Professor

Satoshi Ikeuchi is Professor of the Division of Religion and Global Security at the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology (RCAST) of the University of Tokyo. He is the founding head of the RCAST Open Laboratory for Emergence Strategies (ROLES).

For the year 2022-2023, he is Senior Visiting Scholar in Residence at the Moshe Dayan Center (MDC) for Middle Eastern and African Studies of Tel Aviv University.

He is a scholar on Islamic political thought and the Middle East politics. As a leading public intellectual in Japan, he has been vigorously publishing on the Middle East and Islamic affairs.

His first publication based on his doctoral studies, Gendai Arabu-no Shakai Shiso: Shumatsuron-to Isramu-shugi (Contemporary Arab Social Thought: Eschatology and Islamism), was published in 2002 and earned Osaragi Jiro Prize for Critical Works. He also earned Suntory Prize for Social Sciences and Humanities in 2009 for his book Islamu Sekai-no Ronjikata (Methods of Discussing Islam).

His book on the Islamic State Isulamu Koku no Shogeki (The Impact of the Islamic State) published in January 2015 was a nation-wide best seller in Japan and awarded Mainichi Publishing Cultural Prize. His recent publication includes Saikusu Piko Kyotei: Hyakunen no Jubaku (Sykes-Picot Agreement: One Hundred Years of Obsession) in 2016 and Shiiaha to Sunniha (Shite and Sunnite) in 2018 both published from Shinchosha. He is the recipient of the 12th Nakasone Yasuhiro Prize in 2016 for his academic works and social engagements.

His collection of literary essays and book reviews Shomotsu not Unmei (The Fate of Books) published in 2006 and earned Mainichi Book Review Award for the year.

He was a visiting professor at the Alexandria University 2007-2008, Japan Scholar chair visiting scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in 2009 and Visiting Fellow at the Clare Hall, University of Cambridge in 2010. 

He specializes in Middle East politics and Arab-Islamic Thought, particularly on global Jihadism and its implications for international security.

Associate Professor

Areas of Expertise:
Russian Military Thought
Russian National Security Policy
Politics and International Relations of the Former Soviet Republics
Defence Technologies

Previously, Yu has held various positions, including Assistant Analyst at Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Research Fellow at Institute for Future Engineering (IFENG), Research Fellow at the National Diet Library, and also a visiting researcher at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IMEMO RAN).

His publication in Japanese includes (in English translation titles): Russian MIlitary Strategy Today, 2021; The War in Ukraine, 2022; Okhotsk Nuclear Bastion, 2024. 

His book "Teikoku" Roshia no Chiseigaku (Geopolitics of Russian "Empire") published in 2019 was awarded Suntory Prize for Social Sciences and Humanities in that year.

Yu has presented and published extensively on national security policies and strategies of Russia and the former Soviet republics, as well as defense technologies.

Yu holds a BA in Social Sciences and a MA in Political Science from Waseda University.

日本

Professor Emeritus, Osaka University

Senior Advisor of ROLES
Advisor of Division of Religion and Global Security, RCAST of the University of Tokyo

略歴（日本語）

Akio Miyajima is a former diplomat who was Japanese Ambassador to Turkey and Ambassador to Poland. 

Born in Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture, he graduated from Waseda University's Faculty of Political Science and Economics. He entered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan in 1981 and served there until October 2024. He holds a M.A. degree in International Relations from Yale University. 

He has held a series of posts addressing successive challenges and opportunities of Japan's foreign affairs, including Director of Oceania Division (July 1999 – November 2001), Director of First North America Division (November 2001 - August 2003), Counsellor (August 2003 – January 2005) and Minister of the Embassy of Japan at the Republic of Korea (January 2005 – January 2007), Minister of the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations (January 2007 - January 2011), Deputy Director-General of Foreign Policy Bureau and Ambassador in charge of UN Affairs (January 2011 - January 2013), Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of the Embassy of Japan in Great Britain (February 2013 - July 2014). 

He was Special Advisor to the Governor on International Affairs at Tokyo Metropolitan Government (July 2014 – February 2016) while Tokyo was preparing to host the 2020 Olympic Games.

After taking up the post of Director-General of International Peace Cooperation Headquarters at the Cabinet Office (February 2016 - August 2017), he became Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Turkey (August 2017 - October 2020) and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Poland (November 2020 - October 2024) where he was faced with the Russian aggression on Ukraine in February 2022 and met the surprise visit of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to Ukraine in March 2023. 

 He is Advisor of Division of Religion and Global Security of the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology (RCAST) of the University of Tokyo. He is concurrently Senior Advisor to RCAST Open Laboratory for Emergence Strategies (ROLES) since July 2025. 

