Awardees of the Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology for 2019 were recently announced, and Associate Professor AKAGI Takashi from the Graduate School of Environmental and Life Science (Agricultural Science), Okayama University received the Young Scientists’ Prize. The commendation was established to recognize scientists who have been engaged in unique research and development projects that contribute to the development of Japan’s scientific technology. The awarding ceremony was held at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT; Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo) on April 17.

Associate Professor Akagi was awarded with the commendation for his research on the evolution of sex determination in flowering plants, receiving recommendations from MEXT and the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST). Mainly using fruits and flowers, he studies various important characteristics related to the value of agricultural products, and aims to develop technology that enables artificial control of such characteristics. He also conducts research on diverse control mechanisms for sex determination and expression in floral organs of horticultural crops, as well as on the shape and physiological disorders of fruits. At the same time, he strives to clarify the factors that contribute to the quality judgment and preference of fruits and vegetables assisted by deep learning (AI) technology.

Okayama University is one of the 19 universities in Japan supported by the Program for Promoting the Enhancement of Research Universities by MEXT (support recipients were selected by MEXT in August 2013 from universities and institutions across Japan). As such, the university is aiming to become the world’s leading university boasting excellent research both in quality and quantity, under the slogan of “Research University: Okayama University.” The university will take proactive measures to foster young researchers such as Associate Professor Akagi, and to offer cutting-edge research results to society more promptly and effectively.