Background

The Sasakawa Fellowship Fund for Japanese Language Education was set up in 1995. It is funded through the interest from an endowment bestowed on Massey University by the Tokyo Foundation (then the Sasakawa Foundation). The Programme’s aim, broadly, is to initiate, or support existing projects which enhance Japanese language learning and Japanese studies in New Zealand schools and tertiary institutions.

Eight institutions around the world are recipients of similar endowments by the Tokyo Foundation. In addition to Massey they are:

• Bucharest University in Romania
• Cairo University in Egypt
• Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University in Turkey
• IKIP Bandung University in Indonesia
• Macquarie University in Australia
• Monash University in Australia
• Queensland University and Griffith Universities (joint endowment) in Australia

Though all are broadly focused on Japanese language and/or Japanese studies, the make-up of each programme is different, depending on the situation facing Japanese educators in each country. In the case of the NZ endowment, the Management Committee reviews its projects regularly to ensure they are meeting needs. This is necessary because the issues facing the Japanese language teaching community are not static.

At present about 46% of the New Zealand budget is dedicated to a variety of scholarships for students and teachers of Japanese language and Japanese studies, about 21% to professional development for teachers, 25% to Special Projects and the balance to administration of the programme.

Massey University also administers the Ryoichi Sasakawa Young Leaders Fellowship Fund (SYLFF), a scholarship programme for graduate students in any New Zealand university, who are working towards a Masters or Doctoral degree in a wide range of disciplines in Social Sciences, Humanities, Fine Arts, Business and Trade. Although also funded by an endowment from the Tokyo Foundation, the SYLFF programme is completely separate from the Sasakawa Fellowship Fund for Japanese Language Education described in this website. Naomi Collins co-ordinates both programmes. For more information about the Tokyo Foundation, go to their website: www.tokyofoundation.org/en