University of Tokyo President Council in Bangkok

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After the Kavli Conference at University of Tokyo, I departed Narita Airport on the evening of the 28th for Bangkok to for the President Council. Our host was a member of the President Council, the Royal Highness Chulabhorn of Thailand. I was invited to speak at the entrance ceremony of the University of Tokyo this year, so I participated with feelings of gratitude though my schedule was very tight. From Japan, there was President Hamada, and others of administration of the University of Tokyo, and of the Council members, Professor Emeritus Yoshino of Harvard (he had also faculty position at UCLA in the late 1960s), Mr. Yokoyama, and Mr. Munjal from India, Dr. Raivio from Finland, Hassan Jamil and Rita Colwell. It was my third meeting with Ms. Colwell this year.

We visited the Chulabhorn Research Institute and the Chulabhorn Cancer Hospital next door. The facilities are extensive and research is conducted actively. There is also research on local organisms and aquatic plants from the sea that are effective for treating cancer. In one of the research labs there was a talented young researcher who studied at John Hopkins as an undergraduate and received a PhD from there as well. I wish all the best for future achievements.

The cancer hospital is also relatively new, with one hundred beds, and it is a hospital that specializes in cancer. There were some cherry blossoms decorating the lobby. As this is a new hospital, other than there are plans for expanding it into a center for extracting cancer samples analysing cancer. According to her Royal Highness, the budget has become tight recently and there is difficulty in moving things along.

In the evening, I attended a dinner with her Royal Highness.

The next day, Dean Kiyono gave a presentation on the President Council, several challenges for the University of Tokyo, around the world and research by the Institute of Medical Science on the“rice vaccine,” in which mucosal immunity is induced by inserting antigenic agent into rice. The vaccine does not need to be refrigerated and is a very interesting research concept. The presentation was superb, reflecting his career of twenty years in the United States.

In India, I had met the father of Mr. Munjal, Chairman of the Hero Group (he is currently ninety and very well). He has long been an avid supporter of education and has major plans of establishing Munjal University. It is promising and is likely to actively incorporate many new innovations from the world.

I took a red eye flight back to Haneda, where I landed at 5:45 AM. I returned home to take a shower and then went to the British Embassy for breakfast at 7:20 with the State Minister for Energy and Climate Change, the Rt Hon Edward Davey MP. It is admirable that there is a periodic changing of ministers accompanied with civil servants under the Minister in the UK.

As I felt the other day in West Sussex, British politicians are highly talented and well trained.

The Annual Meeting of the Japan Chapter of the American College of Physicians; Nurturing World-Class Citizens

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The Annual Meeting of the Japan Chapter of the American College of Physicians (1, 2) was held this year in Kyoto University Clock Tower Centennial Hall and was organized by Professor Shunichi Fukuhara (link available only in Japanese).

The topics this year included clinical education, clinical conference and clinical research, and thanks to the dedicated planning of Professor Fukuhara backed up by the strong support of the current Chapter governor Dr. Kobayashi, was a two-day event, the first of its kind. The participants were mostly aspiring medical students and young doctors.  I feel that this was because many of the speakers are dedicated to their field of clinical education and also because some of the speakers had had clinical training in the USA. All in all, there were around 600 participants, a number I am happy about.

On the first day, every venue was packed with eager participants and their passion came across. In particular, the young people in the crowd seemed to be hungering for this wonderful opportunity to learn more about clinical education and training. Indeed, during the reception, the talk centered around the issues raised in each session. Although I was personally unable to attend all the sessions, I am sure that Drs. Tokuda, Sudo, Takasugi, Kishimoto, Shibagaki, Nagahama and their colleagues livened up the event.

This time round, we were lucky to have Virginia Hood (currently at University of Vermont, she is a specialist in nephrology like me, and I was able to meet her in the autumn of 2011 in Taipei) who was unable to attend the same event in 2011 when she was the President of the ACP because it was held just after the Tohoku disasters. We also had Mitchell Feldman (Chief Editor, Journal of General Internal Medicine, Univ. Calif San Francisco), and they both had sessions with Japanese and English, although I am afraid that we did not have simultaneous interpreting due to financial constraints.

