Associate Professor Julien Barbara
Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs, The Australian National University
The Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs is very proud to be working with Ritsumeikan University (RU) on this important educational initiative.
Through this dual degree program, in partnership with RU, we are offering a model for how universities can innovate and cooperate in exciting ways. Students on this program will have the opportunity to study in both Australia and Japan, and receive two degrees – the Bachelor of Asia Pacific Affairs (ANU) and the Bachelor of Global Liberal Arts (RU)
We are living in a time of daunting global challenges including growing global instability, the spread of nuclear weapons, climate change, and the impact of phenomenal technological change. We must collectively find a way to navigate these challenges, and work together to create a sustainable and equitable world. Doing so will require a bringing together of different disciplines to discover the solutions and understand how to adapt them to different contexts. We need to build awareness, understanding and engagement between people and between political communities.
Our dual degree program will produce a new generation of global leaders with the training, expertise, and lived experience to play a productive, successful and positive role in a rapidly changing world.
This initiative reflects the close relationship between Australia and Japan, with the program creating even stronger international and interpersonal ties within and beyond Asia and the Pacific regions.
We look forward to continuing our collaboration with the College of Global Liberal Arts at RU on this exciting new model for education in the 21st century.