Taiwan and Kyoto Unite: Students Spark Collaboration at the iCeMS-NTUMST Symposium
On March 14, the iCeMS-NTUMST Symposium took place at the iCeMS’ Main Building. This symposium was a collaborative effort between iCeMS and the International Graduate Program of Molecular Science and Technology of National Taiwan University (NTU-MST), bringing together students and faculty for a day of presentations, discussions, and networking.
The day started with an ice-breaking session, during which students engaged in intellectual games in groups, setting a friendly and open atmosphere. Following this, Prof Dun-Yen Kang provided a brief introduction to NTU-MST, and Prof Jun Suzuki of iCeMS gave an introduction to iCeMS. A notable moment was the exchange of gifts, symbolizing the friendship of the students from Kyoto and Taiwan.
After lunch, the afternoon was split into two parallel symposiums. The student symposium, which took place at the second-floor auditorium, featured sessions on "Energy and Sustainability," "Biology," and "Porous Materials and Applications." This part of the event was designed to encourage scientific interaction among students and broaden their perspectives through interdisciplinary dialogue.
Simultaneously, the faculty symposium took place on the fourth floor, where scientists of both sides presented their research to promote scientific exchange between iCeMS and NTU-MST. Researchers were encouraged to share their research concepts, facilitating understanding and promoting collaboration among all attendees from different fields. They also had one-to-one discussion sessions, where they were paired off for dialogues, periodically switching partners to facilitate a wide-ranging exchange of ideas.
The day concluded with a wrap-up session and a banquet, providing an opportunity for participants to reflect on the discussions and interactions of the day.
After the symposium's first day, a student representative of the NTU side Tsai Yu Lin expressed gratitude saying "I'm grateful for the unique experience of organizing this event with Japanese students; it's great to see student-led collaboration in action." Also Ayana Miyata, the counter side of Japan commented that "In-person Taiwan-Japan interactions exceeded expectations, greatly enhancing our event's success and aligning with iCeMS' interdisciplinary concept. I’m very happy this experience was shared among us, students.”
The following morning, attendees were invited to tour the iCeMS lab and facilities, giving them a closer look at the research environment.
The event was organized by a mix of students—Miyata Ayana and Wen Ann Wee from Kyoto, Tsai Yu Lin and Yi-Shan Wu from NTU—and faculty members, including Professors Shuhei Furukawa, Jun Suzuki, Hiroyasu Tabe from iCeMS, and Professor Dun-Yen Kang from NTU. Their teamwork ensured a successful gathering of students and faculty from Japan and Taiwan.