The first day’s last talk sessions were by Dr. Feldman (UCSF) and Dr. Ishiyama (St. Louis), as well as Professor Fukuhara. This was followed by a memorial service held in the memory of Dr. Kazuo Endo (1, both links available only in Japanese) of Okinawa Chubu Hospital, whose contributions to the study of infectious diseases as well as in other fields have been remarkable.The final special session was one commemorating my selection as one of the ‘100 Top Global Leaders 2012’ (Foreign Policy) and my award from the AAAS, bringing a close to the exciting first day.

The Japan chapter of the ACP was finally set up ten years ago in order to meet the need for internists and physicians who would be at home in a rapidly globalizing world. This was also the first Chapter of the ACP outside of the North and South Americas.

As we head steadily for a globalized society, we are finding it increasingly difficult to change the pre-existing Japanese form of organization because of its history and the individuals associated with it. Yet such initiatives which can dovetail harmoniously with the existing frameworks while being different are, I feel, one way of nurturing future global citizens.

The passion that I felt emanating from the young people at the Japan Chapter of the ACP have left me thinking that the best is yet to come, and I found myself praying for the future success of this initiative. After all, developing human resources is a long process.

It was with feelings of regret that I was unable to attend the second day because of prior engagements.

Return to St. Gallen Symposium

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Once again, I attended the St. Gallen Symposium. This year’s theme is “Rewarding Courage.”  This theme shows the significance of the input of the students who are hosting the symposium. On May 1, I flew from Narita Airport.

I did not attend last year because of my duties at the National Diet of Japan Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission, but this year will be the fourth time I have attended since 2007.

Both of the two days had wonderful plenary sessions and everyone seemed satisfied.

The last general panel of the first day was called “Leaders of Tomorrow: Essay Competition” and was moderated by Professor Yoko Ishikura, whose dynamic and ad lib style allowed for an engaging and lively discussion. Out of over one thousand essays written by young people around the world, three were chosen. The discussion among the twelve young people on the panel was very inspiring.

The interactions with young people are always fun and older generations have important roles.

On the second day, I talked at the workshop entitled “Global Agenda in Post-Fukushima” and Prof. Ishikura was the moderator. As the flow of this session shifted toward focusing specifically on the Fukushima nuclear accident and NAIIC, it deviated slightly from the subject mentioned in the title. However, I believe this was because there were many individuals from Switzerland and Germany, who were very highly interested in the Fukushima accident. This indicates the impact of the Fukushima nuclear accident on the world and high awareness of people across the world. This is a lesson should such accidents happen and I will try to focus more on the subject of Post Fukushima next time.

The symposium at St. Gallen started in 1971 and this is the forty-third year. It was started by students in St. Gallen and students continue to choose the theme and organize the program today. The night I arrived, at the reception I was seated with six St. Gallen alumni who had been involved in the symposium thirty, twenty and ten years ago. It made me reflect on the virtuous cycle that exists in the relations between older and younger generations. As young students at St. Gallen, these alumni must have met many leaders of society as well as faced many obstacles in planning the symposium. These experiences are valuable and are rewarding later on as alumni. I admired and was moved by the senior- junior relationship over years that is fostered through the symposium

On the second day, I checked out of the hotel immediately after my workshop and went to the airport to depart for Heathrow in the UK.

 

My Award Celebration and Professor Yoshikawa’s Speech

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Last year, for my role as the Chairman of the first independent investigation commission in the constitutional history of Japan, the National Diet of Japan Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission (NAIIC), I received two awards: I received the Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Award from the American Association of Advancement of Science (AAAS) and was named one of the “100 Top Global Thinkers 2012” by Foreign Policy.

The former President of Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Mr. Seizo Miyata, who also gave NAIIC much important advice, was the leader in planning the celebration. I also gave a lecture on NAIIC. It was a very fun celebration planned by friends mainly from the science world.

I was very happy that NAIIC was evaluated highly internationally. It was possible to carry out this work in the short span of six months because of the many talented people, at the center of which was the NAIIC team.

