Global Advisory Board Meeting AY 2019
The Kumamoto University Global Advisory Board Meeting AY 2019 was held on December 6, 2019 at Kumamoto University. This meeting was held to enable consultations with external committee members conversant in the current situation in universities both inside and outside Japan regarding the development and implementation of our global strategies, the promotion of international exchange for students and researchers, and the implementation of our slogan, “A Leading University Cultivating Global Leaders from Kumamoto*1,” as a university selected for the Top Global University Project*2 established by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan. We will make sure that their advice is reflected in our operational activities.
The 2nd meeting was attended by 4 board members from Japan and overseas, as well as President Shinji Harada, Vice President for International Affairs Jun Otani, and Special Assistant to the President (International Affairs) Hironori Ito.
First, Vice President Otani described the international efforts the university has made since the previous Advisory Board meeting, and then the board members discussed the university's issues and future globalization.
Incorporating the comments and advice from external board members into our future approaches, we will further promote globalization projects by leveraging the unique strengths of Kumamoto University, an attractive university open to the world.
【External board members (honorifics omitted, Japanese alphabetical order)】
・Takanori Sonoda, Senior Fellow, the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation
・Mark Williams, Vice President for International Academic Exchange,
International Christian University
・Marcelo J. Kuroda, Professor, University of California, Davis, USA
・Miyoko Watanabe, Deputy Executive Director of the Japan Science and Technology Agency,
Director of the Office for Diversity and Inclusion
*1. Please refer to the following website for Kumamoto University’s Top Global University Project
slogan “A Leading University Cultivating Global Leaders from Kumamoto.”
https://ewww.kumamoto-u.ac.jp/en/academics/top-global-university-project/
*2. Founded in 2014, the Top Global University Project, a (maximum) ten-year project,
aims to support universities that make efforts to globalize and to strengthen
international competitiveness. It works to establish a sound educational environment
by carrying out university reforms and globalization measures.
President Shinji Harada greeting attendees
Vice President Jun Otani explaining the initiatives
Board members giving their opinions