit organizations and experts. By doing this, we encourage students, parents and teachers to further their research into post secondary education, in addition to boosting students' networking in their future STEM fields.
Events & Programs
Research and Policy Advocacy
In collaboration with our corporate partners, we are examining the many challenges relating to STEM education for girls currently present. Part of this research involves analyzing case studies from overseas, as well. Based on the findings of this social research, we are making policy recommendations to the relevant governmental and institutional bodies in order to effect real changes in our society.
Deloitte Tohmatsu Financial Advisory LLC
Deloitte Tohmatsu Financial Advisory LLC is providing pro bono support through policy advocacy and research perspectives to help the foundation achieve its goal of closing the gender gap in STEM fields. This included interviews with government agencies aimed at policy advocacy, research on case studies in other countries, and a study of the literature and science choices of female high school students.
Accenture Japan Ltd
Accenture Japan Ltd. provided pro bono services to design a survey to uncover past trends in the STEM Girls Scholarship applicants, as well as to conduct research and analysis into the personalities of female students struggling to find their academic paths.
Girls Go STEM! - Our Platform for Post Secondary Support
Girls Go STEM! links 10 universities nationwide providing inter-university exchanges and study sessions, as well as promoting these events through social media and other means to interest female students in STEM fields.
The participating institutions (in alphabetical order) are:
Hachinohe Institute of Technology / Kumamoto University / Ochanomizu University / Saga University / Shibaura University / Shinshu University / Tohoku University Center for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion / University of Kitakyushu / University of Shiga Prefecture / University of Yamanashi
Events
To enhance the interest and engagement of female students in STEM fields, we collaborate with non-profit organizations, corporations, experts, and female role models, including university students and working professionals. Together, we organize events aimed at fostering a passion for STEM.
Some of the major events we have sponsored are as follows:
Discover what science is all about! ”STEM Girls Festa" (July 23, 2022), an online event
"What if High School Girls Study STEM Abroad?" Special Discussion Panel by Seniors from the Tobitate! (Leap for Tomorrow) Study Abroad Initiative (December 10, 2022)
Women who are active in STEM fields take the stage! How to create your future? from mentors, I will protect my "body" "W week" <DAY1> (March 4, 2023)
Partner Spotlight
"Society Where Everyone Can Pursue Their Passions."
Yoshihiro Maeda
Chief Growth Officer, Deloitte Tohmatsu Group
As a professional firm dedicated to creating value in a rapidly changing society, Deloitte Tohmatsu Group continuously embraces challenges in pursuit of transformation. These challenges include the promotion of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), along with various initiatives to strengthen inclusion throughout society. Particularly, from the perspective of gender equality, we conduct surveys such as 'Women@work,' which examines women's overall satisfaction, outlook and motivation in workplaces around the world. Additionally, we actively engage in comprehensive initiatives, such as the 'SheXO Club' to support female executives and next-generation leaders within organizations, as well as initiatives like 'Women in Tech' to promote support for women aspiring to work in the technology sector. Throughout these efforts, Deloitte Tohmatsu Group promoted these activities and initiatives, showing their support of the Foundation's slogan, "A society where all people can pursue what they love".
Foundation Activities in Figures
Number of applicants
Number of female students supported
Geographic Distribution of Applicants
We have received applications from middle and high school students enrolled in all prefectures from Hokkaido in the north to Okinawa in the south. Through cooperation in promoting the scholarship with posters through school boards and schools, social media, and media coverage, awareness of the scholarship is gradually spreading.
Areas of Interest for Scholarship Recipients
At the time of application, scholarship recipients express a diverse range of interests. Middle and high school students often find themselves in a period of exploration, navigating pathways toward their future. Therefore, it is crucial for them to be exposed to the different fields of interest and the image of their future career. The Foundation continues to provide diverse information on STEM to the middle and high school generation. This helps each student to make the best choice for their future careers.
Challenges Related to STEM Education Among Applicants
Scholarship applicants revealed a wide variety of challenges to their participation in STEM education.
