Sophia Magazine vol.2 / WINTER 2015

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Sophia University Launches the Sophia Institute of International Relations (SIIR), Specializing in International Politics and National Security#04LEFT: Distinguished Professor Ichiro Fujisaki.　CENTER & RIGHT: 150 people participated in the July 8 workshop.Asia-Pacic Region and Japan,” was or-ganized on July 8 and attracted roughly 150 people from within Sophia.SIIR is supervised by Distinguished Professor Ichiro Fujisaki, a former Japa-nese ambassador to the U.S., and is headed by Director Yumi Hiwatari, a pro-fessor of the Faculty of Global Studies.SIIR’s initial research project, “The Governance System in the Asia-Pacic Region 2020 – Realignment of Security and Financial Order and Japan” is fo-cused on national security in Asia. It will join the U.S.-Japan Research Institute (USJI), made up of multiple Japanese universities, to present the results of the studies and details of its activities.Besides research, SIIR will also work on educational activities for students. It will organize seminars and workshops throughout the year, inviting learned in-dividuals from both home and abroad, such as those involved in the United Nations, in which students who are in-terested in international politics and na-tional security can take part regardless of the department or faculty to which they belong. A space for exchange between teaching staff and students is available at SIIR ofces on the 1st oor of Bldg. No.13.The Sophia Institute of International Relations (SIIR), a new research body, was inaugurated at Sophia University on July 1, 2015. With research on inter-national politics and national security as the areas of focus, the institute hopes for deep collaboration with research institutes both at home and abroad. A workshop commemorating the launch, titled “Changing Security Policy in the Opening of Two New Sophia University Overseas Offices toStrengthen Ties with Affiliated Schools#05ties with afliated schools and to serve as a center for students studying in the Department of German Studies, Faculty of Foreign Studies, who are studying the German language as a compulsory course at our afliated schools in Ger-many. In addition, for students working on internships in Germany, it will act as a coordination and liaison ofce.Meanwhile, the Sophia University New York Ofce, the seventh base overseas, engages in PR activities and supports our students in internship programs, which started in 2015. In addition, the New York Ofce will carry out program coordination for a hands-on program, Learning UN Diplomacy, which sends Sophia students to the United Na-tions Headquarters in New York. The new two-week program established in 2015, runs through the summer vaca-tion and places Sophia students at UN Headquarters in New York so that they may learn the reality of UN diplomacy to further their careers through rsthand observation of UN diplomats and staff.Our New York Ofce will also serve as a center for Sophia’s “mentor system,” which was launched by one of the uni-versity’s overseas alumni associations, the Sophia University Alumni Asso-ciation in New York, to connect alumni members and Sophia students who study abroad.New overseas ofces in Köln, Ger-many, and New York City, USA, were established in April 2015. The new cen-ters are responsible for assisting So-phia University students and promoting public relations.The Sophia University Köln Ofce, which is the sixth base overseas fol-lowing those in Cambodia, Egypt, Lux-emburg, Shanghai, and Bangkok, has begun operations within the ofces of the Katholische Hochschulgemeinde Köln. It is expected to help strengthen Campus News5