2008 marks 20 years of exchanges between the University of Hawaii and the University of the Ryukyus (Ryudai). To mark this anniversary, UH’s President David McClain and a delegation from the Center for Okinawan Studies visited Okinawa in October to celebrate and to discuss possible collaborative projects in the future. UH and Ryudai have been collaborating through their medical schools, law schools, schools of tourist industry management and through the student exchange program.

Ryudai also announced its plan to open the International Institute for Okinawan Studies in April 2009. Our new UH Center for Okinawan Studies will be working closely with Ryudai to further enrich academic exchange by bringing together scholars, students, researchers from all over the world. This would provide great opportunities for discussing and writing about Okinawa.

Ryudai hosted a conference in November 2008 in Okinawa as part of the Human Migration and 21st Global Society project. Along with scholars from other universities in America, Dr. Leon Serafim and Dr. Joyce Chinen, both from UH were invited to participate in this conference. Congratulations to UH and Ryudai on their 20th anniversary of international exchange and we hope to see continued collaborative efforts to enrich our academic and cultural exchanges!