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President Tanaka attends THE Times Higher Education Asia Universities Summit 2023 and the APRU Annual Presidents’ Meeting

From June 21 to 23, President Tanaka attended THE Times Higher Education Asia Universities Summit 2023 held at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, where he was invited as a panel speaker at “The Unique and Diverse Drivers of Partnerships Across Asia,” and “Leadership Reflections: Presidential Panel.”

“The Unique and Diverse Drivers of Partnerships Across Asia” was held on June 21, where the panel discussed trends and challenges in global university partnerships. President Tanaka commented on the various challenges facing Japanese society and higher education and the role internationalization and global university partnerships can play in solving these issues. 

“The Leadership Reflections: Presidential Panel” was held on the final day of the summit. The panel consisted of the presidents and senior leaders of the University of Auckland (New Zealand); the University of California, Los Angeles (U.S.A.); the University of Southern California (U.S.A.); the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Hong Kong); and Waseda University. To identify common challenges facing higher education, the university leaders shared their concerns about issues and trends on subjects such as AI, tensions between the U.S. and China, and the effects of false information on higher education.   

Photography : Times Higher Education, THE Asia Universities Summit, 2023.

President Tanaka shared his conviction that Japanese universities must develop a world-class education and research environment in the face of critical challenges such as an aging population and decline in international competitiveness and described his commitment to transforming Waseda University into a world-class research university. He also illustrated the role higher education can play in resolving tension and conflict in international relations by recounting a message he shared with the university community in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which called for the university community to come together by not only supporting students from Ukraine but also by demonstrating compassion to students from Russia. The Summit, which had more than 500 attendees including leaders of prominent universities in the Asia-Pacific region, ended in great success.

Photography : Times Higher Education, THE Asia Universities Summit, 2023.

On June 25, President Tanaka attended the Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU) Annual Presidents’ Meeting held at the University of Hong Kong. The APRU is a consortium of prominent universities in the Asia-Pacific region with 60 member institutions as of 2023. Waseda University has been part of the APRU since its founding and has since become a member of the Steering Committee.

The Waseda University President attended the meeting in-person for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic. It was a valuable opportunity for the President to exchange views with leaders of top universities such as UCLA, the University of Hong Kong, and the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Photography : Times Higher Education, THE Asia Universities Summit, 2023.