February, 2004 Prof. Tetsuro Matsuzawa Kyoto University, Japan Summary of HOPE Project The human mind is as much a product of evolution as the human body. Where did we come from? What is human nature? To answer such fundamental questions, we must address the question of how humans have evolved. Humans (scientific name Homo sapiens) are a species of primate, a species of mammal, and a species of vertebrate. The HOPE project aims to study the “Primate Origins of Human Evolution” focusing on apes and monkeys as our evolutionary neighbors. HOPE is an anagram of our research title, and also expresses a hope for conservation. All primate species other than humans are designated as endangered or threatened in CITES (Washington convention on endangered animals and plants). Therefore, in parallel to advanced studies of primates, we must also make concentrated efforts for the conservation of monkeys and apes in tropical forests, as species symbolic of biological diversity and the global environment. Japan is unique among the advanced countries of the world in having an indigenous species of nonhuman primate. Thanks to the country’s natural and cultural background, Japanese primatological study has made unique contributions to the world. The late Kinji Imanishi (1902-1992) and his colleagues began the study of wild monkeys in Koshima, Miyazaki, Japan, in 1948. The study of Koshima monkeys continues to be conducted by the Primate Research Institute of Kyoto University (KUPRI) to the present day. Fifty-five years have passed, throughout which researchers kept records of monkeys of eight generations: the history of a monkey kingdom. Japanese primatologists embarked on fieldwork on great apes in Africa in 1958. While this work also continues, a new line of captive research on the chimpanzee mind is being promoted in parallel by KUPRI. Japanese researchers founded an English-language primatological journal titled “Primates” - the oldest one in the discipline - which is now published in collaboration with Springer-Verlag of Germany. Germany also has a long tradition in the study of chimpanzee intelligence, originated by Wolfgang Koehler (1887-1967). One of Germany’s most recent major contributions to the academic world was the founding of the Max Plank Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology (MPEVA) in 1997. This brand new facility focuses on the study of humans and apes, and is laying the foundations for a new discipline: Evolutionary Anthropology. MPEVA has already established itself as a core institution in Europe for the study of the primate origins of human evolution. 1/3 February, 2004 Prof. Tetsuro Matsuzawa Kyoto University, Japan HOPE is a core-to-core program established between Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) and Max-Plank-Gesellschaft (MPG). The HOPE project has two core institutions, one in Japan (KUPRI) and one in Germany (MPIEVA). These two institutions will serve as focal points for scientific collaborations relating to Primatology and Evolutionary Anthropology in the two countries. Researchers in Japan and Germany will collaborate to explore the evolutionary origins and genomic basis of the human mind, body, and society through comparative studies of primates. This work should proceed with the following basic question in mind: What is uniquely human? The answers may provide biologically relevant guidance toward solutions to many of the problems we are facing in modern human societies. KUPRI has several long-running research sites of wild Japanese monkeys, chimpanzees, and bonobos. It also serves as a national center for various disciplines within the field of primate studies. Similarly, MPIEVA maintains long-running research sites of great apes in the wild: chimpanzees, bonobos, and gorillas. It also has a research facility for captive apes: the Wolfgang Koehler Primate Research Center collaborated with the Leipzig Zoological Garden. MPIEVA has already made major contributions to the study of wild apes, comparative cognitive development, and comparative genomics. The two institutions complement each other fully, and a collaboration between them will catalyze scientific progress and create new frontiers in the study of the Primate Origins of Human Evolution. For that purpose, the HOPE project will promote collaborative research, facilitate exchange between young scientists, and hold international workshops and symposia. HOPE will also build up a database of primatology and evolutionary anthropology, and will run an internet web site showcasing these topics. In addition, HOPE plans to produce a series of English-language publications to provide the public with feedback on scientific achievements. The HOPE project’s present schedule is planned as follows. In 2004, the two institutions will participate in a meeting in Leipzig to draw up an agenda and action plans for the next two years. Then, a number of symposia organized by KUPRI and/or MPIEVA will be held: “Evolutionary origins of human language”, “Apes and disease”, “Feeding ecology”, “Evolution of intelligence for tool use”, “Research, welfare, and conservation of the great apes”. In 2005, HOPE will organize a satellite workshop at the HUGO (Human Genome Organization) international symposium in Japan. In addition to the exchange of information, HOPE will also promote the exchange of young scientists of future generations through collaborative visits to the respective institutions. Illuminating the unique features of MPIEVA, HOPE will focus on 2/3 February, 2004 Prof. Tetsuro Matsuzawa Kyoto University, Japan exchanges in the following three advanced fields: “Developmental processes of cognition and language”, “Ecology of apes in their natural habitat”, and “Comparative genomics”. Moreover, HOPE will focus on two additional fields that can not be fully covered by the Japan-Germany collaboration: “The study of fossils” and “The study of wildlife conservation and animal welfare”. For that purpose, HOPE will maintain a perspective for future collaborations with institutions in the USA which address all of the above topics, with particular emphasis on the latter two. Throughout its continuing efforts of collaboration, HOPE will aim to clarify the primate origins of the human mind, body, and society, as well as the genomic bases thereof. *Please visit the following websites: KUPRI website http://www.pri.kyoto-u.ac.jp/index-j.html JSPS website: JSPS Core-to-Core Program http://www.jsps.go.jp/j-bilat/sen.html 3/3 .