Ever since assuming the leadership of the University of Tokyo, I’ve wanted to share my thoughts and activities as president with members of the university, as well as the larger community outside our institution. With my research field being connected to the ocean, I’d always kept a log during my time conducting surveys and being out at sea. Now, having embarked on my journey as ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app’s skipper, I would like to share with all of you my record of this latest voyage, through the ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app President’s Log.
Teruo Fujii, 31st President of the University of Tokyo
October 2023
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-E-15
Date & Time: October 31, 2023
Location: Yasuda Auditorium, Hongo Campus
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'48.3"N / 139°45'44.2"E¡¡
I recorded a segment for ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Day 2023 on Nov. 22. The online event envisions the University of Tokyo’s future by introducing ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app’s new initiatives and direction, as well as the university’s own practices it has designed, through dialogue with everyone. This will be the second such event after changing the format from that of a shareholders’ meeting last year.
In the pre-reocorded segment, I engaged in a dialogue with students participating in the . I found the stories told by the students who are striving to solve social issues, to be very interesting and we carried on our lively conversation even after finishing the recording.
Besides pre-recorded segments, we will livestream a special roundtable discussion on the sustainable university management model envisioned by the university, during ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Day 2023. We are eager to receive people’s questions and opinions for the Q&A session during the online event.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-E-14
Date & Time: October 30, 2023
Location: Yasuda Auditorium, Hongo Campus
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'48.3"N / 139°45'44.2"E¡¡
Two years have passed since we announced ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Compass, a statement on the guiding principles of the University of Tokyo, in September 2021. We invited members of the press and held a conference, reflecting on the past two years and focusing on reporting our achievements thus far.
We had many reporters attend the session and ask questions on a wide range of topics, and we spent the time in a fruitful exchange of opinions.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-UT-23
Date & Time: October 25, 2023
Location: Sanjo Conference Hall, Hongo Campus
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'43.2"N / 139°45'45.5"E¡¡
We welcomed Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen of Denmark to our campus.
After our meeting and touring of the Graduate School of Engineering (pictured), who researches quantum information science, and the General Library, the prime minister delivered the keynote address at the Japan-Denmark workshop on quantum technology, which took place at Sanjo Conference Hall.
The day was meaningful in further deepening cooperation between Denmark and Japan in the quantum field.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-E-13
Date & Time: October 25, 2023
Location: Yasuda Auditorium, Hongo Campus
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'48.3"N / 139°45'44.2"E¡¡
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app and East Japan Railway Company (JR East) concluded a 100-year industry-academia collaboration agreement and held a press conference to announce the partnership with the goal of achieving planetary health to realize a fulfilling life a century from now.
Planetary health refers to the concept of analyzing the effects of human economic activity on health, the urban environment, and life and nature on Earth, and aims to create a lifestyle that sustains a healthy balance among humans, cities and our planet.
Our goal is to focus on achieving planetary health and to realize future lifestyles by launching the collaborative Planetary Health Design Laboratory project and demonstrating ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app’s diverse and cutting-edge knowledge by using JR East’s infrastructure of railways and stations as our laboratory.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-UT-22
Date & Time: October 24, 2023
Location: Ito Hall
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'36.6"N / 139°45'37.5"E¡¡
The 2023 University of Tokyo Shokumon Award ceremony was held to honor this year’s recipients. The annual award has been presented since 2002 to individuals, corporations or organizations who have contributed significantly to the development of ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app’s activities through donations, volunteer work and other forms of support.
We were honored to receive at this year’s ceremony, the nine individuals and corporations who made outstanding contributions to our university. I wish to reiterate our gratitude for their generous support.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-UT-21
Date & Time: October 21, 2023
Location: Hongo Campus
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'48.3"N / 139°45'44.2"E¡¡
I attended ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app’s 22nd . It is a day when alumni, their families, ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app fans and people from neighboring communities gather on campus to join the festivities.
This year, there were many in-person events, including separate anniversary class reunions, which had resumed for the first time in several years and held following the Graduation Anniversary Ceremony for alumni celebrating their 10th, 20th, 30th, 40th or 50th class reunion. It was nice to have many people back and enjoying homecoming on our campus again.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-UT-20
Date & Time: October 11, 2023
Location: Yasuda Auditorium, Hongo Campus
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'48.3"N / 139°45'44.2"E¡¡
I attended the opening ceremony of . The center was established in April 2023 as a university-wide research and educational facility to support ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app students in gaining more global experiences. ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app GlobE serves all undergraduate and graduate students, and by coordinating its functions with various faculties and schools within ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app, it operates as a platform for international education for the entire university.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app GlobE will continue to offer programs that will provide opportunities for ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app students to play active roles on the world stage.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-G-16
Date & Time: October 1-2, 2023
Location: Kyoto International Conference Center
Latitude/Longitude: 35°03'42.2"N / 135°46'59.1"E¡¡
I attended the Science and Technology in Society forum 2023 in Kyoto. This year marked the 20th anniversary of the international conference, where global leaders from business, universities, educational institutions, government and other areas gathered in Japan’s ancient capital to discuss issues related to science and technology, and their impact on society.
