Partnership contract signed in online conferenceUniversität Hamburg expands cooperation with Kyoto University

28 July 2020, by Tim Schreiber

Photo: UHH

Signing contracts and shaking hands in the age of corona: Prof. Dr. Juichi Yamagiwa (left), president of Kyoto University, and Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Dieter Lenzen

Universität Hamburg places great value on the development of international relations. Thus, it has now expanded its partnership with Kyoto University in Japan. The presidents of both universities signed the cooperation contract today in an online conference.

Alongside the University of Tokyo, Kyoto University is one of the country’s foremost universities and, with 11 Nobel laureates to date, also one of the most respected worldwide. Kyoto University and Universität Hamburg have had a cooperation contract since 2017; the new agreement will strengthen and deepen existing ties. Among other things, the universities plan to focus on the following areas: criminal law, neurobiology, quantum physics, climate research, ecology, logistics, manuscript research, sociology, and political science.

Following several visits and symposia in Hamburg and Kyoto in the past several years, the contract was initially supposed to be signed at another visit in Kyoto. Due to the corona pandemic, the festive moment had to take place digitally.

Hopeful cooperation

“What a joy to take this final step today towards formally sealing our partnership!” exclaimed Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Dieter Lenzen, president of Universität Hamburg. “I thank everyone involved and am full of hope for the future of our cooperation with the best Japanese university, Kyoto University. I wish all of our colleagues the best in difficult times that we will master together.”

Kyoto University is a public university with around 23,000 students and 2,800 academic staff. The university was founded in 1897. This makes it Japan’s second-oldest university. Universität Hamburg is one of its 5 strategic partners in the world to date.

As part of its internationalization strategy, Universität Hamburg has already been expanding its network of international higher education partners since 2012. As a flagship university, a concept that facilitated its denomination as a “University of Excellence,” internationalization plays a major role.