On January 12, 2016, a public panel discussion was held as part of the New Year event for our Program for Leading Graduate Schools. The theme of the discussion was “The People Driving Innovation in Science and Technology.” Professor Yuko Harayama, a regular member of the Cabinet Office’s Council for Science, Technology, and Innovation, attended as a special guest. During the first half of the event, Professor Harayama explored the content and objectives of the 5th Science and Technology Basic Plan. Professor Harayama was joined in the second half by four students along with the program coordinator, Professor Ishimori; they participated in a panel discussion. The discussion, which involved participants reflecting on a broad variety of topics—the desired diversity (in terms of aspects such as age and gender) of the graduate students who will form the human resources for innovation in the future, along with issues facing the graduate education system in Japan—offered an excellent opportunity for attendees to deeply engage in the topics covered.