The celebration started with an opening speech by the former President of the University of Tokyo and former President of the Science Council of Japan, Professor Hiroyuki Yoshikawa, for whom I have the highest respect. After entering the twenty-first century, at a time when the Science Council of Japan and the international academic scientific world were going through major transformations, Professor Yoshikawa held positions of responsibility in both and faced many obstacles. In the Science Council of Japan, I served as the Vice President under President Yoshikawa, and later succeeded him as President. Thus, I have had the privilege of working with him for many years and was under the impression that he knew me well.

Professor Yoshikawa began his speech saying that he was happy to congratulate me for three main reasons, which consisted of his analysis and observations of my character and actions. I was very surprised and moved by his speech, as I am sure many people in the audience were. Professor Yoshikawa’s three reasons are summarized quite accurately in
Mr. Deguchi’s mail magazine（THIS IS LINKED TO MY ATTACHMENTS, WHICH IS THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF DR YOSHIKAWA'S SPEECH). Please take a look, you will also find many pictures of the celebration.

Ms. Yoko Ishikura also was kind enough to write about the celebration in her blog.

Ambassadors from the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Norway, Switzerland, and Ambassador Fujisaki, Japanese Ambassador to the U.S., attended and gave their greetings. Minister Nemoto and other members of the Diet also gave their greetings. Dom Perignon and KENZO wine was served and it was a very fun celebration.

I felt the kindness and warm feelings of many people and would like to express my gratitude.

 

Congratulatory Address at University of Tokyo Entrance Ceremony

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The entrance ceremony at the University of Tokyo will be held on April 12.

I remember when we entered university, the season of the cherry blossoms was in full swing.

In Japan, the university entrance ceremony is the most important first step in students’ lives. Many of their family members also attend the ceremony.

At this year’s ceremony, I will be giving the congratulatory address. When I was asked, I was initially a bit surprised. Perhaps if you read my past column entries, you will understand why I was perplexed. But I was genuinely pleased, and it seems the times are changing.

The ceremony will take place at the Budokan arena. After the President of the University of Tokyo, Mr. Hamada, and the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Dr. Ishii, I will give my address.

To the new students, I would like to take these ten minutes to express my thoughts and feelings.

This is the link to my speech.

University of Tokyo 2013 Entrance Ceremony Speech

A video link will also be coming soon.

 

Los Angeles, UCLA and Reunion with Paul Terasaki

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After travelling approximately 24 hours from Abu Dhabi via London, I arrived in Los Angeles at 3 P.M. on March 20. I went directly to the hotel, rested a while, had a look around and had dinner.

The next day, I met with some exchange students studying at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs at the hotel. Afterwards, I went to UCLA to have a meeting with Vice-Provost for International Studies Cindy Fan and others for various appointments. In the evening, I attended the GOLD reception, which I also attended last year in Tokyo.

On the 22nd, I had a meeting with UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, and gave a lecture titled ‘Global Agenda in Post Fukushima’ in a small hall in the Royce Hall. The hall was filled up to its maximum of around 120 people. One of my mentors during my time in the U.S., Professor Charles Kleeman (in Japanese) was kind enough to come to the lecture with his wife.

Afterwards, I returned to the GOLD Conference to give my speech. On this day, Mr. Nakamura, the founder of Kopernik, gave the Opening Keynote speech, and I gave the Closing Keynote speech, similar to the format last year. Last year Mrs. Susan Roos, wife of Ambassador Roos of the U.S. was a great partner and gave the Closing Keynote speech.

In the evening, I dined with UCLA Chancellor Block and others at Scarpetta, a restaurant in the Montage Hotel, one of the premier hotels in Beverly Hills. Also attending were Ms. Irene Hirano, wife of former U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye who passed away recently, UN Ambassador Nishida, President Sakurai of the Japan Society, and Mr. Ralph Shapiro, who are all supporters of the UCLA Terasaki Center for Japanese Studies. I am also one of the members, but was absent from the twentieth anniversary event last year because I was in the middle of my duties for the National Diet of Japan Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission (NAIIC).

