Kyoto University satellite office launched at Bogor Agricultural University in Indonesia (16 November 2015)

Published on

2015/12/02

Kyoto University's Graduate Schools of Agriculture (GSA) and Global Environmental Studies (GSGES) jointly established a satellite office of the university at Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) in Indonesia on 16 November, opening the door to further academic collaboration and exchange between the two institutions.

Located at the IPB Faculty of Agriculture on its Darmaga campus, the office will be used for the two institutions' joint undertakings, such as a double master's degree program, collaborative research, and other international initiatives.

The opening ceremony was held in the presence of Rector Herry Suhardiyanto, Faculty of Agriculture Dean Agus Purwito, and other faculty members and students from IPB. A 12-member Kyoto University delegation, led by Deans Shigeo Fujii and Hisashi Miyagawa, of GSGES and GSA, respectively, was also in attendance.

As guests of honor, Director Takeo Matsubara of Yanmar Agricultural Research Institute at IPB and Ehime University Associate Professor Makoto Kuramoto joined in the celebration, for the two had been actively engaged in cross-sector efforts involving Indonesia and Kyoto University.

"The three-year double degree program between IPB and GSA will certainly be the centerpiece of this joint venture," said Dean Miyagawa in his opening remarks. "What makes this program special is that the participants from Indonesia and Japan will be trained to attain high proficiency in each other's language, on top of English, so they will be equipped to exercise multicultural leadership, whether in academia or industry." Referring to former Deans at IPB, he continued, "Drs Supiandi Sabiham (Faculty of Agriculture), Ernan Rustiadi (Faculty of Agriculture), and Bambang Saharjo (Faculty of Forestry), among many others, have long contributed to academic cooperation with Kyoto University, and have always inspired us all." The opening of the satellite office, he emphasized, was a milestone that would not have been possible without the decades-long work of those collaborators, many of whom were Kyoto University alumni. In conclusion, he stated, "Collaborations in the fields of crop and soil sciences, forestry, rural and regional planning, landscape architecture, horticulture, and bio-sensing engineering in particular have proven beneficial to both sides," and suggested that the two universities should work to build on those achievements to expand the frontiers of agricultural sciences.

Dean Fujii cited faculty cross appointment as a key to success in the GSGES-led project, as part of which the new office was established. "This employment framework itself is still new to Kyoto University," said Dean Fujii. "What we are trying to do here is to take it a step further, making international contracts possible. This is an example of what can be achieved and sustained with an overseas satellite office."

Rector Herry unveiled the new office, and guided the Kyoto delegation around the facility.

Afterwards, both parties made the first use of the new office to negotiate agreements and arrangements for the next course of collaborative actions.

In the afternoon, a "Study at KU" information session took place at IPB's Auditorium Toyib Hadiwijaya with some 350 students attending, mostly from the Faculties of Agriculture, Forestry, and Agricultural Technology.

A question and answer session in the form of panel discussion followed, which continued even after the scheduled conclusion of the program. A Facebook group page co-owned by IPB and GSA was presented to the audience, so they could ask questions without time restraints and network with those in the community.