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Greeting by the Chairman of the Board
SUNTORY INSTITUTE FOR BIOORGANIC RESEARCH
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD
KENZO YANAGI
In February 1946, soon after the end of World War II, the Institute of Food Chemistry, the predecessor to our institute, was established under the leadership of the late Mr.Keizo Saji, the first chairmen of the board, based on his conviction that “A renovated Japan should contribute to world peace and prosperity through scientific and cultural achievements.”
Although more than 60 years have passed, and we have seen a growing trend towards globalization throughout that time, the role of Japan envisioned by Mr.Keizo Saji has remained unchanged; in fact, it has grown in importance.
In our attempts to fulfill our role, the foundation remains determined to contribute to the peace and prosperity of Japan and the world at large in the field of life sciences, and at the same time we hope that our continued legacy of striving for “Etwas Neues (A German phrase meaning something new)” will lead to new discoveries and findings, and will, like drops of water, lead to ripples that add to the development of science and technology, and hence the progress of mankind. And like drops of water, we are convinced that the accumulation of seemingly small but sustained and painstaking efforts is the key to this goal.
Our philosophy is embodied in the phrase by the founder appearing on the front page of this website, “HIBI NI ARATA NI” (An active and constant engagement in our everyday tasks rewards us with sufficient days).
In this spirit, we are working to realize the founder’s youthful ambition of longing to create a research institute where aspiring scientists and researchers can gather in complete freedom and totally immerse themselves in whatever projects they may fancy.
With the aim of contributing to the advancement in health and nutrition of the Japanese people, the Institute of Food Chemistry undertook research projects based on organic chemistry, and provided grants to encourage scientific research in relevant fields.
Activities in its early years included the publication of a general interest brochure titled Home Science to spread scientific knowledge to ordinary homes and society at large.
In 1979, we thought that health becomes more and more important for human “better life” through ”better eating” and “better living”. To contribute such needs to maintain quality of life, the life science should be more specialized yet comprehensive, and deeper yet more far reaching. The Institute of Food Chemistry was then reorganized into Suntory Institute for Bioorganic Research (SUNBOR), with the new mission of “conducting research into bioorganic chemistry and related areas, encouraging and providing grants for people engaged in such studies, thereby contributing to the welfare and prosperity of humankind and to the advancement of science”.
Accordingly, we formulated a post-doctoral fellowship system, one of the first to start in Japan, in 1980. Since then, research grants have been provided for many post-doctoral researchers, including about 60 foreign nationals from more than 20 countries, the United States, Ireland, New Zealand, Switzerland, France, Poland, India, Brazil, Korea and China, many of whom have accomplished remarkable achievements at SUNBOR and are now working on at the forefronts of their respective fields, as tenured professors and lecturers in academia or professional researchers in industries.
Health is becoming a growing issue not only for Japan but for the rest of the world as well, and that research into the restoration and sustenance of natural environments will become increasingly important in times to come. We would like to efforts further for finding solutions to pressing problems in conjunction with universities and other research organizations studying the phenomenon of life from the bioorganic perspective, with deeper relationship with other universities and research institutions, also by provide funding for programs designed to train human resources specifically equipped for this task.
Our challenge for the 21st century is not only to adapt to contemporary and modern, but also to future changes while at the same time adhering to the ideals of the founder: to practice the spirit of “taking on something new”, and to build a small yet unique foundation by making contributions in the life sciences to Japan and whole world.
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