A delegation from University of Tokyo (UTokyo) led by the Professor (Dr.) Kaori Hayashi, Executive Vice President in charge of Global and Diversity Affairs along with Professor (Dr.) Yujin Yaguchi, Vice President (Global Education) and Director of the Center for Global Education (GlobE); and Professor (Dr.) Satsuki Shioyama, Project Research Associate at GlobE is on a 6-day India tour till December to engage substantively with Indian partners on the future trajectory of global education, diversity and inclusion, and sustainable academic partnerships. They will travel to three cities: Delhi- Ahmedabad-Bengaluru.
Currently, O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU), Sonepat, is the only Indian university in an institutional partnership with the University of Tokyo. Across Delhi, Ahmedabad and Bengaluru, the India Tour features high-level policy dialogues, strategic university visits, press engagements and networking forums aimed at shaping a long-term roadmap for joint teaching, research and innovation. City-specific conclaves and interactions with regulatory leadership will showcase India’s higher education strengths and Japan’s internationalisation strategies. Together, these engagements will enable new joint programmes, research collaborations and capacity-building initiatives focused on global education, innovation and cross-border mobility.
On December 8, JGU hosted the University of Tokyo senior delegation to kickstart this tour centred on the theme “Future of Global Education: India and Japan as Leaders of Knowledge and Innovation”. The visit forms a flagship component of JGU’s Act East mandate to deepen strategic, future‑oriented international higher education engagement with Japan and the broader Indo‑Pacific region. Building on this relationship, JGU has cultivated over 25+ university‑wide partnerships with leading Japanese institutions, designed to foster two-way academic mobility of students and faculty, catalyse joint research initiatives and strengthen the internationalisation of higher education ecosystems in both countries.
Speaking about the visitors, Professor (Dr.) C. Raj Kumar, Founding Vice Chancellor of JGU, said: “This India Tour substantially advances JGU’s Act East mandate and places higher education at the heart of the strategic partnership between India and Japan. Our exclusive partnership with the University of Tokyo will open up new platforms for research innovation, circulation of scholars and robust academic linkages that directly support bilateral priorities in education, technology and innovation. It also reflects a shared belief that universities must act as bridges between societies, enabling knowledge collaboration that is both globally oriented and locally responsive.”
Professor Hayashi, Executive Vice President in charge of Global and Diversity Affairs at the University of Tokyo, articulated UTokyo’s institutional vision for global engagement, with a particular emphasis on internationalisation, diversity and the reimagining of academic partnerships in a rapidly transforming geopolitical and technological landscape. She said “I was very happy to visit the JGU campus again and see its exciting additions, including the new Museum of Constitution and the Moot Court. The vision and philosophy of the university, led by Vice Chancellor Prof. Raj Kumar, were clearly visible everywhere. In particular, I was impressed to see the university’s commitment to diversity and inclusion. I see great potential in the future collaborations between UTokyo and JGU as well as other universities in Japan and India, the two critical Asian nations that value liberal democracy.”
Professor (Dr.) Yujin Yaguchi, Vice President (Global Education) and Director of the Center for Global Education, lead substantive conversations on academic pathway design, student mobility and the architecture of joint and dual programmes between Indian and Japanese universities. His interventions explored how carefully designed pathways, from short‑term exchanges to integrated degree programmes, can enable students to navigate multiple academic systems, build intercultural competencies and contribute to collaborative research and innovation. Professor (Dr.) Satsuki Shioyama, Project Research Associate at GlobE, brought comparative education, South Asian perspectives and gender‑sensitive lenses to the discussions, with a focus on mechanisms that make knowledge exchange more inclusive, reciprocal and sustainable.
Over the course of the India Tour, JGU and UTokyo leadership explored new and enhanced frameworks for academic cooperation. Key areas of engagement included: two‑way student and faculty mobility across disciplines and levels of study; the development of joint and dual degree programmes as well as shorter‑term mobility schemes; the design of collaborative and comparative research projects that leverage complementary strengths in both systems; and the creation of innovative cross‑institutional formats for teaching, learning and knowledge co‑creation, including co‑taught courses, joint seminars and hybrid learning initiatives.
Professor (Dr.) Akhil Bhardwaj, (Vice Dean, Office of International Affairs & Global Initiatives), JGU, added: “This tri‑city India Tour with UTokyo will lay strong foundations for long‑term collaboration in faculty exchange, student mobility programmes and co‑created initiatives that connect universities, industry and government stakeholders. By anchoring these efforts in a spirit of mutual respect and co‑design, we aim to create pathways that benefit learners and researchers in both countries.”
