Engaging APRU and AEARU Presidents in NTU’s 90th Anniversary Celebration

APRU Senior International Leaders’ Meeting

The Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU) was established in 1997, linking leading universities in the Americas, Asia, and Australia. As the “Voice of Knowledge and Innovation” for the Asia-Pacific region, APRU organizes year-round events aimed at bringing together leaders, researchers, and policy-makers to exchange ideas and collaborate on effecting solutions to the challenges of the 21st century. The Annual Presidents’ Meeting (APM) and Senior International Leaders’ Meeting (SILM) are the centerpiece events, where university presidents and senior staff convene annually to review the development and implantation of initiatives and activities. Participants are also given the opportunity to update one another on the latest developments in their universities.

NTU Vice President for International Affairs Luisa Shu-Ying Chang (張淑英) stood before 50 representatives from 27 universities worldwide at the 15th APRU Senior International Leaders’ Meeting (APRU SILM) to invite global leaders from 43 member universities to meet in Taipei for the 22nd APRU Annual Presidents’ Meeting and Presidential Retreat (APRU APM) in celebration of NTU’s 90th anniversary.

During September 20-22, APRU’s senior staff came together in Monterrey, Mexico and received warm hospitality from the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM). ITESM is one of the largest private universities in Latin America and is particularly well positioned in the area of corporate connectivity and innovation.

Over the past 20 years, APRU has been actively adapting to global trends. In addition to aligning top universities in the Pacific Ocean region, APRU also aspires to extend its frontiers to corporate connections and develop substantial industry–university collaborations. The senior international leaders were put to work during the two-and-a-half-day meeting to develop an action plan for multiple initiatives. NTU continues to support new strategies such as the Sustainable Cities and Landscapes hub, which was co-founded by the University of Oregon. NTU also bridges professors from different fields to engage in collaborative projects with new partners such as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the United Nations (UN).

Towards the end of the meeting, NTU was given an opportunity to showcase and officially invite APRU members to the 2018 APRU APM in Taipei. For this purpose, the NTU Office of International Affairs (OIA) teamed up with SoNTU to design a promotional film and a series of iconic NTU-themed postcards to resonate with the participants, luring them to visit NTU next June.

AEARU Annual General Meeting

Following the APRU Senior Staff Meeting (SSM), Vice President Chang and two OIA colleagues traveled to Tsukuba, Japan for the AEARU 41st Board of Directors Meeting and 23rd Annual General Meeting. The Association of East Asian Research Universities (AEARU) is a transnational research organization in East Asia, which aims to promote mutual exchanges between top research universities in the region and to facilitate regional higher education and advanced research development as well as cultural, economic, and social progress.

This year, 60 representatives from 18 universities congregated at the University of Tsukuba during September 23-25 to review annual events and share ideas on current issues concerning science and technology. A devoted member for more than 20 years, NTU is honored to be selected as the AEARU Vice Chair for 2018-2019, and will be working closely with our strategic partner and the newly appointed Chair, the University of Tsukuba. In addition, Prof. Chih-Jen Lin (林智仁) from the NTU Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering gave an inspiring presentation on his research on data and machine learning, demonstrating the academic strength of NTU for all to see.

In recent years, OIA has been actively managing a host of international networks. Besides expanding transnational cooperation opportunities, OIA aims to showcase NTU’s strengths and create global impact. Throughout 2018, OIA will be contributing to the celebration of NTU’s 90th anniversary with the following events: APRU 22nd Annual Presidents’ Meeting and Presidential Retreat on June 24-26, 2018; AEARU 42nd Board of Directors Meeting; AEARU 24th Annual General Meeting in mid-November, 2018. With the increase of participation from our international partners, we hope to create more intercontinental ventures and realize the dream of a global NTU campus.

(Source: Cher Chiu, Office of International Affairs, NTU)