"With the conference, we have deepened the relationship between the University of Bonn and our Japanese cooperation universities and have taken it to a new level," says Bonn University Rector Michael Hoch. "In exchange with our Japanese partners, we were able to jointly develop new ideas for strategic cooperation. The aim is to bind the alumni of our Alma Mater even closer to Bonn and to integrate them particularly into our core research areas" adds Hoch. In total, 32 Japanese researchers, who previously gained experience as visiting scientists at the University of Bonn, participated in the conference.
University of Bonn is partner of seven Japanese universities
The University of Bonn maintains partnerships with seven universities, most notably the University of Waseda. The focus of the networking event was the topic "Internationalization of Doctoral Education". Thus, doctoral students from Japan and Germany took part, in order to learn more about the country-specific ways to achieve a doctorate. In discussions, lectures and workshops it always came back to the question of how to expand and deepen the existing research network between Bonn and Japan.
"Many research alumni know the University of Bonn very well from their stays. As ambassadors, they can further expand our international network" says Sabine Höhl, coordinator of the University of Bonn's Alumni Network. The conference was funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation as part of the international campaign "Research in Germany - Land of ideas".