Project Funding

Introduction

The Yanai Initiative’s JPP Project Funding program offers short-term support to scholars to create public-facing resources on Japan-related topics (broadly defined) to be published on the JPP website. Resources may include, but are not limited to, research and pedagogy guides, databases, video series, essays, lesson plans/syllabi, annotated translations, digital resources, or other innovative materials in support of open-access research and teaching.

Funding of up to $10,000 may be used to cover the cost of research, writing, and content development by a group of 3-5 individuals for a period of 4 months, along with other mutually agreed-upon expenses. Team members will typically be expected to dedicate approximately 3-4 hours a week during their 4-month term. For reference, work on JPP-initiated projects is compensated at a rate of $30 an hour. We recognize that institutional policies and differences in prevailing wages in different localities around the world, as well as exchange rates, may affect the amounts that teams budget. In the case of larger projects, teams may, after showing appropriate progress, apply for a 4-month extension. If more than 5 people are desired on a Project Team, applicants must provide proof of complementary funding from an outside source. The number of projects accepted each application cycle may vary.

Themes & Formats

In any given application cycle, JPP Project Funding may be open to applications on any topic and in any format, or it may be limited to applications related to selected themes, specific temporal periods, and/or targeted resource types.

For JPP’s Fall Project Funding application cycle, we will be accepting applications to the Premodern Japan Collaborative and the Early Modern Japan Collaborative, and will select up to 4 project teams to fund. Projects will be conducted between November 15, 2024 and March 15, 2025. The current project themes/formats are:

Premodern Japan Collaborative

Open theme/format

Early Modern Japan Collaborative

Open theme/format

Modern & Contemporary Japan Collaborative

We will not be accepting applications for the Modern & Contemporary Japan Collaborative for the Fall 2024 cycle of the JPP Project Funding program.

Transtemporal

We will not be accepting applications for transtemporal projects for the Fall 2024 cycle of the JPP Project Funding program.

Requirements

Application Form, which includes:

Proposed Project Title
List of Team Members, including one designated Team Coordinator responsible for organizing logistics and managing Team Collaborators
Project Proposal
- a description of the project, including goals, methods, outputs and impact
Proposed Project Timeline
Project Budget
- Project budgets must include a detailed breakdown of estimated expenses, including team coordinator/collaborator project development, project-related materials, permissions, etc.
- Budget should include any anticipated or secured co-sponsorship, along with estimated funds.

Curriculum Vitae for each team member (no more than 2 pages each)

FAQ

Can the content produced using Project Funding be housed somewhere other than Japan Past & Present?

The JPP Project Funding program offers short-term support to scholars to create public-facing resources related to the Japanese humanities (broadly defined) to be published on the JPP website. In exceptional cases, if there is a compelling reason for content produced by JPP Project Teams to reproduce their content on a separate website, they should include a justification in their Project Proposal.

Is Japan Past & Present a non-profit organization?

Japan Past & Present is a project of the Yanai Initiative for Globalizing Japanese Humanities, a partnership between UCLA and Waseda University. JPP is not a separate, incorporated entity, but it is sponsored by and housed at these nonprofit educational institutions.

How are project funds disbursed?

Given the global nature of our applicants, Japan Past & Present works with each team and project member to find the best way to meet a project’s budgetary needs and any relevant institutional requirements. Funds may either be allocated through a team member’s institution, center, or unit, via invoice for project management; or allocated directly to individuals contributing to the project based on an hourly fee or other actual costs. We recommend that teams outline any specific concerns or restrictions they may have in their project proposal.

Project funds cannot be used to cover the following:

indirect costs incurred by the home institutions of team members
subscriptions and software
extended research trips (if any travel is budgeted for project-related expenses, details must be provided and are subject to approval by JPP administrators)