“After I was transferred to the Ocean Affairs Department of The Nippon Foundation in 1999, I had the opportunity to be directly involved in the designing and implementation of the POGO Visiting Professorship (2004~), the NF-POGO Centre of Excellence Scholarship (2008~), and the Alumni Network NANO (2010~).
I first learned of POGO from Mr. Saiki who was working at JAMSTEC at the time. I was drawn to POGO’s diverse geographic membership and the fact that our two organisations had a mutual desire to nurture the next generation of ocean professionals—especially from developing countries. From our initial meeting, I remember how openminded the POGO Chair and secretariat were to our ambitious proposals. Read more…
I believe the current CofE is a fruit of those countless meetings and discussions, and the commitment of the faculty and staff of the host institutions who took on the difficult task of turning that vision into reality. I take this opportunity to convey my gratitude to Dr. Shubha Sathyendranath, the late Dr. Prof. Trevor Platt, and Prof. Howard Roe, as well as all members and staff of POGO who enabled our partnership and our joint initiatives to grow and make important impact to the ocean community over the years.
The Nippon Foundation has been working with various international organizations and institutions since the 1980s to nurture future ocean professionals and to build a global human network that can make positive impact to the greater ocean community. This global network is now a body of over 1,450 individuals from 150 countries. All members of the NF-POGO NANO Network are a part of this Nippon Foundation global community. From climate change to overfishing, our ocean is facing countless challenges, which are threatening its very survival. Now is the opportunity to bring your expertise together and take collective action. We not only welcome your new and innovative proposals but are also ready to fully support its implementation. We sincerely look forward to receiving such proposals from members of the NANO network.