On December 17th at the Higashi Hiroshima campus, Hiroshima University hosted a student seminar for the “FY2013 Re-Inventing Japan Project ASEAN International Mobility for Students Program (AIMS Program)” and research presentations of "Study on International Issues and Challenges" class. A total of around 70 students (international and Japanese) participated in the seminar.

At the seminar in the morning, a total of over 40 students had a discussion in English on the theme of “What are your solutions to produce sustainable food for the future?”

Through the discussion, the participants were able to have an opportunity to (1)express their own ideas, (2)have multiple group debates, and (3)go through a process of reaching to a mutually agreed conclusion with the entire group. This time, students who are going to study abroad to Thailand in the START Program; one of the Hiroshima University’s programs, also participated in the Student Seminar as a preparatory study.

After the student seminar held in the morning, the participants had a party with the program’s incoming students at lunch time and further deepened interaction through spending time together in an amiable atmosphere.

At the research presentation session of "Study on International Issues and Challenges class” held in the afternoon, each of the 14 incoming students made a 15-minute presentation including questions and answers. Each student selected a research theme related to their major field, conducted a research under their supervisor’s guidance, and prepared for the presentation. The students looked nervous in front of their supervisors and classmates, but they all delivered their result presentation well.

Throughout the day, students had lively exchanges of views and interaction, and it became an opportunity to enhance their communication skills and deepen their international understandings. The participants made comments such as, “It was very good. International students were active and their English was excellent, so I’d like to improve my level of communication, too.” and “It was interesting to know that there are different policies depending on the country as they are made based on their culture.” The next seminar will be held in the end of July next year.