Japanese Ambassador Endo Kazuya hosted Japan studies professors from the University of the Philippines Diliman at his residence last Tuesday.

The professors, who are also alumni of the Japanese Government (MEXT) scholarship program, represented the UP Asian Center (AC) and the UP Center for International Studies (CIS).

Among the attendees were Professor Matthew M. Santamaria, Associate Professor Jocelyn Celero, Assistant Professor Karl Ian U. Cheng Chua, retired Professor and former CIS Director Cynthia Neri Zayas, and Professor Amparo Adelina Umali III.

In a brief address, Endo expressed his gratitude to the professors. “In all your achievements, I thank you all for your efforts cultivating a culture of excellence future scholars can aspire to and uphold,” he said.

Endo also stressed their crucial role in advancing partnerships and collaborations between Japan and the Philippines, highlighting cultural and people-to-people exchanges as key elements of the “Golden Age” of bilateral relations between the two countries.