The 9th Kobe University Brussels European Centre Symposium, organised jointly with the Vrije Universiteit Brussel on the theme 'Smart Cities, Secure Societies: Breakthroughs in EU-Japan Research', will take place on 24 October 2018 at the U-Residence Conference Centre at the VUB.

Set up as part of the strategic partnership between Kobe University and the VUB, this symposium will feature some 50 speakers and present some of the latest research results in key areas of natural and social sciences carried out between Japanese universities and partner institutions in the EU and Third Countries.

Three parallel sessions will address topical themes such as

• Research and Innovation for Secure Societies - focusing on the roles of international cooperation in technology, medical sciences and SSH in building disaster-resilient societies,
• Smart Cities, Smart Societies - addressing issues such as Research and Innovation cooperation   in energy, mobility, information technologies, robotics and health,
• Cultural Memory, Cultural Transfer - EU-Japan research in Social Sciences and Humanities.

In addition, three interactive workshops and brokerage events will aim at developing future joint research projects between Japanese, EU and Third Countries research organisations under Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe. As in previous years over 80 participants, including researchers, students, representatives from European Institutions, and the press, are expected to attend.

Kobe University has been a pioneer in developing R&I cooperation between Japan and Europe. Kobe was the first Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence in Japan in 2015. It has actively participated in the Erasmus + programme and in FP7. It is currently involved in several consortia responding to Horizon 2020 calls. Since its opening n 2010 Kobe University Brussels European Office has been promoting high-level dialogue between EU and Japanese researchers and policy makers.

Online registration at https://bit.ly/2LUrIv0