The next day was also a conference at the Montage Hotel. Afterwards, there was a reception in the top floor penthouse of Professor Paul Terasaki. Dr. Terasaki has made enormous contributions in the fields of human organ transplant histocompatibility and transplant outcomes. As I am a nephrologist, I have treated patients who have received organ transplants, and he was one of my friends during my time at UCLA. After achieving great success through the histocompatibility research, he gave a generous donation to UCLA, established the Japan Study Research Center, and is living a good retirement life. It is enviable.

As always, the sky was a bright, clear blue, and it felt nostalgic to be back in Los Angeles. I visited the Getty Museum and prepared for my trip home the next day.

It was a busy but relaxing four days.

 

From Abu Dhabi – 2

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On the second day of the trip to Abu Dhabi, we visited the Department of Economic Development. We were received by Chairman Alsowaidi, who warmly welcomed the cooperation of business, government and academia. In particular, he was glad about my coincidental encounter with the Sakura Club at the Al Ain campus of United Arab Emirates University on the previous day. This meeting was possible thanks to the initiative taken by the Research Center for the Advanced Science and Technology of University of Tokyo, and the discussion proceeded to the topic of cooperation in research and development. Such meetings are fundamentally important for relations between countries.

The Abu Dhabi side gave a presentation called “Abu Dhabi Economic Vision 2030.” For the Japanese side, Professor Kudo of Showa Medical University (gastroenterological) gave a presentation showing a video of theremoval of a polyp from a large intestine using an endoscope. There were also presentations by various companies and an introduction of the Research Center for the Advanced Science and Technology of University of Tokyo.

I had another appointment and had to excuse myself for an hour, but our visit was reported in the local newspaper. I am sorry to say that I found the article had mentioned my title incorrectly.

As you may know, nuclear power plants are currently being constructed in Abu Dhabi and there are efforts to deepen relations with Japan and to learn from the recent accident.

Our meeting ended smoothly and we headed towards our next stop, Zayed University. This also has an astounding campus as well as state of the art facilities. Here too, there is a Japanese “fan club” sort of organization.

In the evening, out of the courtesy of Ambassador Kamo, I had dinner at the Ambassador’s official residence, the last time I was there was three years ago.

The next day was the final day of our trip. I met with the Dr. Laursen, the President of Khalifa University, where I am a member of the board. Afterwards, I joined everyone for a relaxed lunch and we started preparing for our return trip. In the evening, I was interviewed by a journalist who is working in Abu Dhabi under a two year contract. This interview piece is also available.

She graduated from Harvard College and invited me to a Harvard dinner gathering at the Park Hyatt Hotel. It is quite a pleasant hotel. There are many people here on business. Afterwards, I checked out of my hotel at 11 p.m. and headed toward the airport.

I will now travel to Los Angeles via London, a trip of twenty four hours in total. 

 

From Abu Dhabi – 1

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I visited Abu Dhabi after some time. This time I came with the purpose of developing greater university and Japan related networks in Abu Dhabi.

The twenty people or so whom I came with included Mr. Toyoda, the former senior officer of Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Professor Nakano, the Director of the Research Center for the Advanced Science and Technology of University of Tokyo, and others who have a deep relations with Abu Dhabi. My connection to Abu Dhabi and this delegation formed because I am a member of Board of Trustees of Khalifa University and also because I was a member of the President’s Council at the University of Tokyo, as well the Director of the Research Center for the Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Tokyo and I had wanted to further mutual relationships between universities. Although it has only been forty years, Japan and the United Arab Emirates have had deep relations, not just limited to the spheres of education and research. The United Arab Emirates is one of the main exporters and Japan is one of the main importers of oil. Last month, Minister Motegi visited the area and many agreements were made, with the involvement of the Research Center for the Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Tokyo.

We arrived late at night and the following day we visited the campus of United Arab Emirates (UAE) University, which is the national university of UAE. Many Western universities and companies have opened research offices there and it is possible to see the vibrant teaching and research that is going on. They are especially passionate regarding the undergraduate education. It is disappointing that Japan is not participating in such activities. I learned that there is a club called the Sakura Club for students who want to know more about Japan and become friends with Japanese.

