Kyushu University

Kyushu University

Kyushu University in Japan has been one of the most important partners for University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in carbon-neutral energy research. The long-term partnership has accelerated to include new focus areas.

Partnership Beginnings

Kyushu is a leading research-oriented higher education institution, located in Fukuoka, historically renowned as Japan’s gateway to Asia. The university, with prominent environment in the brand-new and vast Ito campus, has long been committed to the development of a next-generation technologies, with a particular focus on energy research.

Since 2010, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (Illinois) and Kyushu have been closely collaborating in field of energy and environmental research. This effort has been led by International Institute for Carbon-Neutral Energy Research (I2CNER), based at Kyushu University, alongside a satellite institute established at the Urbana-Champaign campus in 2012.

From Energy Research to Wider Engagement

When renewing the academic exchange agreement in August 2019, both universities took the opportunity to establish a new strategic partnership to promote mutually beneficial and sustainable collaboration on a wider scale. The strategic partnership outlined the following focus areas: promotion of staff, student exchange, and acceleration of joint research in multiple fields. As of February 2023, while overcoming challenges brought on by the pandemic, the collaboration between the universities has been growing.

Partnership Outcomes

Since launching the strategic partnership in 2019, the close engagement between both institutions have resulted in several achievements.

Events
In-Person Seminars

In 2022, we celebrated the resumption of in-person collaboration with these two seminars. 

  • Workshops on Museums, Monuments, and Memory (November 29-30, 2022)
  • Collaborative workshop on library and data management (September 23, 2022)
Webinars

In 2021, the Kyushu-Illinois Strategic Partnership Colloquia Series offered virtual opportunities to strengthen the partnership.

  • #1: Go Beyond Net Zero – CO2 Capture and Utilization (February 1, 2021)
  • #2: Mathematics Without Borders – Applied and Applicable (March 9-10, 2021)
  • #3: Environmental Economics (May 11, 2021)
  • #4: Data Curation & Information Management in the age of Digital Transformation (December 9, 2021)
Visits

Partner calls are hosted regularly by the Vice Provost for International Affairs and Global Strategies (Illinois) and the Executive Vice President (Kyushu) alongside virtual and onsite meetings.

  • Virtual Executive Leadership Meeting (December 2, 2021)
  • Legal Humanities Collaborations Meeting (December 1, 2021)
  • Virtual Executive Leadership Meeting (September 16, 2020)
Presentations

To foster capacity building and faculty development, individuals from both institutions have given presentations to share insights on key topics.

  • Prof. Sean Garrick, Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Illinois, delivered a speech about a vision for equity, diversity and inclusion for 3rd term trainees in Kyushu’s Diversity and Super Global Training Program for Female and Young Faculty (September 17, 2021).
  • Prof. Reitumetse Obakeng Mabokela, Vice-Provost for International Affairs and Global Strategies at Illinois, delivered a speech about Higher Education Governance in the United States for 3rd term trainees in Kyushu’s Diversity and Super Global Training Program for Female and Young Faculty (August 24, 2021).
  • The Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation at Illinois gave a presentation on how to ensure research security with proper export control policies to executives and staff at Kyushu responsible for research and international affairs (November 16, 2021).
  • LEAP Intern Tsubasa Akatsuka gave a presentation on Japan for International Student and Scholar Services’ Intercultural Spotlight Series (February 8, 2023).

Ongoing Collaborations

Carbon-neutral energy research was just the beginning. Driven by seed funding, collaborative research has expanded to more diverse areas. Additionally, the talent exchange of students and administrative capacity development has enhanced the partnership scope.

Carbon-Neutral Energy Research

Carbon-neutral energy research is the most significant subject areas where Kyushu and Illinois have been working together to advance the development of low carbon emission and cost-effective energy systems and improvement of energy efficiency. The vibrant exchanges involved included co-organizing annual symposiums.

Seed Fund Supported Projects

Both universities have designated the following priority research areas. A joint “seed fund” has been established to invest in research activities that align with these disciplines. Click each box to read about seed fund supported projects.

Data Science / Data Management & Curation (including Mathematics)

Both institutions share the common goal to pursue solutions to “real life” challenges. A workshop on data science was successful in exploring data reuse, researcher experiences, data management, and data storytelling among other topics.

Environmental Economics

Researchers from both universities have closely communicated with its focus on sustainable energy and well-being.

Humanities

Partnering with the Women & Gender in Global Perspectives (WGGP) Program, an in-person workshop on “Museums, Monuments, and Memory” was held at the University of Illinois on November 29 and 3, 2022.

Library Science

Both institutions have closely been enhancing collaboration in library science. In January 2023, Professor J. Stephen Downie from the University of Illinois iSchool visited Kyushu to discuss further cooperation opportunities.

Smart Grid & Sustainable Energy

In January 2023, Professors Fujikawa and Yamauchi from Kyushu visited the University of Illinois to discuss the next steps in their collaborative research.

Student Exchange & Mobility

To date, 10 students from Kyushu have achieved academic success at Illinois. Both universities have been discussing more options to enhance student exchanges. One of these efforts is to recruit prospective students through info sessions hosted by Illinois’ college study abroad offices, like the International Programs in Engineering (IPENG) session held on October 12, 2022.

Administrative Capacity Development

Behind the scenes, administrative units at both universities play a key role in liaison and coordination of the strategic partnership. Starting in 2021, Kyushu has sent administrative staff to the University of Illinois as a part of capacity development program with Global Education and Training. By hosting administrative staff onsite, the two institutions can streamline communication and directly support shared partnership priorities.