In a country with persistently low numbers of women researchers and research leaders, it is incredibly important for young women researchers to incorporate the wisdom of their predecessors. RIKEN, through a partnership with Elsevier Foundation, is mapping the journeys of distinguished Japanese women scientists with a series of interviews, shedding light on challenges and best practices in their project Envisioning Futures.

We interviewed female PIs, focusing on how they acquired leadership and laboratory management skills and how they overcame challenges as PIs, especially the establishment of management policies through experiential learning and the process of trial and error, and will summarize them as oral histories. By doing so and formalizing and disseminating the experience accumulated by female PIs as tacit knowledge, we will accelerate the development of female researchers aiming for leadership positions. Also, through these oral histories, we would expect to find tips for the next generation of aspiring leaders.