In the afternoon, we visited the main campus of UAE in Al Ain. It was ninety minutes by car. The weather was sunny and the temperature was a comfortable 25 to 27℃. We were shown the excellent campus. I have visited the medical school there three or four years ago. The medical school has ties with John Hopkins University. Here too, the undergraduate education is the core of the university.

We were scheduled to depart at five but as we entered the majestic building of the main campus, we came across a sign that announced “Sakura Club event” from five to six. As we quickly changed our plans and entered the auditorium, we saw that there were some Japanese female university students wearing kimonos and a woman who was performing a classical Japanese dance. This happened to be Mako Hattori and her team. We know each other and so we were very surprised to meet here by chance. Considering that around twenty Japanese men suddenly and unexpectedly came into the auditorium, they must have been quite surprised. This unexpected meeting made us very delighted and we all greatly enjoyed Ms. Mako’s explanation of the kimono and dance.

Also present were Ambassador Kamo and his wife, who took the post last November.

I met a student from Waseda University who is studying here for one year. She must have been surprised to say the least. She said her university life has been very fulfilling.

In the auditorium, the female students sat to the left of the stage and the male students sat to the right. This is the local custom.

We left after about half an hour, but it must remain in the minds of the students as a good memory.

Such unexpected meetings can occur in the most unlikely places.

 

In San Francisco and at Stanford University

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EDF is an environmental advocacy group set up in 1967, during a period when many new movements were sprouting up. This was the period when Rachel Carson’s seminal book ‘Silent Spring’ came out, as well as the period when the Vietnam War was escalating.

At EDF, scientists and lawyers come together in order to solve pressing social problems through policies and politics. I was in the US around that time (in 1969) and so feel I know the social background out of which this movement rose up.

I was invited by the board of trustees of this organization to join its ‘Science Day’ event, and I decided to accept and so found myself in San Francisco. I think they invited me because the theme this time was nuclear energy.

I reached San Francisco a day early on the 4th of February, and was invited to give a seminar the next day at APARC in Stanford University. Another reason I was there was to meet professor Takeo Hoshi, who had just joined Stanford from UC San Diego where he had been for about 20 years.

My seminar was attended by Masahiko Aoki and many others, and I was also able to have an informal discussion of around 2 hours after my hour-and-a-half seminar.

The EDF meeting the next day was attended by the likes of Burton Richter and John F. Ahearne (a key member of the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) which compiled a report for the Three Mile Island Accident (March 1979), who then become Chairman of the Commission two months after the release of the Kemeny Report), all giants in their respective fields, and thanks to the participation of many experts in environmental and energy problems, a lively discussion took place. It was interesting to be in a conference with such a long discussion.

I stayed at Cavallo Point, located in Sausalito, at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge.

The good Californian weather made it an enjoyable 3 days.

 

University Reforms are Urgent, the Nikkei Series

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University reforms are proceeding at a snail’s pace. Regarding the autumn graduation at the University of Tokyo, steps are being taken forward and the media is paying much attention to it, but the media has called it a mere receiving tray for society, focusing more on the details and reasons why it cannot be done.

The top universities of today will lose relevance if they do not make both their education and research open to diversity and the global.

Lately, the morning edition of the Nikkei has been running a series on university reforms as well as a corresponding online series.

I have been interviewed for this series and it can be summarized in the key phrase “the O-sumo-nization of universities”(1) (in Japanese, you can access many other articles from the Nikkei series from here), which I have been advocating from the time of Prime Minister Koizumi. If you search “university reform” and “O-sumo-nization” on this website, you will find many articles.

As usual, this is an “intellectually closed country” (1, 2).

The Japanese public must be truly concerned about university education in Japan. However, they judge people based on their universities, rather than evaluating the students themselves. They were both irresponsible. After all, it is because both were contained within the framework of the past.

A country’s core is the development of the people. What kind of people will the leaders of each field foster, and what direction do they want to take Japan in this world where the future is unforeseeable?

We cannot lay the blame on the young people. For “children are mirrors of society.”

It is the students’ choice what they want to do, including taking a leave of absence from university (1) and taking a gap year.