Senior Program Coordinator

Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo

Shin Kawashima is the professor of the Department of International Relations, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the University of Tokyo.
He earned his Ph.D.in Literature from Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology, the University of Tokyo in 2000.
He was an associate professor at Hokkaido University (1998-2006) and at the University of Tokyo (2006-2015), and then as professor in 2015.
He is also an executive director of the Nakasone Peace Institute, a Senior Fellow of National Security Agency, an associate member of Science Council of Japan, the advisory member of the Committee for the Promotion of the Declassification of Diplomatic Records, Ministry Foreign Affairs, the member of The Advisory Panel on Communications Concerning Territorial Integrity, the Office of Policy Planning and Coordination on Territory and Sovereignty, an academic advisor of Mt. Fuji Dialogue Young Forum and so on.
He was engaged in education and research at Institute of Modern History, Academia Sinica (Taipei), Beijing Center for Japanese Studies, Peking University, National Chengchi University (Taipei), and Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.
His research covers Chinese/Taiwanese diplomatic history and the contemporary international relations in East Asia. His first book, Formation of Chinese Modern Diplomacy (2004), was awarded the Suntory Academic Prize in 2004. He, among others, authored Frontier of China (Iwanami Shoten, 2017), Japan–China Relations in the Modern Era (co-authored, Routledge, 2017), 20th century East Asia : a new history (coauthored, University of Tokyo Press, 2020), Emerging countries after Covid-19 (coauthored, University of Tokyo Press, 2021), Xi Jinping’s China (co-authored, University of Tokyo Press, 2022), Japan-China Relations, 2001-2022 (co- authored, University of Tokyo Press, 2023) and so on.
He received Foreign Minister’s Award in 2023.

Selected recent publications and commentaries in English
Shin Kawashima, “The Evolution of Japanese Perceptions of China since 1945”, Asia Pacific Review, 2023, 30(2), pp. 148-166.
Shin Kawashima, “War in Ukraine from China’s Perspective: Limited Options for State that Cannot Reject Existing Policies”, Asia Pacific Review, 2022, 29(2), pp. 35–55.

Shin Kawashima’s articles published at Think China (Singapore online media)
https://www.thinkchina.sg/shinkawashima (Shin Kawashima’s page)
Shin Kawashima’s articles published at The Diplomat (Australian online media)
https://thediplomat.com/search?gcse=shin+kawashima (Shin Kawashima’s articles)
Shin Kawashima’s articles published at Discuss Japan (Japanese online media)
https://www.japanpolicyforum.jp/?s=shin+kawashima&submit=Search
(Shin Kawashima’s articles)
Shin Kawashima’s articles published at nippon.com (Japanese online media)
https://www.nippon.com/en/search.html?s=shin%20kawashima
(Shin Kawashima’s articles)
Shin Kawashima’s articles published at East Asian Forum (online media)
https://www.eastasiaforum.org/index.php?s=shin+kawashima
(Shin Kawashima’s articles)

Professor at RCAST of the University of Tokyo
Masahiko Inami is Professor of Information and Somatics at the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology (RCAST) of the University of Tokyo. He organized and directed the JIZAI Body project in ERATO that is funded by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST). Dr. Inami was appointed as professor at the Department of Information Physics and Computing, Graduate School of Information Science and Technology of the University of Tokyo in 2015, after working at the University of Electro-Communications and Keio University 2008-2015. Dr. Inami took up his current position as professor at the RCAST of the University of Tokyo in 2016. 

His interests include  body editing technology called "JIZAI", the Augmented Human, and entertainment engineering. He has received several awards, including TIME Magazine’s “Coolest Invention of the Year” award and the Young Scientist Award from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology (MEXT). 

He is also the co-representative of the Superhuman Sports Society, a director of the Information Processing Society of Japan, a director of the Virtual Reality Society of Japan, and a member of the Science Council of Japan. His latest book is called “Theory of JIZAI Body" (Springer, 2024).

He is concurrently teaching as Professor at Ochanomizu University since 2023 and has been Guest Professor at the Graduate School of Media Design of Keio University since 2015. 

He is a senior associate member of the ROLES project in Research Group on Advanced Science/Technology and Security."

Associate Professor of RCAST of the University of Tokyo
Yasuaki Monnai is an associate professor of Information and Somatics at the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology (RCAST) of the University of Tokyo, Japan. He received the B.E. degree in mathematical engineering and information physics and the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in information physics and computing from the University of Tokyo in 2008, 2010, and 2013, respectively. From 2010 to 2011, he was a Visiting Scholar with the University of Kassel, Germany, and with the Philipps University of Marburg, Germany, in 2012. From 2015 to 2021, he was an Assistant Professor and Associate Professor with the Department of Applied Physics and Physico-Informatics, Keio University, Japan. In 2021, he joined RCAST where he was selected as the University’s Excellent Young Researcher that year. He received the Young Scientists' Award from the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in 2023 and the Best Teaching Award of the Faculty of Engineering, the University of Tokyo, for Academic Year 2024. His research interest includes exploring wireless systems for interfacing humans and machines using terahertz waves and ultrasound.