Seminars Held at Thailand’s Research Expo

On 26-30 August, Thailand Research Expo 2009 was held by the National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT) at the Bangkok Convention Centre. The JSPS Bangkok Office operated a booth at the Expo to display posters illustrating its activities. On the 28^th, a seminar was held by the Association of RONPAKU Alumni of Thailand (ARAT); and on the 29^th, a joint seminar was put on by the Bangkok Office in cooperation with NRCT.

At the RONPAKU alumni’s seminar, Bangkok Office director Dr. Kou Ikejima delivered a speech entitled “Global Warming Research and Policy Response in Japan,” followed by presentations from four alumni association members.

Titled “Advanced Science and Education in Japan,” the JSPS-NRCT Seminar was kicked off with welcoming remarks from NRCT secretary general Prof. Ahnond Bunyaratvej, followed by opening remarks and a description of JSPS activities from Dr. Ikejima. Three keynote lectures were delivered: Prof.Toshio Fukuda of Nagoya University, who spoke on “Robotics and Automation for Human Support”; Prof. Koji Iwase of Tottori University, who talked about how “Plants cannot grow without mushrooms—underground world of mycorrhizal associations”; and Prof. Toshinori Nakayama of Chiba University, who addressed the subject “Development of New Immunotherapy for Cancer: iNKT Cell-based Immunotherapy.” All three of their universities have been selected as education/research hubs under JSPS’s Global COE Program. Each of the three Japanese speakers was accompanied by a Thai moderator, a researcher in the same field who introduced the speaker in the Thai language and served as an interpreter during the Q&A session.

Attended by some 300 participants, the seminar brimmed with enthusiasm displayed in the spirited Q&A discussions after each presentation. The proceedings also helped to raise the level of the Thai researchers’ interest in research initiatives being advanced in Japan.

- JSPS Bangkok Office