THE to host first summit in Japan

The THE Asia Universities Summit will now take place 1-3 June 2021. Register to attend.

Times Higher Education will host its first summit in Japan next year, with the Asia Universities Summit 2020 taking place in partnership with Fujita Health University.

The event, which brings together higher education leaders, senior researchers and industry experts from across the continent and beyond, will take place from 1 to 3 December 2020.

Fujita Health University is located in Nagoya – the nation’s industrial heartland and one of the world’s great urban and commercial centres. Fujita was established to spark creative approaches to medical education almost 60 years ago and is renowned for its expertise in rehabilitative and neuropsychiatric medicine.

The summit will explore how this spirit of innovation continues today in research, education and collaborations with industry and how it has been strengthened by scholars and students crossing national and disciplinary boundaries.

It will also discuss Japan’s internationalisation efforts and how Asian universities should respond to emerging demographic pressures, including the sharp decline in student numbers predicted in many Asian countries over the next 30 years coupled with the expansion of internationally mobile students, mainly from China and India, whose numbers are set to double to 10 million over the next decade.

The event will also look at how universities can build a distinctive and attractive brand in an increasingly competitive sector and promote female scientific talent.

Taking place after the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the summit will also hear from leading Japanese and international researchers on the potential impact of the Games on scientific collaborations and new research on sport science, medical technology and rehab medicine.

Eiichi Saitoh, president of Fujita Health University, said that he was “very pleased and honoured to host the THE Asia Universities Summit”.

“Over the 50 years since we were founded we have been trying to contribute in the medical and health science field to provide healthy and happy lives through clinical practice, research and education. We sincerely welcome you to Japan in December 2020.”

Phil Baty, chief knowledge officer at THE, said: “Over the past five years the THE World Summit Series has developed into the preeminent forum for leaders of the world’s most prestigious and most ambitious universities to gather with senior colleagues from government and industry to explore how to further enhance the extraordinary contribution universities make, through their teaching, research and civic engagement, to make the world a better place. The meetings have become a vital opportunity to share best practice in university leadership and strategy, to ensure that universities continue to innovate and help the world navigate an uncertain future.”

He added: “Japanese university leaders have played a central role as speakers and delegates across the series, at meetings across all continents. So we are absolutely delighted to be hosting our first ever summit in Japan, in a city at the very heart of the nation, Nagoya. We thank Fujita Health University for providing the leadership and vision to make this inaugural Japanese summit happen.

“The summit will explore not only how universities can work creatively and innovatively to address some of the most pressing issues facing Japanese society – an ageing population and a relative lack of an international outlook among the young, for example – but also how they can best take on the global grand challenges facing all of global society.”

ellie.bothwell@timeshighereducation.com