Kyoto University Celebrates a Decade of Partnership and Collaboration with BXAI

July 15 2024

We are thrilled to share that the partnership and collaboration between Kyoto University and Bai Xian Asia Institute (BXAI) is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year! Since its inception in 2014, BXAI has supported over 650 scholars through the Asian Future Leaders Scholarship Program (AFLSP), which provides scholarships for Asian students to study abroad in Asia and creates intercultural opportunities for young aspiring leaders to learn from and engage with one another.

Since 2014, Kyoto University has welcomed around 100 ambitious/brilliant scholars. Based on the core principles of Kyoto University and BXAI, the program aims to cultivate highly qualified Asian future leaders, innovators, and influencers who have the following abilities.

1. Do quality research (research ability).
2. Analyze, articulate, and construct views and arguments from diverse perspectives (bird’s eye view).
3. Have the willingness and capability to make valuable social contribution (social contribution).
4. Have the critical attributes and competence of being an effective leader for the current or future environments (leadership readiness).

The program seeks to create an innovative educational platform, leveraging the advantages of intercultural communication, transdisciplinary learning, and learning-by-doing approach to develop young scholars’ understanding of the value of cross-culture and diversity and a commitment to promoting peace, regional collaboration, and harmony in Asia and beyond. The collaboration with BXAI provides our scholars an opportunity to get involved in building cross-cultural relationships, developing solutions for tackling complex social issues, and creating sustainable and diverse communities.

BXAI was founded on the belief that cross-cultural education is the key to a harmonious world built on mutual understanding, respect, and equality. Through education programs that empower and inspire scholars in different Asian countries and regions, BXAI seeks to strengthen relationships between the people of Asia, foster partnerships between East Asian academic institutions, and promote peace, regional collaboration, and harmony in Asia and beyond. As of 2024, BXAI’s network includes eight Partner Universities across five cities in East Asia, namely Kyoto University, Hitotsubashi ICS, Peking University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Tsinghua University, and Waseda University. A total of 10 cohorts of scholars from 25 Asian countries and regions have been supported by the AFLSP.

“We believe the Enrichment Program of AFLSP is one of the top leadership-training programs in Kyoto University. It is not just for scholars – professors also learn a lot by developing and running it. We enjoy the discussion with scholars at monthly seminars, special lectures, QE/Pre-QE, service-learning trips, and all other activities.” – Kai-Chun Chang & Liang Zhao, Core members in charge of the AFLSP Enrichment Program.

“Education is a long-term investment,” says BXAI CEO, Ms. Ronna Chao. “As we celebrate 10 years of building bridges across cultures, we look forward to forging ahead in our efforts to develop a new generation of leaders through intercultural exchange and learning, while cultivating a sense of community and mutual understanding amidst a changing global landscape.”