In October 2009, we celebrated our first anniversary in our new home on the Hiyoshi Campus with a number of exciting events such as to confer the degree of Doctor of System Design and Management, Keio University, honoris causa upon His Excellency Dr. Jan Balkenende, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the signing of a partnership agreement on academic linkage and collaboration with the Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) Faculty of Technology, Policy & Management (TPM), which was witnessed by His Excellency Dr. Ronald Plasterk, the country's Minister of Education, Culture and Science.
The Netherlands is a relatively small country with a population of only 16 million, but Japan can learn a lot from its design of large systems - for example, home to two of Europe's largest hubs, the Port of Rotterdam and Schiphol Airport and its highly regarded work-sharing program. We look forward to further strengthening our ties of collaboration with TPM.
Yoshiaki Ohkami
Director, SDM Research Institute