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On Friday, November 17 to Saturday, November 18, the Ritsumeikan Center for Asia Pacific Studies (RCAPS) hosted the 2006 Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific Conference on the theme of "Global Movements in the Asia Pacific." The conference brought together an interdisciplinary group of distinguished Japanese and international scholars to analyze and discuss the theoretical, methodological, empirical and policy issues concerning global movements in the Asia Pacific.
On this occasion, APU welcomed Nobel Laureate in Chemistry (1986), Professor LEE Yuan Tseh and Former Philippines Ambassador to Japan, Alfonso T. Yuchengco to deliver the keynote addresses in the APU Millennium Hall.
To the 700 excess of students, faculty and local citizens, Professor Lee (APU Academic Advisor) gave an inspiring speech on the topic of "Brain Drain, Brain Gain and Brain Circulation in a Half Globalized World." He stressed, "To become good citizens of the global village, we need to learn quickly and also to teach our young people, to take a global view and to respect, appreciate, and understand the different cultures of different peoples."
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During the second keynote address, Ambassador Yuchengco (APU International Committee member) spoke on "Trans-National Business and Diplomacy in the Asia Pacific." He stressed that peace in the Asia Pacific will be built on the balance of mutual benefit and he expressed the hope that East Asia's rising generation (students and seminar delegates) would become future political, economic and cultural leaders in the region to ensure the region's prosperity.
Following the keynote addresses, members of the audience were given an opportunity to ask the speakers some questions. A number of international students asked Professor Lee specific questions relating to their home countries, and covered topics as diverse as "brain circulation", "national identity" and the "role of the media". Ambassador Yuchengo also responded to a myriad of questions relating to the themes of his speech and about his experiences as a businessman and ambassador.
A large number of plenary sessions and parallel sessions were also held over the 2-day seminar, which gave scholars gathered from all over the world the opportunity to present papers on topics relating to global logistics; migration; information technology; trade, investment and technology; and tourism.
The proceedings of this conference will be published and made accessible to the public. |
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Nobel Laureate in Chemistry (1986) /
Former President, Academia Sinica
| It's a pleasure to be on the APU campus today. As an Academic Advisor to APU I have closely watched APU's progress from when APU was just a concept, to the establishment of this beautiful campus that we see here today. I applaud APU's educational mission as I believe that it's through "education" that we can come to understand different cultures and learn to respect differences in languages and customs. Peace on earth is dependent upon mutual understanding, and in this sense I think APU is great as students can mingle on-campus with people from all over the globe. I encourage students not to be passive in their studies, to contemplate the future of the world and how they can be instrumental in dealing with some of the big challenges that mankind faces. |
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Chairman, The Yuchengco Group of Companies / Former Ambassador,
The Republic of the Philippines
With students at APU studying harmoniously alongside one another from over 70 different countries and regions around the world, I think APU is sending a strong message to the world about the importance of being united. I consider APU, part of the Ritsumeikan Trust, one of the best Universities in Japan, and I was impressed by the breadth of questions posed by many students after my keynote speech. It was also satisfying to meet with a number of students from the Philippines and to hear firsthand about how they are enjoying their studies at APU, and to hear about their aspirations for the future. I hope they will always keep the Philippine flag flying high and trust they will become future leaders in strengthening the ties between the Philippines and Japan. |
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2006 Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific Conference -
"Global Movements in the Asia Pacific" |
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