Saga University opened an international exhibition room on the first floor of the Honjo Campus Industry-Academia Exchange Plaza and held an opening ceremony and lecture on Thursday, March 27. The International Exhibition Room is a reception room that welcomes guests from Japan and abroad, and is an intellectual hub that drives the internationalization of the region by enhancing the local community’s understanding of the Japanese and world-class research produced in Saga. The opening ceremony was attended by officials from Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, MEXT, Saga Prefecture, Imari City, Ureshino City, Kumejima Town in Okinawa Prefecture, and University of Technology Malaysia. In the International Exhibition Room, the world’s only wall map of the world centered on Saga is on permanent display, showing Saga University’s international exchange. The room also displays equipment to promote understanding of the mechanism of Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC), products created by the combined use of deep seawater used for power generation, and panels introducing research results and the status of international exchange.

　At the opening ceremony, President KODAMA Hiroaki first gave a speech, expressing his gratitude to those in attendance. He then expressed his hope that the exhibition room would serve as a place to widely convey the attractiveness of Saga University and as a base for further deepening cooperation with the local and international communities. Deputy Director KUMAGAI Kanako, University Research Facilitation Division, Research Promotion Bureau, MEXT, then congratulated the opening of the International Exhibition Room. Following that, Director TOYODA Ichihiko (in charge of Research & Community Cooperation Affairs) explained the purpose and outline of the International Exhibition Room. This was followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony and the unveiling of a special wall map of the world centered on Saga, which was created using the Robinson diagram and marked with the names of countries and regions in accordance with United Nations standards to express Saga University’s interaction with overseas countries, to great applause. Finally, Director IKEGAMI Yasuyuki, Institute of Ocean Energy, explained about ocean thermal energy conversion using a model.

　As part of the opening ceremony, a lecture event was held at the Liberal Arts Education Building No. 2, themed “Global Expansion of Knowledge and Regional Development at Saga University: Challenges in Marine Renewable Energy.”

　The event began with a lecture by Vice President MISHIMA Nobuo (in charge of international affairs) on “Saga University’s International Strategy and Future Prospects,” followed by a lecture by Director IKEGAMI Yasuyuki on “Global Expansion of the Knowledge of the Institute of Ocean Energy through the SAGA Model,” which was attended by a large audience including both Saga university’s faculty and staff and the general public.
　Saga university hopes that the International Exhibition Room will serve as a venue for promoting the attractiveness of our university and as a base for further deepening ties with the local and international communities.

Ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Explanation of ocean thermal energy conversion using Mini OTEC by Director IKEGAMI Yasuyuki.

Lecture by Director IKEGAMI Yasuyuki.

【Inquiries】
Office for International Planning,
Academic Research Promotion Devision,
SAGA University
TEL 0952-28-8203