Ribanes Co., Ltd. held an event on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, in Shibuya, Tokyo.MCAA Asia Connect “Konnichiwa Tokyo 2026”The speakers were Akie Yonezawa, Head of the Strategy Development Division, and Koji Ishioka, Head of the Research and Development Division. The theme of the seminar is research support and international collaboration based on the questions and passion of researchers.
Event Overview
Date: November 4 (Wed) and 5 (Thu), 2026
Main venue: Tech Tokyo Shibuya (Shibuya Ward, Tokyo)
Ribanes presented at the event: November 4 (Wed): "Innovation Ecosystem, Startups & Deep-Tech"
The conference, organized by the Japan-China-India branch of the Marie Curie Alumni Association (MCAA) in collaboration with the MSCA GLOPOL, will be held on November 4 and 5. It marks the 30th anniversary of the European research support program “Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)”. It serves as a platform to connect researchers and relevant institutions from the Asia-Pacific region with Europe.
MSCAThe MCAA was established in 1996 to support the international research and career development of researchers, including doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers. In addition to research activities in Europe, the MCAA also supports the mobility of researchers from Europe to other regions. The MCAA network of supported researchers is called MCAA World.About 25,000 peopleIt connects members of the Association with approximately 40 chapters, supporting career development and networking that continue after the grant ends. A small grant to encourage participation in research presentations and training sessions.Microgrants"We also offer"
This presentation was made possible through my connection with Eugenio Otal of Shinshu University.
This participation was made possible through ongoing exchanges between Eugenio Otal, an associate professor at Shinshu University and a member of the MCAA board, and Liberas. Following his participation in the ultra-diverse field conference Osaka 2022, in 2023 he represented the team Zensorics as a representative ofFood Tech Grand PrixIt has been selected as a finalist in the same competition. In this grand prize competition, it proposed a solution to water quality issues using low-cost fluorinated sensors. The connection between the research results and their social implementation has now expanded to become an opportunity to showcase the Revenses activities at the MCAA, where researchers from various countries gather.
Dr. Eugenio Otal from Shinshu University, who serves as a member of the MCAA board (right)
Initiatives supporting researchers' challenges
Akutake introduces "Science Bridge Communication," which connects knowledge and issues from researchers and society. With the QPMI cycle, which starts with questions and passion, sharing a mission with colleagues to create new value, and educational activities,The Association of Hyperdisciplinarity, ,TECH PLANTERWe conveyed the idea of supporting researchers through this program.
Ito spoke about "for young researchers"Research funds for LiberanceWe explained the efforts to support the first step of testing the questions and hypotheses held by the researchers themselves and to link them with new research themes and collaborative research with companies.
Towards collaboration that leverages the strengths of each country
During the Q&A session, opinions were exchanged regarding the expansion to Europe and the conditions for starting collaboration in each country. Liberance emphasizes learning about the strengths of research and technology in each country and the human resource development challenges, and thinking about new initiatives with passionate researchers.
On Thursday, November 5, MCAA members visited the Libanes headquarters and had an exchange of views. The MCAA’s efforts to support researchers were introduced, and the possibility of deepening Libanes’ connections with Southeast Asia, a strength of the organization, was also discussed. Libanes sees the MCAA’s activities as long-term support for researchers’ endeavors, including career development for doctoral candidates, Libanes research funds, and connections with interdisciplinary research societies.
In the future, Liberance will continue to contribute to the international career development of researchers and to global bridge initiatives that transcend national and regional boundaries.
At the Liberation Tokyo headquarters
