The 17th Japan-China-Korea International Postgraduate Academic Forum Held

Degree Programs in Life and Earth Sciences, University of Tsukuba hosted the "17^th Japan-China-Korea International Postgraduate Academic Forum" over two days on September 18 and 19. This is our first online forum in three years. Student leaders Jing Gao (2^nd year, Master's Program in Environmental Sciences), Henry Chinonso Nwogba (1^st year, Doctoral Program in Life Science Innovation (Food Innovation)), Hangyu Gao (2^nd year, Doctoral Program in Geosciences), and Wen Wei (1^st year, Master's Program in Agro-Bioresources Science and Technology) took the lead in planning activities such as the icebreaker session.

In July, Prof. Yingnan Yang from Doctoral Program in Bioindustrial Sciences held a "Presentation Skills Improvement Workshop," attended by approximately 20 students. Prof. Yang explained "Data representation," "Visual balance and clarity," and "Verbal and non-verbal communication," using actual student slides as concrete examples to highlight the key points. A Q&A session concluded the workshop, where students expressed their intent to apply the learned techniques to their own presentations.

Total attendance was 100 participants: 23 from the University of Tsukuba, 3 from the Hokkaido University, and 2 from the Kyoto University of Advanced Science. China had 71 participants (China University of Geosciences: 8, China Agricultural University: 2, 61 from 15 other institutions), and Korea had 1 participant (Korea University).

Twenty students from the University of Tsukuba partnered with the students from the other universities to serve as Chairs, managing timekeeping and facilitating Q&A sessions.
Additionally, many students actively attended the sessions outside their own presentations, demonstrating keen interest in learning about research and presentation skills.

Gold, Silver, and Bronze Awards were presented to outstanding presenters. The award winners from the University of Tsukuba are listed below.

* Year indicates the year of award receipt.

【Gold Awards】10 winners

• Min Soo Shin (2^nd year, Doctoral Program in Life and Agricultural Sciences)
• Henry Chinonso Nwogba (1^st year, Doctoral Program in Life Science Innovation (Food Innovation))
• Rika Mizuno (2^nd year, Master's Program in Agro-Bioresources Science and Technology)
• Ayaka Yoshii (1^st year, Master's Program in Agro-Bioresources Science and Technology)
• Yuqing Xu (3^rd year, Doctoral Program in Agricultural Sciences)
• Hirotaka Abe (1^st year, Doctoral Program in Geosciences)
• Haruka Kume (1^st Year, Master's Program in Agro-Bioresources Science and Technology)
• Xiaodi Zhang (1^st Year, Doctoral Program in Agricultural Sciences)
• Guangqi An (3^rd Year, Doctoral Program in Bioindustrial Sciences)
• Bliss Idoko Ogah (2^nd Year, Master's Program in Life Science Innovation (Food Innovation))

【Silver Awards】6 winners

• Hangyu Gao (2^nd year, Doctoral Program in Geosciences)
• Yuna Kano (2^nd Year, Master's Program in Environmental Sciences)
• Jing Gao (2^nd year, Master's Program in Environmental Sciences)
• Wen Wei (1^st year, Master's Program in Agro-Bioresources Science and Technology)
• Zeyu Cui (3^rd Year, Doctoral Program in Agricultural Sciences)
• Elahabade Gedara Mangala Jayarathne (2^nd year, Doctoral Program in Geosciences)

【Bronze Awards】3 winners

• Waraphorn Phromsuwan (3^rd Year, Doctoral Program in Geosciences)
• Khin Zaw Win (3^rd Year, Doctoral Program in Environmental Studies)
• Jingwei Yang (1^st year, Doctoral Program in Bioindustrial Sciences)

After all presentations concluded, student leaders led the icebreaker session. It was a great success, featuring slides with student photos and comments.

Next year's forum is scheduled to be hosted by China Agricultural University. It will mark the 18^th iteration. We will continue our support to ensure this forum remains a lasting platform for postgraduate students to present their research and engage in exchange.