Challenges from the Family
Some students from outlying areas of Japan and their families are intimidated by the idea of moving to Tokyo. Many have no family or friends to support them there. Additionally, there are financial and personal safety concerns that can cause other family members to oppose a girl's move to Tokyo. On top of all that, transportation costs to and from home, as well as the cost of living within Tokyo make the choice of studying in a STEM program far from home extremely difficult for some.
For many girls, their parents' clocks have stopped. Despite the excitement over expanding options for a STEM education and the emergence of new fields of study and their associated professions, many parents still live in the past. As a result, they apply bygone stereotypes to their daughters' sometimes radically different career choices, arguing for example that the study of English is unnecessary for science majors, since their inevitable goal will be either medicine or pharmacology. Apparently, the limited perspectives of those holding on to historical stereotypes still hinder many girls pursuing a STEM education in a field of their choosing.
And finally, in many rural areas of the country, old notions associating certain professions with gender are still very prevalent, greatly limiting forward thinking girls' options in STEM fields.
Two of our scholarship recipients have expressed their own experiences below:
In relation to schools
I feel that schools are not proactive in helping students to choose a science-related field, as there is a lot of anxiety-provoking content in high school career guidance.
In relation to being a minority in my prospective field
When I look into the male/female ratio in science departments at universities, I find that in most cases the male ratio is quite high, and I feel anxious about my life at the university if I pursue a science-related major.
Forging Partnerships & Organizing Events
Our Foundation has created numerous opportunities for girls to explore all that STEM studies and careers have to offer. For example, our 'STEM Girls Fiesta' features speakers from a variety of STEM fields telling girls about their experiences. Additionally, we have held the event to inform girls about opportunities to study in STEM fields overseas, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology's 'Tobitate! (Leap for Tomorrow) Study Abroad Initiative'. Finally, we have sponsored numerous STEM Girls panel discussions run by our student ambassadors."
Ambassadors/Pro Bono Activities
Our student ambassadors, who have pursued studies in STEM fields at universities and technical colleges both domestically and internationally, have endorsed the foundation's vision. They took charge of facilitating panel discussions and providing information to middle and high school girls on the attractiveness of studying in STEM fields. Additionally, our pro bono members leverage their specialized skills in areas such as publicity, research, and event management to contribute towards achieving the foundation's goals.
Outreach & Communications
Subscribers to our official newsletter: 869
Social media followers ('X', Instagram, Facebook): 2,274
Visitors to our official website: Over 70,000
(*All figures are from July 2022 to June 2023.)
Survey Partners
Domestic Partners in our survey and policy recommendations: 23 corporations and organizations
Foreign Partners in the 'STEM Policy Survey in Germany': 12 government organizations, corporations and other organizations"
Supporter Spotlight
"Fostering Female STEM Talent in Japan to Make Significant Contributions to Society"
"Fostering Female STEM Talent in Japan to Make Significant Contributions to Society"
Professor Noriko Osumi
Vice President, Tohoku University
Director, Tohoku University Library
Professor, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine
The decline in Japan's Gender Gap Index (seen in the Global Gender Gap report of 2023,) is linked to gender disparities in higher education enrollment, particularly prominent in regions with lower (female) admission rates. As a result, the Foundation's ongoing commitment to the widespread offering of STEM scholarships to girls across the nation is expected to address the shortage of female STEM talent in Japan and thus, make a significant contribution to our society.
Our Team
Shintaro Yamada
Chairperson/Founder
Hiroshi Tomishima
Executive Director
Tae Tanaka
Secretary General
Saori Osu
Public Relations, Marketing, Research and Policy Advocacy
Ryuhi Kanno
Ecosystem and Scholarship Planning
Konomi Matsumoto
System Design/Scholarship Planning
Ambassadors & Pro Bono Professionals
About the Yamada Shintaro D & I Foundation
Address
7-14-23 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0032
Board of Directors
Chairperson: Shintaro Yamada
Executive Director: Hiroshi Tomishima
Director: Minako SuematsuEmployees
4
History
July 2021
Yamada Shintaro D & I Foundation established.
Started accepting applications for the first scholarship for female STEM high school students.
September 2022
Received approval as a public interest incorporated foundation from the Public Interest Corporation Authorization Committee of the Cabinet Office, and changed its name to the Public Interest Incorporated Foundation, Yamada Shintaro D & I Foundation.