Partner profile_
Young Astronauts Club
Young Astronauts Club – Japan (YAC-J) promotes youth engagement with aeronautical engineering and astronomy, encourages cooperation and exchange, and fosters the growth of young talent to lead the future of STEM.
YAC-J’s programs allow students to access STEM education free of cost, cultivating their technical skill sets while they work in teams. Collaboration is at the center of YAC-J’s model, and the organization encourages participants to work together as crew members of the “Spaceship Earth.” Igniting young people’s interest in space and science, the organization broadens participants’ horizons by bringing them to JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) and introducing them to tech and engineering role models.
“Using various technologies to educate the next generation is a shared aspiration, so we are sincerely grateful for (Akamai’s) support … (Together) we want to enable learning through repeated trial and error."
Naoko Yamazaki
Chairperson of the Japan Space Youth Corps
Collective impact
2025
With support from the Akamai Foundation, YAC-J enhanced the model rocket curriculum for young scientists. Youth now conduct simulations beforehand, designing and refining based on their results before launch. Students also utilize a “hypothesis, verification, improvement” method that is more applicable to research in the field. As a result, participants practice scientific thinking skills they can put to use in future STEM endeavors.
2024
YAC-J piloted the Water Rocket Flight Simulation program, expanding on YAC-J’s popular Water Rocket Flight program. Since hands-on trial experiences in the Flight program are limited, YAC-J leveraged Akamai grant funding to create a simulator. By combining digital technology with hardware, this simulator allows more young people to learn hands on and through trial and error, deepening their understanding of science and technology.
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Supporting STEM education and empowering the next generation of tech innovators.