I was a speaker in the plenary session titled “Path to Sustainability,” in which I engaged in a discussion with other speakers from around the world, including Japan’s minister of education, culture, sports, science and technology, Masahito Moriyama. The panel received a lot of questions from the audience, and I keenly felt the high level of interest among people toward achieving a sustainable society.
I also was a presenter at the University Presidents’ Meeting, in which my counterparts from around the world and I discussed the role of universities in an advanced digital society, where generative artificial intelligence (AI) is used in multiple fields, as well as the topic of a future created by humans and AI together.
September 2023
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-G-15
Date & Time: September 30, 2023
Location: The Prince Kyoto Takaragaike
Latitude/Longitude: 35°03'46.6"N / 135°46'52.3"E¡¡
I gave a keynote address at the 2nd Japan-India Universities Forum, held in Kyoto.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app has a long history of exchanges with India, spanning over 100 years. Among the various milestones of this relationship are the visit, dating back to 1916, by Indian poet and philosopher Rabindranath Tagore, the first Asian Nobel laureate (in literature in 1913), who gave a lecture on our campus during his trip to Japan, and the opening of the University of Tokyo India Office in New Delhi in 2012.
I look forward to even greater academic exchanges and industry-academia collaborations between Japan and India in the future.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-G-14
Date & Time: September 27, 2023
Location: Australian National University
Latitude/Longitude: 35°16'36.9"S / 149°07'16.3"E¡¡
I visited the Australian National University in Australia’s capital, Canberra. As one of our strategic partnership universities, ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app has an expansive, mutually beneficial and special relationship with ANU.
I met with current Vice-Chancellor and President Brian Schmidt, along with Distinguished Professor Genevieve Bell, who has been appointed to succeed Professor Schmidt in January 2024, and other university members. We discussed various topics, including further collaboration between our two universities under our partnership.
Following the meeting, I toured ANU’s research labs, including those at the Research School of Chemistry and Research School of Earth Sciences.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-G-13
Date & Time: September 25-27, 2023
Location: The University of Sydney
Latitude/Longitude: 33°53'31.5"S / 151°11'27.2"E¡¡
I attended the , which was hosted by the University of Sydney in Australia. Nearly 600 delegates in the field of higher eduation, representing close to 55 countries, gathered at this year’s 10th-anniversary summit.
I participated as a panelist in a parallel session titled “Case study: Mobilising for disaster response and climate resilience,” on Sept. 26. We discussed the role of universities in responding to crises such as natural disasters and climate change, and I also introduced ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app’s intiatives related to our topic.
During the summit, I met with university presidents and other higher education leaders from around the world. While I caught up with people I interact with regularly, I also had the opportunity to discuss the future of higher education with others whom I rarely get the chance to meet. I left with a strong sense of purpose and reaffirmed the importance for Japanese universities to raise their global presence through venues such as this.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-UT-19
Date & Time: September 20, 2023
Location: Sanjo Conference Hall, Hongo Campus
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'43.2"N / 139°45'45.5"E¡¡
I attended the closing ceremony of the 62nd , which was hosted by the University of Tokyo this year. The athletic contest is held among seven former imperial universities — Hokkaido, Tohoku, Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka and Kyushu universities, and ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app.
This year, ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app clinched the overall championship, seven years since we last won the title.
Although the COVID pandemic greatly impacted the event’s operation since 2020, we were able to carry out this year’s meet without any setbacks. I wish to acknowledge and express gratitude toward the untiring efforts of the students who were involved with the organization and operation of the sports contest. I would also like to commend all the athletes for their performance in these exciting games.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-UT-18
Date & Time: September 20, 2023
Location: Faculty of Medicine Experimental Research Bldg., Hongo Campus
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'34.7"N / 139°45'44.7"E¡¡
I held a dialogue session with students with disabilities, support staff and members of the Disability Services Office, in which I had the opportunity to exchange opinions with the participants. ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app adopted the University of Tokyo Statement on Diversity & Inclusion in June 2022 to encourage the creation of a fair and pluralistic society that respects and embraces diversity and promotes inclusion. As the university strives to build a diverse and inclusive campus where everyone can thrive, my discussion with the group proved to be meaningful and constructive.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-UT-17
Date & Time: September 9, 2023
Location: Ito Hall
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'36.6"N / 139°45'37.5"E¡¡
I attended the graduation ceremony of the most recent class (Round 28) of .
I presented certificates to each of the 18 graduates.
I trust they will become active next-generation leaders, applying their perspective encompassing the wide-ranging academic knowledge they gained through the program and drawing on their capability to shape the agenda.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app PLog #2023-E-12
Date & Time: September 1, 2023
Location: Faculty of Law & Letters Bldg. 2, Hongo Campus
Latitude/Longitude: 35°42'46.4"N / 139°45'40.0"E¡¡
I attended the opening ceremony of the , a repository holding a wide variety of resources related to the late author and Nobel literature laureate.
I trust many people will discover Oe’s work through the library and hope it will lead to the creation of a growing circle of people engaging in dialogue with his work and delving into the diverse knowledge they have gained through such dialogue.