Source: School of Geography and Planning
Written by: School of Geography and Planning
Edited by: Wang Dongmei

The Fourth Sino-Japanese Urban Geography Transnational Joint Seminar was successfully held in Japan on February 12-21, 2017. The seminar was co-sponsored by School of Geography and Planning, Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU) and School of Regional Development Studies, Kanazawa University, and was strongly supported by SYSU’s Office of Education Administration, Office of Student Affairs, Graduate School and School of Geography and Planning. It was held in turn in China and Japan with students mixed into teams to participate in fieldwork and seminars. The course contents include urban centers (history, culture, architecture, commerce and immigration), urban suburbs (residence, traffic, industry and suburbanization) and rural areas (population aging, agriculture, tourism and development). The seminar aims at deepening understanding of the urban geography courses through the interaction between teachers and students; expanding international perspectives and promoting teaching through practical communication; strengthening students’ abilities of field investigation and transnational communication through cross-border fieldwork. All the courses are taught in English.
This seminar was led by Deputy Party Secretary Xu Yue, Professor Liu Yungang and Dr. Wang Jin from SYSU’s School of Geography and Planning. Sixteen undergraduate and postgraduate students visited Kyoto University, Kanazawa University, University of Tokyo and Nihon University, and attended the fieldwork in Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Kanazawa, Nagano and Tokyo during the ten-day courses. The fieldwork included Inner City and Commercial Center of Osaka; Historical and Cultural Blocks of Kyoto and Nara; Preservation and Conservation of Central City Area of Kanazawa; Rural Public Transportation and Tourism Resort Development of Nagano, and Urban Structure of Tokyo. From 15th to 17th February, students from Sun Yat-sen University and Kanazawa University studied together to explore related topics in the form of group discussions and presentations. Teachers and students from both China and Japan shared professional knowledge and established profound friendship.

The transnational joint seminar, focusing on the hot topics of urban construction and development in both China and Japan, is an important platform for teachers and students from both sides to discuss, present and create professional knowledge. It is also a bridge of communication that promotes cultural and scholarly exchange between China and Japan and further pushes forward the academic exchange and cooperation between SYSU’s School of Geography and Planning and Japanese universities.