A Thriving Alumni Network in Asia
RWTH Rector Connected With Alums in India, Thailand, and Japan
Professor Ulrich Rüdiger, Rector of RWTH Aachen University, traveled to Asia this past February, visiting India, Thailand, and Japan. His first stop was Chennai, India, where he attended an alumni event jointly organized by RWTH and the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras). The director of IIT Madras, Professor Veezhinathan Kamakoti, Rector Rüdiger, and alumni delegates from both RWTH and IIT Madras delivered introductory speeches before engaging in a panel discussion on “The Regeneration of Cities: A Matter of Resilience,” hosted by the Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS).
The event, held at IIT Madras, was well-attended, with about 80 alums from both institutions joining in for an evening of networking and discussion.
Tokio
The next stop on Rector Rüdiger’s itinerary was Tokyo, Japan, where he met with RWTH alumni Markus Ken Baron and Naoyoshi Yoneyama, a former Japanese Vice-Consul in Düsseldorf. If interested, you can find a detailed profile of the latter in an earlier issue of “keep In touch” (No. 57). Discussions centered around plans to create a Japanese alumni association, with Baron and Yoneyama reflecting on past successful RWTH alumni gatherings in Japan. In April 2015, for example, an RWTH alumni meeting was held at the German embassy in Tokyo on the occasion of a trip to Japan by Rector Schmachtenberg, and in October 2017, an RWTH research alumni conference was held with the support of the DAAD. Despite these past events, structural and legal challenges have impeded regular alumni networking.
These topics were further discussed over a meal of authentic Japanese cuisine in Tokyo’s Shimbashi district, a hotspot for locals and tourists alike. RWTH will provide support and guidance to foster future alumni engagement in Japan.
Bangkok
The Rector’s final stop was in Bangkok, Thailand. There, he joined the 65th-anniversary celebrations of King Mongkut’s University of Technology North Bangkok (KMUTNB), home to the Thai-German Graduate School (TGGS), established by RWTH. As part of the celebrations, TGGS and RWTH organized an alumni reunion, where Rector Rüdiger, the guest of honor, delivered a speech and enjoyed the festivities, which included a historical review, an exhibition, and artistic performances. During the TGGS Advisory Board Meeting, Professor Rüdiger conferred the title of Honorary Fellow of RWTH Aachen University on the President of KMUTNB, Professor Dr. Suchart Siengchin.
– Authors: Sara Wigger, Henriette Finsterbusch, Siba Fitzau
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