T8[Topic] University Education

8:45 AM - 9:00 AM JST(11:45 PM - 12:00 AM UTC)

[T8-O-1] Establishment of an Academic and Student Exchange Agreement between Kochi University and Universitas Padjadjaran through the Sakura Science Program

*Masao Iwai¹, Atsuko Niina¹, Tsubasa Ogasawara¹, Yoshihiro Kakizaki^2,1 (1. Kochi University, 2. Muroto Geopark Promotion Committee)

Keywords:

MOU,Project-Based Learning (PBL),Global brain circulation,Geopark

In August 2024, Kochi University signed an academic and student exchange agreement with Universitas Padjadjaran (Indonesia), marking the first university-level international partnership led by the Marine Core Research Institute (MaCRI), with support from the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. This agreement was initiated through the JST Sakura Science Program project entitled “International Collaboration for Sustainable Regional Development in Tectonically Active Zones Based on Scientific Technologies of the Global Drilling Science Hub.” In December 2023, ten young researchers and students led by Prof. Mega Rosana, Dean of the Faculty of Geological Engineering at Universitas Padjadjaran, were invited to Kochi University and participated in field-based educational activities throughout Kochi Prefecture (Ref. 1). The project was successfully implemented through the dedicated support of Prof. Rosana, who is well acquainted with Japanese academia through his graduate studies in Japan, the administrative offices of Kochi University, the Muroto UNESCO Global Geopark, and Muroto High School. During the approximately one-week program, participants engaged in (1) laboratory tours and practical training at MaCRI, (2) interactions with local communities, culture, and natural environments in the uplifted coastal region of the Muroto UNESCO Global Geopark, and (3) field studies in subsiding areas of central Kochi Prefecture, including Kure, Sakawa, and Kochi City. Through these activities, participants deepened their mutual understanding of sustainable regional development strategies for building resilient communities against natural hazards. Discussions with high school students involved in geopark studies in Muroto further promoted intercultural understanding and international exchange. On the final day of the program, certificates were awarded by the President of Kochi University, and participants had an opportunity to meet with the university leadership responsible for international affairs. These exchanges contributed directly to the successful signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two universities within a year (Ref. 2). Universitas Padjadjaran, which established Indonesia’s first Japanese-language department, has already developed academic partnerships with several Japanese universities, including Akita University. Since participating in the Sakura Science Program, one student has enrolled at a private university in Tokyo, and another is scheduled to enter Kochi University as a Japanese Government (MEXT) scholarship student in October 2025. Reciprocally, faculty members and students from Kochi University have visited Indonesia and conducted interdisciplinary field-based educational activities with students from Universitas Padjadjaran in local geoparks, integrating perspectives from both the natural and social sciences. MaCRI is the only institution in the world that curates legacy deep-sea drilling cores collected from the Indian Ocean and western Pacific Ocean over the past half century (Ref. 3). Understanding the geological framework of Southeast Asia, which forms a gateway between these oceanic regions, is essential for reconstructing the history of Indo-Pacific atmospheric and oceanic circulation. This academic exchange agreement is expected to serve as a foundation for international human resource development, interdisciplinary knowledge exchange, and the establishment of long-term collaborative research and educational networks under a framework of mutual benefit.