iCeMS Co-Hosts UK-Japan Workshop on Organic-Inorganic Framework Materials
22 November 2013
As part of a new international strategy for top British scientists to engage with elite researchers from around the world, the Science and Innovation Network of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office joined with Kyoto University's iCeMS to host the first UK-Japan Workshop on Organic-Inorganic Framework Materials.
The idea for the workshop came about a year before, during a Kyoto visit by Professor Anthony Cheetam of Cambridge University, who came upon the idea that Japan would make an excellent partner for collaborative research. After working out details with Ed Thomson from the UK-Science and Innovation Network and iCeMS director Susumu Kitagawa, plans for the meeting began to take shape.
The workshop was held on October 10-11, 2013 at iCeMS' main building, bringing -- according to Cheetham -- a "dream team" of UK researchers together with highly regarded Japanese chemists such as Kitagawa. The number of talks during the two-day event totaled 18, with half each from the UK and Japan. In total, over 80 participants attended the workshop.
"We were pleased with the level of enthusiasm shown by both UK and Japanese researchers to actively engage in discussions and foster potential collaborations," said Kitagawa. "The workshop was a huge success, serving as a platform for exploring opportunities to develop materials for utilization in a wide range of applications such medical therapies and energy storage."
Discussions are already underway to organize next year's workshop, slated to take place in the UK.
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| Opening remarks (clockwise from top left): Susumu Kitagawa, iCeMS; Tomohiro Nakayama, JST; Anthony Cheetham, Cambridge; and Ed Thomson, UK Science & Innovation Network |
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UK-Japan Workshop on Organic-Inorganic Framework Materials attendees (Kyoto University iCeMS Main Building seminar room)
Over 80 participants filled the venue to capacity
Lively discussions taking place during the poster session
