2021-Today | The Nippon Foundation

September2021

Infectious Disease Project

The Nippon Foundation – Osaka University Infectious Disease Project is launched to establish a center for general research on infectious diseases. The project will pursue open innovation with research institutions and the industrial sector in Japan and overseas, with the aim of protecting people’s lives from the threat of future pandemics while at the same time maintaining social and economic activity.

September2021

"SignTown" Online Sign Language Game

SignTown, an online game for teaching sign language jointly developed by The Nippon Foundation and The Chinese University of Hong Kong in collaboration with Google and Kwansei Gakuin University, is officially launched in September incorporating improvements made since the beta launch in May. With the ability to recognize signs using a conventional camera attached to a personal computer, the game is intended to raise interest in sign language among the general population.

Photo: The Nippon Foundation Chairman Yohei Sasakawa (left) and Osaka University President Shojiro Nishio at the press conference

March2022

Ukraine Invasion

Russia launches an invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
In March, The Nippon Foundation Office for People Displaced from Ukraine is established, and measures are announced to provide support totaling 5 billion yen (tentative) for travel and living expenses for evacuees coming to Japan and grants to NGOs supporting evacuees in Japan.
In April, the Foundation offers support to persons with disabilities who are still in Ukraine and announces the dispatching of Japanese university student volunteers to countries neighboring Ukraine, with seven groups totaling 101 volunteers dispatched between May and October.

November2023

SPOGOMI World Cup

"The first global “Spo-GOMI World Cup 2023,” planned, managed, and supported by The Nippon Foundation to raise awareness of ocean debris, is held in November in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo. The sport, which originated in Japan, combines trash pickup with sports elements. Representative teams from 21 countries, selected through regional competitions involving more than 1,700 teams around the world, compete for the world championship, which is won by the British team with the Japanese team finishing second.

Group photo of 21 national champion teams, hosts, ambassadors, and other related individuals
Who We Are

Group photo of 21 national champion teams, hosts, ambassadors, and other related individuals

January2024

Earthquake and Flood Relief

A magnitude 7.6 earthquake strikes Japan’s Noto Peninsula and nearby areas on January 1, 2024, and the region is further damaged by heavy rains from September 21 to 23.
After the earthquake, The Nippon Foundation uses marine transport to supply needed goods to areas made inaccessible by damage to roads, and after both disasters, the Foundation supports activities being carried out by NGOs and volunteers, as well as the rebuilding of environments for daily living including support for children’s education, social welfare facilities, and social welfare organizations.

Photo of a truck driving off of a RORO ferry

Support for Disaster Recovery Interim Report on 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake and Flood Damage Relief (as of December 2024)

History

September2021

Infectious Disease Project

September2021

"SignTown" Online Sign Language Game

March2022

Ukraine Invasion

November2023

SPOGOMI World Cup

January2024

Earthquake and Flood Relief

June2025

Takeju Ogata Named Chairman