The VISTEC-Kyoto University Joint Symposium: Recent Advances in Chemistry and Smart Materials was held in Rayong, Thailand, on 27–28 November 2023.
Kyoto University's On-site Laboratory initiative aims to promote world-leading cutting-edge research, explore new research areas, and promote interdisciplinary research by establishing collaborative laboratories with overseas partners. So far, the University has established eleven laboratories through the initiative. This year, the University held an On-site Laboratory joint symposium in collaboration with Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology (VISTEC) and other partners in Japan and the ASEAN region. The symposium was conducted in a hybrid format (onsite and online), and attracted approximately 130 participants, including from Thailand, Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, and the United Kingdom.
The symposium opened with remarks and a plenary lecture by Dr Pailin Chuchottaworn (chairperson, VISTEC Council) and speeches by President Pimchai Chaiyen (VISTEC) and Professor Norihiro Tokitoh (executive vice-president for research and evaluation, Kyoto University). Following those remarks and speeches, Professor Yasuyuki Kono (vice-president for international strategy, Kyoto University), Professor Susumu Kitagawa (distinguished professor, Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences [iCeMS], Kyoto University), and Professor Satoshi Horike (Graduate School of Science/iCeMS, Kyoto University) delivered speeches about the functions of the On-site Laboratories. The participants then had a tour of VISTEC and the Eastern Economic Corridor of Innovation (EECi).
The following day featured lectures by Professor Kitagawa, Professor Tirayut Vilaivan (Chulalongkorn University), Professor Atsushi Wakamiya (Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University), Professor Vatcharin Rukachaisirikul (Prince of Songkla University), Professor Kohei Kusada (The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research, Kyoto University), and other speakers. A question-and-answer session was held after each lecture, and the symposium was then closed with remarks by Professor Horike.
