As part of the Japan Science and Technology Agency's (JST) diversity efforts, the fifth award ceremony for the Brilliant Female Researcher Award (Jun Ashida Award) (sponsored by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology/cooperation by Jun Ashida), which recognizes female researchers who are conducting outstanding research that contributes to a sustainable society and future, was held at the Telecom Center Building (Odaiba, Tokyo) as part of the Science Agora 2023 exhibition project.

With the number of applications and the quality of the content increasing every year, this year the winner after a rigorous screening process was Hasegawa Tomoko, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Ritsumeikan University, and was presented with a commemorative trophy and a prize of 1 million yen from the Ashida Fund.

In addition, the "Shining Female Researcher Award (Japan Science and Technology Agency President's Award)" was awarded to Kaori Ota, professor at the Graduate School of Engineering at Muroran Institute of Technology.

Photo (above): From left: Kaori Ota, Tae Ashida, Tomoko Hasegawa (titles omitted)