From March 16 to 19, 2025, Visayas State University (Philippines) and the School　of Applied Biological Science at Hiroshima University co-hosted the International on Agri-Life and Bioresource Sciences Symposium. With the theme “Agri-Life and Bioresource Sciences: Collaborative Innovations for a Resilient Future,” experts and stakeholders in agriculture, life sciences, and bioresources gathered from across Southeast Asia, including the Philippines, to discuss recent advancements and future directions in these fields.

From our university, Dean Masayuki Shimada, Vice Dean Takuya Suzuki, Professors Akihiro Ueda, Takeshi Tomiyama, Masahide Nishibori, Associate Professors Yoshiaki Nakamura and Lawrence Liao, and seven graduate students participated. They gave oral and poster presentations according to the program. As the keynote speaker, Dean Shimada of the School of Applied Biological Science delivered a well-received lecture on "Mammalian Reproductive Mechanisms, from Basic Research to Technological Development." During the symposium, networking dinners were held every evening, fostering deeper research exchanges among the participating researchers and students numbering to about 200 delegates. During a luncheon business meeting, Hiroshima University researchers met with Visayas State University officials led by President Prose Ivy G. Yepes and vice presidents to discuss new directions for closer collaboration that started with the signing of the MOU in December 2011.