Friendship was on the agenda March 8 when UBC President and Vice-Chancellor Santa J. Ono and University of Tokyo President Makoto Gonokami sat down with a group of scholars and athletics representatives for a virtual gathering. The event marked a celebration of the friendship between the two universities. Ono also congratulated President Gonokami on finishing his term as UTokyo’s 15th president.
“Professor Gonokami has truly put UTokyo on the international stage and I am honoured to consider him a friend," Ono said. "I would like to wish him all the best in the future."
President Gonokami opened the event thanking President Ono for his friendship and enthusiasm in developing the partnership between the two institutions. President Gonokami said he wished that UBC and UTokyo could find “creative ways to deal with COVID-19” and “provide education and betterment of society through international cooperation” that would “continue beyond my time as president.”
Chairing the event was Professor Sawoko Shirahase, UTokyo Executive Vice President. Also in attendance were four scholars in science, humanities and social sciences, and two sports team managers. Dr. Murali Chandrashekaran, UBC Vice-Provost, International, gave the closing remarks. In addition, Dr. Chandrashekaran invited UTokyo to UBC's official launch of the university's global engagement strategy, a virtual celebration on April 12.
The two universities maintain strong ties. President Gonokami visited UBC in 2019, when he received the UBC President’s Award of Excellence from Ono. Ono travelled to UTokyo in 2017 and 2018 to sign the trilateral agreement to create the Max Planck-UBC-UTokyo Centre for Quantum Materials. He also accompanied the UBC baseball team to play a series of games against UTokyo and other Japanese universities.
University of Tokyo, established in 1877, was the first of the imperial universities. It is considered to be one of the most selective and prestigious higher education institutions in Japan. There are eight Nobel Prize winners, 15 Japanese Prime Ministers and five astronauts among UTokyo’s alumni.