Opening Ceremony for the University of Tokyo-Tsinghua University Joint Symposium 2018

The Opening Ceremony for the University of Tokyo-Tsinghua University Joint Symposium 2018 was held in the University of Tokyo on July 23. Xue Qikun, the Vice President of Tsinghua University, Makoto Gonokami, the President of the University of Tokyo, and Wan Wang, the Counselor of the Exchange Office of the Chinese Embassy in Japan, attended the ceremony and delivered speeches. Other distinguished guests also attending the ceremony were Gu Binglin, the former President of Tsinghua University, Xie Weihe, the Vice Chairperson of Tsinghua University Council, and other representatives from the two universities. More than 200 students and researchers from related fields attended the ceremony and the plenary session that followed.

In his address, Xue Qikun, the Vice President of Tsinghua University, noted that the ongoing cooperation with the University of Tokyo was of great importance to Tsinghua University. The two universities have shared close and lasting exchanges and cooperation for many years. The strategic partnership between the two universities would further facilitate collaborative advanced research, enhance the mobility of faculty, administrative staff and students, and provide cross-cultural experience for students at various levels.

“The symposium that we are launching today builds on the shared energy of these precious collaborations and our collective vision of our place in the future. It is a continuation of the tradition between our two universities. The workshops, seminars and lectures over the next few days are designed to unpack, explore, and debate key themes in our respective subjects,” said Vice President Xue.

Makoto Gonokami, the President of the University of Tokyo, expressed his appreciation for the visit of the Tsinghua delegation on behalf of the University of Tokyo in his welcome address. He said that the two universities have kept a close relationship in the past years. The Memorandum of Understanding on strategic partnership signed between the two universities will further promote the collaboration between the two universities in more disciplines.

“Today the joint symposium is an important part of the strategic partnership project, and through this joint symposium, we would like to encourage full cooperation in joint research and further strengthen the ties between the two universities,” said President Gonokami. He also said that the cooperation between the two universities would greatly contribute to the building of a better future society.

Wan Wang, the Counselor of the Exchange Office of the Chinese Embassy in Japan, congratulated on the opening of the joint symposium in her welcome address. She pointed out that it was of great significance for the two universities to establish a strategic partnership to address the global issues facing the world today.

“The cooperation will better enhance the mutual understanding and trust not only between the two universities but also between China and Japan, and contribute to the building of a community of shared future for mankind,” she said.

After the opening ceremony, the Plenary Session was held. Four keynote speeches were presented at the plenary session, with the topics as follows: Industrialization in prewar Japan: Complementary roles of the government and private firms; the mystery of high temperature superconductors; De-carbonization and de-centralization of energy systems in the future; Energy conversion and storage technologies for developing sustainable society.

Xie Weihe, the Vice Chairperson of Tsinghua University Council and Dean of the Institute of Education, Tsinghua University, delivered a keynote speech entitled “Positioning and evaluation-the experience of the development of liberal arts at Tsinghua” in the humanities section of the joint symposium.

Before the opening ceremony, a memorandum of understanding on strategic partnership was signed between Tsinghua University and the University of Tokyo, with its main purpose as the promotion and furthering of academic links between the two universities. In addition, a memorandum on extension of memorandum on student exchange between the two universities was also signed.

The University of Tokyo-Tsinghua University Joint Symposium 2018, co-organized by the University of Tokyo and Tsinghua University, is a seven-day symposium, consisting of 11 workshops covering the following topics: Physics & Materials, Hydro-Science, Frontiers in Biological and Biomedical Engineering, Surface Science and Related Areas, Rethinking the East Asian History of Architecture, Humanities, Materials and Devices, Chemical Engineering for Future Energy and Materials, Industrial Academic, Environment and Energy, Public Safety and Media, and an UTokyo-Tsinghua Round Table on R+D Management.

Writer: Guo Lili