Participating journalists were Ms. Christine Rovoi of Fiji, reporter for New Zealand media; Ms. Teisa Matakivaha Cokanasiga of Tonga; Ms. Courtney Menzies of Belize; Ms. Raquel Robinson of Jamaica, and Ms. Khamarie Rodriguez of Trinidad and Tobago. Additionally, Ms. Dawn Matus joined the group from the United States as Program Coordinator. The participants from Belize and Jamaica were broadcast journalists. One of the requirements during the program is after visiting a site, under the guidance of the program coordinator, that the journalists each write at least one article to send back to their home country. APIC Director and Secretary General Araki joined each site visit with the group.

In addition to Tokyo, site visits were conducted at Osaka, Kobe, and Takamatsu, Kagawa prefecture. This fellowship has taken place since 2015, but was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, restarting in 2022, making this the 9th program to be held.

◆Orientation at APIC Office

The group arrived on Sunday, November 9th, and visited APIC’s office on the following morning. APIC President Shigeie gave a welcome speech, followed by a briefing on Japanese political, economic, and state of affairs. Secretary General Araki followed up with a briefing on site visits during their stay, as well as a history of APIC’s cooperation and aid in the Caribbean region.

◆Informal Meeting with Sophia University Island Sustainability Institute

Following the orientation, Sophia University Graduate Program of Global Environmental Studies professor and Island Sustainability Institute Director, Professor Anne McDonald joined the group and gave a talk on the Institute’s activities, and also mentioned that the Institute accepts one student every year from the UWI Cave Hill Campus in Barbados under a scholarship program based on an agreement between UWI, APIC, and Sophia University. She also expressed her wishes to have students from the Jamaica campus come study at the Institute in the near future.

◆Visit to Allm, Inc.

On the afternoon of Monday the 10th, the party visited the office of Allm, Inc., located in Shibuya. Global Vice President Ms. Minako Sagara gave a briefing about the company’s endeavors.

The company became a consolidated subsidiary of DeNA in 2022, providing a remote medical support solutions company “Join Mobile Clinic”. This system “Join”s together in-hospital systems, allowing medical personnel to access and share medical information using their smartphone application or web browsers from hospital computers without regards to location. Additionally, the company also provides various services for medical organizations and medical personnel to assist in improving efficiency in medical administration and communication among staff.

UWI took a particular interest in this visit as they are facing challenges in their medical school education. Allm Inc. and UWI agreed to hold talks about a future partnership.

◆Visit to Nippon Koei

Later in the afternoon the group visited the office of Nippon Koei. General Manager of the Railway Planning Department, Mr. Mochizuki, gave a briefing on the company’s projects, and afterward a manager of projects in the Caribbean, including Jamaica, introduced the main projects in the area.

Based on UWI’s interest in the development of the LRT (Light Rail Transit) in the capital Kingston, a briefing was given on Nippon Koei’s consulting business regarding its rail projects around the world.

Upon the introduction of Nippon Koei’s endeavor in providing support for potential uses of sargassum (a red seaweed that has been taking over the Caribbean region and causing environmental problems, wreaking havoc on the fishing and tourism industries, and severely affecting the local economy due to its smell when it washes ashore and starts to rot, leaking methane gas), UWI requested cooperation from Nippon Koei in conducting joint research on the topic.

Nippon Koei’s Research and Development Center is expected to become a counterpart in the project.

◆Visit to Keio University School of Medicine

On the morning of the 11th, the party paid a visit to the Keio University School of Medicine. Dean and professor of Preventative Medicine and Public Health Professor Takebayashi gave an overview of Keio University and its School of Medicine, including interesting facts about how the University founder, Yukichi Fukuzawa, was featured on the former \10,000 bill, and how Shibasaburo Kitasato, founder of the School of Medicine, is featured on the current \10,000 bill, a testament to the influence of the University. Following the Dean’s talk, Principal Williams gave an outline of the UWI Mona Campus.

Following, professor of Infectious Diseases, Professor Ho Namkoong (Director, Division of Infectious Diseases and Infection Control; Director, Clinical Infections Diseases Center) gave an overview of Keio University School of Medicine’s six-year curriculum (clinical medicine, research intern, national exam timing, etc.). Professor Namkoong mentioned that the School of Medicine is putting in effort to promote overseas research, where selected medical students study at affiliated medical schools in America, Europe, and Asia Pacific, observing short-term clinical tests and taking part in practical training.

Two students who had recently spent several months studying abroad at Johns Hopkins University in the United States gave a presentation regarding their experiences. After listening to the presentations, Professor Reid posed a question about the possibility of an exchange student program, to which Keio University responded to positively in creating a plan to move forward.

The two students proceeded to give the group a tour of the hospital and campus grounds.

Visit to Tokyo University Faculty of Medicine

In the afternoon the group visited the Tokyo University Faculty of Medicine. Professor and Vice Dean of the Graduate School of Medicine Professor Ishihara gave a welcome speech and an overview of the medical school, followed up by an introduction of UWI by Principal Williams.

Power point presentations were conducted on the following topics by professors of the specified field: clinical trial activities in hepato-biliary-pancreatic surgery; recent trends in treatment in the urology field; an overview of education, clinical trials, and research activity in rehabilitation medicine; as well as an explanation of nursing science and the University’s efforts in its Global Nursing Research Center.

Both sides agreed on the possibility of talks regarding cooperation on a faculty level, with the Tokyo University Office of International Academic Affairs being the point of contact for future discussions.

