Blossoming friendship between Scottish university and Japan
Japanese educators have visited the Stirling University Institute of Aquaculture's £21 million National Aquaculture Technology and Innovation Hub (NATIH) as part of a braoder friendship visit to the campus.
Senior representatives from Stirling and Nagasaki universities, who signed a renewed cooperation agreement last year, were also joined by Japanese Consul General Katsutoshi Takeda and Cultural Consul Masataka Abe to mark the recent planiting of 30 cherry blossom trees, known as Sakura in Japanese, on campus.
They have been planted as a mark of the friendship between the university and Japan. A plaque installed at one of the planting sites was unveiled during the visit.
Our sessions revealed real potential for collaboration in fisheries science, exchange between our students, and other fields
Enhancing the parternship
Professor Neville Wylie, senior deputy principal (internationalisation) at Stirling, said the visit from the Nagasaki University delegates enabled the institutions to explore opportunities to enhance their partnership.
"Working alongside institutions, such as the Nagasaki University, can enrich our research, broaden opportunities for our students, and strengthen partnerships that enable us to address the world’s most pressing challenges together," said Wylie.
Nagasaki University president Takeshi Nagayasu said: “Our sessions revealed real potential for collaboration in fisheries science, exchange between our students, and other fields, building on our memorandum of academic co-operation, renewed in 2025 after more than a decade of partnership.
“This growing relationship was beautifully marked by the Sakura trees which now stand as a lasting symbol of friendship.”
The 30 trees being planted are some of over 8,000 Japanese cherry trees given to the UK by Japan, and planted across the kingdom. The project is entirely funded by Japanese businesses and individuals.
