IAJU International Education Conference held at Sophia University

From 26 to 28 February 2025, the International Association of Jesuit Universities (IAJU) International Education Conference was held at Sophia University Yotsuya campus. The theme of the conference was “Challenges and Opportunities for Internationalization,” and the conference brought together approximately 80 faculty and staff members in charge of international education from 44 institutions around the world.

This conference is a practical meeting for faculty and staff involved in international education activities, with the aim of sharing knowledge about various initiatives and challenges in international education, discussing ways to improve collaboration, and promoting networking among member institutions.

The first day of the conference began with opening remarks by Fr Joseph Christie SJ, Secretary for Higher Education and President of IAJU, followed by welcoming remarks by Fr Roberto Yap SJ, President of Ateneo de Manila University and also President of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities- Asia Pacific (AJCU-AP), and Professor Yoshiaki Terumichi, President of Sophia University. It was followed by various sessions including keynote speeches by Fr Christie and Fr Yap on topics that form the foundation of Jesuit education, a panel discussion on global citizenship education, a panel discussion on promoting internationalization through e-learning, a lecture on the history of Jesuit education in Japan, presentations of good practices and proposals for international collaboration, and workshops in which all participants participated in discussions.

Furthermore, on the special occasion of the gathering of IAJU members, an English mass was conducted with Cardinal Tarcisius Isao Kikuchi SVD, Catholic Church Archdiocese of Tokyo as Main Celebrant; Fr Christie; Fr Yap; Fr Tsutomu Sakuma, Provincial of the Japan Province, Society of Jesus; Fr Toshiaki Koso, Pastor of St Ignatius Church; Fr Sali Augustine, Chancellor of Sophi School Corporation; and Fr. John Joseph Puthenkalam, Trustee of Sophia School Corporation as Co-Celebrants.

In addition, Mr Kuniaki Sato, Director of International Division, Higher Education Bureau at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, gave a special lecture on the initiatives and prospects for the internationalization of Japanese higher education institutions. There was an active question and answer session among the participants, indicating that there is a great deal of interest in the internationalization of Japan.

While the first International Education Conference in 2019 was held at Universidad Iberoamericana Puebla in Mexico, the second in 2022 at Universidad Loyola Andalucía in Spain, this third edition was held for the first time in the Asia-Pacific region, and welcomed participants from all 6 regional networks of IAJU – AJCU-North America, AUSJAL, Kircher Network, AJCU-Africa and Madagascar, JHEASA, and the AJCU-Asia Pacific – making it an assembly for strengthening network and friendships.

At the closing session on the final day, the outcomes of the workshops as well as ideas and suggestions gained at the conference were shared, followed by concrete discussions on the structure and future of the group, the next steps of Magis Exchange Program and the potential of e-learning for the group. The conference was closed with a consensus that the conference will continue to be held periodically and further efforts will be made to promote the internationalization of the IAJU network.

First published in the IAJU website