◆Visit to Tsukuba University

On the morning of Wednesday the 12th, the party visited Tsukuba University. Prof. Koganezawa, Deputy Director of the South America Office, gave an overview of the university. The South America Office was established by Tsukuba University in April 2015 inside of the University of Sao Paulo campus. It acts as a global strategy base to promote cooperation between Japan and South America. Tsukuba University has been searching for a university to create ties with for future cooperation with in the Caribbean region. This visit confirmed talks are to be held with UWI and Tsukuba University about a future partnership.

Afterward, the party took a tour of the University’s “Empowerment Studio”. The Doctoral Program in Empowerment Informatics is a comprehensive five-year program established in 2013, aiming to educate doctoral students to become global leaders through Industry-Government-Academia studies. Empowerment Studio acts as an experimental facility for Empowerment Informatics (an interdisciplinary field which focuses on supplementation, harmony, and extension to improve quality of life), comprised of a vast experimental hall and gallery space.

During Principal Williams tour, shots of buildings and cityscapes taken in remote locations were projected onto the walls, changing with each movement of the visitors. This immersive experience allowed visitors to feel as though they were actually in that location, creating a viable way to understand the challenges facing remote areas in real time.

Following the Empowerment Studio was a visit to the Center for Cybernics Research. Cybernics is a new academic field that combines different areas, with a focus on humans, robots, and informatics, and includes areas such as neuroscience, behavioral science, robotics, information technology, artificial intelligence, system integration technology, physiology, psychology, philosophy, logic, law, and management. The Center is an international research development base that closely links humans and technology, as well as the community. During the visit, a fitting demonstration of HAL (Hybrid Assistant Limb), a robot designed to expand and support human physical function, caught the interest of the Principal and group.

◆The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science & Technology

On the afternoon of the 12th, the group visited the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST). Senior researcher Dr. Said Kazaoui gave a welcoming address as well as a brief outline of the institute.

AIST, which is under jurisdiction of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, is Japan’s largest public research institute, which promotes a comprehensive approach to the research and development of technology contributing to the development of the economy and community. Its mission is to “solve social issues” and to “strengthen Japanese industrial competitiveness”. It has 12 research bases across the nation, with a wide variety of research and development areas. Additionally, it is working together with its subsidiary AIST Solutions Inc., and putting in substantial effort to create top-level results, and to implement those results into society.

There are 2,287 researchers at AIST, 3,217 post-doc/contract researchers, 5,896 visiting researchers dispatched from corporate entities, and an additional 900 administrative staff, adding up to a total of 12,322 people-needless to say the group was taken aback at the immense scale of the research center.

The group received a briefing on the technology of remote sensing, and afterward they took a tour of the permanent exhibit, AIST-Cube. The facility’s concept is to create an area where visitors can “step into the future”. The group displayed a keen interest in the viewing the newest technologies at the Center.

◆Visit to Panasonic Showroom

On the morning of the 13th, the group visited the Panasonic Showroom in Shiodome. They learned about Panasonic’s history, starting with Konosuke Matushita’s production of lightbulbs, going through a name and brand transition from “National” to “Panasonic”, and an introduction of the brand’s most famous products, such as televisions, refrigerators, washing machines etc., which became widely popular during Japan’s period of rapid economic growth.

Afterward, the group watched a presentation about how Panasonic’s mission has evolved outside of the home appliance market to pursue sustainability to give back to society. The group also got to see a demonstration of Panasonic’s automatic delivery robot, “Hakobo” during their visit.

This visit to Panasonic left a deep impression on the Principal and group, with the showroom tour coming up in conversation again during APIC President Shigeie’s dinner that evening.


◆Meeting with Sophia Univeristy President Ms. Miki Sugiura

On the afternoon of the 13th, the group visited the office of Sophia University President Ms. Sugiura, where she gave them a warm welcome.

Principal Williams expressed deep gratitude not only for being able to visit as the Principal of UWI Mona Campus, but also for prior visits to Japan from the Principals of UWI Barbados Cable Hill Campus and Trinidad and Tobago’s St. Augustine Campus, due to the MoU signed between Sophia University and UWI during the former Prime Minister Abe’s visit to Jamaica. He also showed gratitude towards Sophia University and the UWI exchange student program that takes place every year, allowing UWI students to come and study in Japan during the weeks-long program.

President Sugiura said that she remembers the process of rolling out the MoU, as she was then Vice-President of Sophia University. She also expressed gratitude towards the development of ties between UWI and Sophia, with the help of APIC’s support.

During the following exchange of opinions, both sides agreed to an exchange between educators of similar ranks, and talks regarding details to be held later on.

◆Welcome Dinner Held By APIC President Shigeie

On the evening that day, a welcome dinner was held for Principal Williams and his group at the Josui Kaikan hall. The evening started off in a relaxed atmosphere with the sound of glasses clinking upon President Shigeie’s toast welcoming the Principal and group. Principal Williams gave a speech thanking everyone for the invitation to Japan, and talking about how this trip was full of inspiration and information to bring back home.

At the end of the dinner, Jamaican Ambassador to Japan H.E. Richards, whose attendance this time would be the last in her official position as Ambassador, gave a short speech expressing her gratitude for all of the support APIC has provided during her appointment.

◆Visiting Kyoto

On Friday the 14th, Principal Williams woke up early to catch the 8:30 shinkansen bullet train for a day-trip to Kyoto. The group enjoyed the Old Capital in its fall colors, visiting Kodai-ji Temple, viewing Yasaka Pagoda and Gion city streets from the window of the car, as well as Kitano Tenmangu Shrine, Momoji-En Garden, Sanjusangen-do Temple, and Kinkaku-ji Golden Pavilion.

They enjoyed grilled chicken skewers called “yakitori”, and relaxed on the bullet train ride back to Tokyo with a beer while reflecting on their time in Japan.