Dr. Yoshio Nishina originated the study of nuclear physics in Japan and trained many young Japanese scientists in that field.
After his passing in 1951, the Nishina Memorial Foundation was founded in 1955 with the objective of promoting physics in Japan, encouraging young and able scientists and encouraging exchange of science and culture between Japan and other countries in order to commemorate the great scholar.
The missions of the Nishina Memorial Foundation are:
(i) To award the Nishina Memorial Prize to promising young scientists. Many of them have gone on to win further prestigious prizes, both national and international, the most notable being the six Nobel Prizes awarded to Leo Esaki (1973), Masatoshi Koshiba (2002), Makoto Kobayashi (2008), Toshihide Masukawa, (2008), Shuji Nakamura (2014), Takaaki Kajita (2015)
(ii) To send young scientists to foreign countries.
(iii) To invite distinguished scientists from foreign countries.
(iv) To give young scientists from developing countiries the chance to engage in research work in Japan.
(v) To explore and record historical events and documents related to Nishina’s life and work. .
(vi) To deliver Nishina Memorial Lectures. Sin-itiro Tomonaga, the second president of the Foundation, promoted a series of public lectures by inviting distinguished scientists from abroad as well as from Japan.
As for the details, refer to the book below.