Earth–Life Science Institute

Earth–Life Science Institute (ELSI) is an established^[1] independent permanent scientific research institute based at the Tokyo Institute of Technology (now Institute of Science Tokyo) in Japan. ELSI employs more than 70 scientists^[2] in disciplines ranging from astrophysics to biology, who perform collaborative research on the broad connections between the origin and evolution of planets and life.

Earth–Life Science Institute

ELSI
Type	department
Established	2012
Affiliation	Institute of Science Tokyo
Director	Kei Hirose (2012-2022), Yasuhito Sekine (2022-)
Location	Meguro-ku , Tokyo , Japan
Website	www.elsi.jp

History

ELSI was established in 2012^[3] with a charter to build a bridge between the Earth and Life sciences by rallying researchers around questions concerning the link between the origins of planets and life. ELSI has satellite-institutes at Ehime University, Harvard University, and the Institute for Advanced Study, and is currently led by Director Yasuhito Sekine and Vice Directors Tomoaki Matsuura and John Hernlund.

Funding sources

Funding sources for the institute include a combination of support from Japan's World Premiere International Research Center Initiative (approximately $7M/year^[4]), a grant from the John Templeton Foundation to establish the ELSI Origins Network (EON, $5.6M^[5] for three years), a variety of project grants from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), and anonymous private donations.

Academics

Teaching and learning

ELSI offers Masters courses through Institute of Science Tokyo and PhD degrees supervised by staff.

Research

Research is primarily supported through JSPS grants, but also private & international sources.