Project Support Fund
Faculty of Letters/Graduate School of Letters Fund
Humanities: passing down humanity’s intellectual heritage to illuminate the future
The Kyoto University Graduate School of Letters and Faculty of Arts and Letters has led the humanities in Japan and East Asia throughout its nearly 120-year history, originating from the College of Letters established at Kyoto Imperial University in 1906 (Meiji 39). In an age when electronic data dominates the mainstream of research materials, we emphasize the importance of education and research that is made possible only by holding original materials in one's hands. The major mission of the Graduate School of Letters and the School of Arts and Letters is to study the human activities that are required in the Internet society, and to pass on rich intellectual property to the future.
［Support for the Restoration of Rare Materials in the Library's Collections]
The Kyoto University Graduate School of Letters Library has consistently endeavored to collect research materials in the humanities and social sciences, and currently holds approximately 1,170,000 volumes, of which 10,000 volumes of exceptionally valuable original materials from the East and West are stored in the Rare Book Collection. The renovation of the Rare Book Collection was completed in May 2024 with the support of this fund, and the library was reborn as a space equipped with the latest air conditioning system.
The next urgent task is to restore the collection. The Graduate School of Letters holds a large number of valuable classics and old documents that have become difficult to use for research purposes due to insect damage or deterioration. By utilizing this fund to restore these rare books, we hope to enhance the value of research by holding the original materials in one's hands. Furthermore, we aim to foster young researchers who value original materials and can make use of them in new research methods such as digital humanities.
［Support for the Faculty of Letters and the Graduate School of Letters as a whole]
In October 2024, in conjunction with the renovation of the Faculty of Arts and Letters building, the ground floor, part of the basement, and the sunken garden on the south side of the building were combined to form The Kyoto University Graduate School of Letters' Buncomo (nicknamed “Buncomo”), one of the University's Innovation Commons. For more information about the Bunkomo site, please click
here.
Buncomo is a collection of common spaces and meeting spaces equipped with movable furniture, presentation equipment, and audio equipment, and is a co-creation center of The Kyoto University Graduate School of Letters, aiming to be used as a “place” for cross-disciplinary exchange within the university and for networking among industry, government, academia, and the private sector. Light meals and drinks are available inside Buncomo, and the space is used as a place where students from the Faculty of Letters, The Kyoto University Graduate School of Letters, and other faculties of the university can casually gather and relax together, having lunch, chatting, or holding reading sessions. The long-held dream of creating a place that enriches the daily lives of students has finally come true. In the future, we hope to see the creation of “knowledge” through large-scale events and active exchanges between industry, government, academia, and the private sector.
However, the furniture and fixtures that The Kyoto University Graduate School of Letters has been able to provide with its budget are minimal, and funds are needed to enhance the facility as a cultural facility, including sound equipment for music events and film research, and a light rail and picture rail for art events and public displays of research results.
By improving and maintaining buildings and equipment related to education and research, including Buncomo, supporting and fostering young researchers through publication and research grants, and supporting social contribution programs such as open lectures, we will ensure a rich learning and research environment for students and researchers and promote active education and research activities.
Fund applications
Category
Content
Restoration of rare book holdings
Restoration of rare books, which are in particularly bad shape
Support for the Faculty of Letters and Graduate School of Letters
For improving and maintaining buildings and equipment associated with education and research, such as classrooms and experimental facilities, supporting and nurturing young researchers through publishing grants and research grants, carrying out extension lectures and other social contribution programs.
For more information, please visit
the Kyoto University Faculty of Letters and Graduate School of Letters website
［Report on Past Activities]
In 2023, this fund was newly established to meet the challenges and expectations of the humanities, and was integrated with the “Fund for the Restoration of Rare Books and Materials Held by The Kyoto University Graduate School of Letters,” which had been established in the past.
The Rare Book Depository houses approximately 10,000 items of valuable historical materials, including important cultural property classics dating back to the Nara and Kamakura periods, as well as manuscripts by Kitaro Nishida, which in the past suffered from extensive mold damage. In the past, the museum suffered from extensive mold damage. This was caused by a sudden rise in room temperature due to a malfunction of the air conditioning system, which relied solely on a conventional commercial dehumidifier and air conditioning to maintain the room environment. It had been a long-standing issue to have a stacks worthy of the value of the collection, but in May 2024, thanks to the generosity of donors, the stacks were renovated in consideration of the environment in which they are stored.
