Launch of the International Joint Degree Master's Program in Agro-Biomedical Science in Food and Health (GIP-TRIAD) (Sep. 2017)

Group Photo

In September 2017, Graduate School of Human Sciences, the University of Tsukuba established an International Joint Degree Master's Program in Agro-Biomedical Science in Food and Health (GIP-TRIAD). This program is a graduate-level joint program conducted by three universities in Japan, Asia, and Europe: the University of Tsukuba, the University of Bordeaux (France) and National Taiwan University (Taiwan).
The students who comes from each university study global-scale issues: "Food and Health" at three universities together.

From September 1 to 9, students from France and Taiwan arrived at the University of Tsukuba where they will spend the 1st semester (1st semester: September to February). We operate a tutor system at the University of Tsukuba which is intended to assist foreign students arriving in Japan in smoothly setting up their daily lives here (to assist with procedure for entering a dormitory, opening a bank account, setting up mobile phone and insurance contracts, etc.). We also recommend that students on this program stay at the same dormitory so that they can cooperate with each other to begin their student life here without a hitch.

Arrival of GIP-TRIAD students

We held an initiation seminar over three days from September 11, with an orientation, self-introductions, social gatherings and group work aimed at enabling both faculty and students to get to know one another better and cultivating friendships. On September 14 and 15, we held excursions to aim of deepening students' understanding of food security and food safety. With the cooperation of Toyo Energy Farm　CO. LTD., we visited and toured a lettuce hydroponic cultivation facility and a solar-sharing farming type power generation facility. Then, on the afternoon of September 14, we visited Tsukuba City's "Tsukuba Agriculture Research Hall", and students were briefed by an expert guide on initiatives and results related to "Food & Agriculture" at Japanese research institutes. This fieldwork was a good opportunity to relieve the student's nerves as well as to share thinking and cultural differences among the students from the three universities. From September 19, the students divided into three groups and began preparations for their papers and presentations for student presentations for TGSW2017 on issues related to Food & Health and solutions to resolve them.

Tour of Hydroponic lettuce culture in TOYO Energy Farm CO.LTD

Tour of Tsukuba Agriculture Research Hall

Tour of Solar sharing farm (TOYO Energy Farm CO .LTD)

Group works

On September 27, a commemoration ceremony was held at the Kick-off Symposium for International Joint Degree Master's Program in Agro-Biomedical Science in Food and Health held, with congratulatory addresses by representatives from the three universities: Kyosuke Nagata (President of the University of Tsukuba), Tei-Wei Kuo (Vice President of National Taiwan University), Vincent Dousset (Vice President of the University of Bordeaux). Then, Professor Yoshito Kumagai, Coordinator of the International Joint Degree Master's Program in Agro-Biomedical Science in Food and Health (GIP-TRIAD), provided an overview of the program, and the faculty responsible for the program at the three universities: Ryosuke Ohniwa (Associate Professor of the University of Tsukuba), Tsai-Kun Li (Professor of National Taiwan University), and Dominique Rolin (Professor of the University of Bordeaux) each provided an explanation of the learning content. Each student group made excellent presentations of equally high standards at the student session and lots of questions raised by people attending, making it a good session. We were all impressed by the potential for further development in the future. We have great expectations for these students' activities in the future, making use of the special characteristics of this program, when the lectures and special project research begins in earnest from October.

Commemoration Ceremony at the Kick-off Symposium for the TGSW2017 International Joint Degree Master's Program in Agro-Biomedical Science in Food and Health

Student Session at the Kick-off Symposium for the TGSW2017 International Joint Degree Master's Program in Agro-Biomedical Science in Food and Health

Group photo after student session in TGSW2017