We’ll begin a story about grabbing hold of clouds.

　Since its establishment in February 2020, the Future of Humanity Research Center has been promoting the Rita Project as a center for rita studies. And from April 2023, in order to further promote studies of rita, we have decided to start a new “Water Project” in parallel with the ongoing Altruism Project.

　The earth we live on is sometimes called the “Planet of Water”. Water flows through the oceans and rivers, of course, at times becoming steam, ice, or clouds, and sometimes taking the form of rain or snow, falling back to the earth.

　It is also said that more than half of the human body is made up of water, and without water we would not be able to maintain our vital activities. As you know, various aspects of our lives depend on water. The same is true for the diverse living creatures that inhabit the earth.

　In order to secure this precious resource, people have built villages and cities near rivers and developed flood control technology. On the other hand, due to population growth and climate change, water as a resource is becoming noticeably scarce in many parts of the world. “Water conflict” over issues such as the distribution of water resources and water pollution has also arisen, and is becoming an urgent issue.

　Thus, water is a substance that is entangled with all elements of nature and society, and is deeply related to the theme of rita. In this new project, we will focus on water in all its multifacetedness and scope.

　But where to start? After much thought and consideration, we decided to grab hold of a cloud for the first year of the water project. Yes, I mean those clouds in the sky.

　Let me first try to put a question to you:

　What would happen if we could create clouds, move them, and turn them into water at will? What kind of changes would occur in our society and in nature?

　The technology to control clouds has already been conceived of. However, it is still a “dream technology” - one that has not yet reached a state of readiness for practical application and dissemination.

　So, we decided to think about what is needed to realize this technology and at the same time consider the changes it would bring about for mankind and the earth. We can say that we are trying to use “Doraemon-like” or science fiction-like imaginations to envisage what it would be like if we had such a tool for water available.

　It is a matter of thinking about changes that will occur not only in technology, but also in people, society, and nature itself. From the perspective of university research activity, this means thinking about the future at the intersections of natural sciences and technology, social science and the humanities and arts. And that involves gathering and linking knowledge of science and engineering, medicine and dentistry, and the humanities and social sciences, while focussing on “water” and “clouds”.

　Now, how can we tackle a first attempt at such future-oriented speculative design?

　Among several possibilities, we have decided to try out the power of games as a medium. A game is a form of play in which you set up a world, follow the rules, and try to figure out what could happen in that world in terms of both potential failures and successes. We use games as a tool to explore “What would happen if such a world were realized?”

　Thus, over the course of this project we will design a game based on the knowledge we gain from the advice of experts in various fields, and through that design process and game playing our inquiry will deepen as we gain insight. By the end, we hope to discover new ways of looking at and gaining knowledge about new technologies and the state of society.

　Please look forward to finding out what happens in this story about grabbing hold of clouds.