Wherever I travel and meet Huskies, I am reminded what a special place the University of Washington truly is. The UW educates global citizens who are innovators and entrepreneurs working together to solve the world’s most pressing challenges. Their work is strengthened by our partnerships at home and abroad; we can better meet the needs of Washington state and the world through international collaboration.
Our meetings and events in Taiwan and Japan have fortified existing partnerships and initiated new ones. We have a memorandum of agreement with Waseda University to partner on its new Center for Teaching, Learning & Technology. I was welcomed by Taiwan’s Ministry of Education on a tour to strengthen our relationships with that country’s top universities. And I made some wonderful connections before and after my keynote address at the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) Asia Conference in Taipei.
The trip was notable, too, because it was an opportunity to help the UW Alumni Association celebrate its 125th anniversary with so many Huskies overseas. In 1889, a small group of UW alumni organized themselves to better support the university. Ever since, alumni chapters have cropped up around the world. In fact, there are organized alumni chapters dotting 13 countries around the globe, from Peru to the United Arab Emirates.
I was honored and humbled to spend time with some of the most ardent UW alumni and friends in Japan and Taiwan this week, and I am extraordinarily heartened to see how deeply Husky pride spans the Pacific. Together, we are building a stronger future for our state, our nations and our world.