To mark the beginning of the new academic year, I would like to deliver the following message.

Today is the start of the 2015 academic year, in which we will be celebrating the 135st anniversary of Osaka City University, with the support of a renewed organizational structure including several new board members, faculty and graduate school deans.

It is the 4^th year of the university’s second mid-term plan, bringing us into the second half of the period we set to realize our mid-term goals. It will also?be my last year as President of OCU. In the two following years, a new executive team will finalize the second mid-term plan and based on those results prepare the third mid-term plan. This year will therefore be an important year for the continuity into the next stage, with many new developments.

As part of the mid-term plan, this year we will evaluate the results we already achieved, move into the next stage to further develop those results and substantiate and implement the plans and preparations as quickly as possible.

The mid-term plan defined three key strategies: 1. Strengthening our think-tank role and education, research and social contributions in the urban studies field; 2. Fostering talent with a high level of expertise; 3. Increasing our international strength. To achieve these goals, we have among others established the Center for Disaster Education and Research for Urban Residents. We are also stimulating projects to find solutions for local problems through the introduction of the CR Round Table and we have been selected by the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology as a Base for Leading-edge Urban Research.?Regarding the goal to increase the international strength of our university, we intend to put an especially strong effort into the overall international capacity of the entire university, based on the second international action plan that we started to implement last year.???

To realize all these goals, the structure of the university will be re-organized in many ways, based on the University Reform Plan and led directly by the President. New measures include the establishment of the Education and Research Strategy Bureau and URA (University Research Administrator) Center.??

Although it is my final year, in this remaining time I am determined to further contribute to the future presence of the university and guarantee a smooth hand-over to the next generation. For this, I hope for your continued support.

1 April 2015
Yoshiki Nishizawa, President of OCU

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