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A delegation led by President Tatsuro Ishibashi of Kyushu University visited the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (Illinois) from November 19 to 20, 2024. They attended a meeting with Chancellor Robert J. Jones and other leadership members, as well as a signing ceremony to renew the inter-university agreement.
Since the two institutions initially signed an inter-university exchange agreement (student and academic exchange) in 2014, they have been actively engaged in exchange programs. They have also collaborated on research centered at the International Institute for Carbon-Neutral Energy Research (I2CNER) under the World Premier International Research Center Initiative (WPI) program at Kyushu University, which is now a WPI Academy. Given their exchange achievements and future potential, the institutions agreed in 2019 to recognize each other as “Strategic Partners” (*1) to strengthen their relationship. Since then, they have further promoted collaborative research through seed-funding projects in five jointly selected areas (*2), resulting in joint symposiums, co-authored papers, and other achievements. Furthermore, a delegation led by Chancellor Jones visited Kyushu University in September 2023, leading to new collaborations in medicine and agriculture, in addition to the five areas.
At this meeting, the two institutions reflected on their progress and agreed to strengthen their relationship on a university-wide scale further, developing multifaceted cooperation in areas such as education, diversity promotion, staff exchange, and more.
Representatives from the three Institutions, from left to right: President Ishibashi (Kyushu University), Chancellor Jones (Illinois), Professor Shih Chi-Sheng (National Taiwan University).
A delegation from National Taiwan University, another strategic partner of Kyushu University, also visited the U.S., where a meeting was held with representatives from these three institutions. They decided to hold an in-person workshop and are preparing a concrete program for its implementation next year. Following the conclusion of an MoU for establishing the Trilateral University Center in February 2024, the directors from these three institutions have continued discussions about the details of the activities.
Assistant Professor Wang, center, and Professor Ikegaya, right, network with researchers during the sustainability workshop.
In conjunction with this visit, a workshop on sustainability in metropolitan areas was held, attended by about 30 researchers from the three institutions. Professor Naoki Ikegaya and Assistant Professor Wang Wei of the Faculty of Engineering Sciences at Kyushu University took to the podium to share their expertise on solving problems surrounding the urban environment, including climate change. This workshop has acted as a stepping stone for further discussions on joint research and acquiring research funds in the future.
Under the “Kyushu University VISION 2030”, Kyushu University is expanding and deepening international collaboration by promoting worldwide strategic partnerships. In addition to accelerating bilateral collaborations, Kyushu University will also focus on trilateral partnerships, making university-wide efforts to produce outcomes such as co-authored publications.
※1 Strategic Partners
Strategic Partners are overseas institutions with particularly strong track records of exchange with Kyushu University. These relationships aim to establish beneficial and closer ties beyond inter-university exchange agreements to mutually enhance performance and international presence.
※2 Five jointly selected areas
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Kyushu University have contributed funds (seed-funds) to promote research collaboration in five key areas selected through discussions.
Global Partnership and Alliance, International Affairs Division, International Affairs Department
Mail: intlsenryaku★jimu.kyushu-u.ac.jp
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