Tokyo Tech and the City of Yokohama concluded on March 17 a comprehensive partnership agreement with the aim of stimulating business development, boosting international activities, and advancing sustainable development initiatives using mutual resources and networks.
Yokohama — the location of Tokyo Tech’s Suzukakedai Campus — has been promoting collaborations with universities in and around the city since the establishment of its university partnership council in 2005. This council currently consists of 29 universities, including Tokyo Tech.
Through its additional partnership agreement with the city, the Institute hopes to apply its cutting-edge research findings to create new innovations and solutions to some of the local challenges in Yokohama.
City of Yokohama Mayor Fumiko Hayashi (right) with Tokyo Tech President Kazuya Masu
Main points of agreement
Creating innovation and advancing the formation of a startup support base
The partners aim to advance efforts to create innovation by utilizing mutual resources and networks, securing a state-of-the-art research environment through redevelopment of the Suzukakedai Campus, and jointly supporting the creation and growth of startups.
Promoting local educational, international, and other activities by utilizing the research resources of Tokyo Tech
The partners aim to promote cross-cultural understanding and a sense of global community by utilizing the research resources of Tokyo Tech, jointly implementing education programs that broadly involve the public, and facilitating interactions between diverse professionals who gather from around the world.
Major initiatives
1. Developing creative professionals who will lead the next generation
- Implementing science and other education programs
- Creating career development opportunities for children and students at various stages of education
- Enhancing the quality of education through joint efforts
2. Forming a base for innovation creation and startup support
- Jointly forming a research and development innovation center through the redevelopment of the Tokyo Tech campus
- Forming a global hub for startup creation and support, strengthening networks to advance this hub
- Collaboration with local businesses
3. Active sharing of intellectual resources with the public
- Events to encourage exchanges between Tokyo Tech and surrounding regions
- Promotion of organization-level activities to resolve regional issues
- Joint implementation of public lectures and continuing education for citizens
4. Promoting international outlook of the city and its regions
- Cooperation in international activities, development of globally successful professionals
- Creating exchange opportunities between international students and local residents
- Promoting international industry-academia-government collaborations by utilizing the network of representative City of Yokohama offices overseas
- Enhancing Tokyo Tech’s facilities and environment for global research and visitors
5. Urban development that is in harmony with nature and contributes to the progress of local communities
- Providing knowledge by experts and professionals regarding urban development
- Exploring the effective, multifaceted use of university facilities
- Examining efforts to solve traffic-related problems in the city
6. Disaster prevention measures
- Advancing studies on campus utilization in case of a large-scale disaster
7. Mutual exchange of human resources
- Co-hosting employee training and jointly implementing training programs for staff
- Implementing continuing education for the public
- Actively dispatching specialist advisors from Tokyo Tech to City of Yokohama meetings, providing knowledge by experts and professionals regarding urban development (as above)
- Events to encourage exchanges between Tokyo Tech and surrounding regions (as above)
