This new policy package is expected to fund various programs, including a plan by Tohoku University in Sendai to spend around ¥30 billion ($208 million) to recruit about 500 researchers from Japan and abroad.
Japan’s move follows an announcement in May from the European Commission(EC) that it wanted to make Europe the home of science by tempting researchers and scientists to relocate there.
The “Choose Europe” scheme is to include a €500 million ($566 million) package for 2025-2027 to make Europe “a magnet for researchers,” with EC President Ursula von der Leyen saying it would promote the region as a world-leading center of research, innovation, and scientific freedom.
This came after the launch of the Safe Place For Science program by Aix-Marseille University in the south of France a month earlier. This was setup with the intention of offering a “safe and stimulating environment” for American researchers wishing to pursue their work free from persecution.
