UK science minister explores mobility and materials research at Nagoya University

On Oct. 8, 2026, Nagoya University welcomed Chris McDonald, the U.K.’s minister of state for science, innovation and investment, and Corin Robertson, the British ambassador-designate to Japan. The visit focused on research in engineering and advanced materials.

Vice Presidents Koji Yamanaka and Makoto Kobashi received the delegation. Tatsuya Suzuki, dean of the Graduate School of Engineering, and Hiroyuki Okuda, an associate professor in the same school, then presented Nagoya University’s work on autonomous vehicles and technologies that support healthy aging, as well as the role that AI can play in these and other fields. The group continued to the NIC Building for a closer look at the GREMO mobility research facility.

The visit reflects Nagoya University’s ties with the United Kingdom, particularly the University of Edinburgh. The two universities have a longstanding partnership built around a joint degree program in science, with collaboration in areas including chemistry, physics, frontier medical science, and autonomous driving technologies. In April 2026, Nagoya University opened its Global Campus at the Edinburgh Futures Institute as a base for joint research and exchange.

The delegation also visited the Institute of Materials and Systems for Sustainability (IMaSS) at the C-TECs research facility. There, Tomomi Uchiyama, director of IMaSS, and Distinguished Professor Hiroshi Amano, who received the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics for inventing the blue LED, led a discussion of the institute’s research.

Amano also collaborates with the University of Bristol on power semiconductor research, supported by the U.K.’s International Science Partnerships Fund. In March 2026, Nagoya University hosted a two-day workshop with Bristol’s REWIRE Innovation and Knowledge Centre that brought together researchers and government officials from both countries.