Dr. Shim of CNUE (L) and Dr. Sugiyama of TGU at signing ceremony

APO projects provide participants with more than merely opportunities for sharing and exchanging professional knowledge and experience in specific areas, they also allow participants to extend their professional networks. The APO actively encourages participants to maintain and utilize their APO networks as a way to generate additional postproject productivity synergy. Recently, the APO has received the welcome news that Japanese and Korean project participants had agreed to closer academic cooperation for mutual development. The APO would like to thank President Dr. Michio Sugiyama, Tokaigakuin University (TGU), Japan, for bringing this to our attention.

An APO seminar laid the foundation for the agreement between TGU and Chuncheon National University of Education (CNUE), Republic of Korea, established in November 2007. The agreement allows the two universities to cooperate closely on areas including joint research and publications, the development of teaching and research materials, and student and faculty exchange programs. CNUE President Dr. Woo-Youp Shim visited TGU on 13 February 2008 to strengthen the cooperative relationship. Dr. Sugiyama informed the APO that the agreement was signed thanks to Vice President Dr. Chong-Yeong Lee, Korean Agricultural Economic Association who, along with Dr. Sugiyama, was one of 30 participants at a 1992 APO seminar where Dr. Sugiyama met Dr. Lee, then a professor at Kyungpook National University, Republic of Korea. They have remained close since. At least one APO acorn has thus grown into a mighty oak.