On November 1, 2022, Ritsumeikan University and Aberystwyth University (UK) concluded a research cooperation agreement that aims to promote academic research collaboration in a range of fields including paleoclimatology.
Researchers in the Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences at Aberystwyth University and the Research Center for Paleoclimatology at Ritsumeikan University have been conducting joint research on dendrochronology and climate change. This agreement will not only promote further research in these fields by allowing for the sharing of each institution's facilities, it will also encourage the exchange of faculty and graduate students between the two universities.

The research cooperation agreement was signed by both parties at Aberystwyth University. In attendance from Ritsumeikan University were Professor Takeshi Nakagawa and Professor Ikuko Kitaba, the Director and Deputy Director of the Research Center for Paleoclimatology. Aberystwyth University was represented by Vice President Elizabeth Treasure and Professors Henry Lamb and Sarah Davies of the Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences. After the signing, the members engaged in a lively discussion about the possibility of future exchange between the two universities.

Comment from Professor Takeshi Nakagawa (Director, Research Center for Paleoclimatology, Ritsumeikan University)

Research on climate change is very meaningful in terms of unlocking the secrets of humanity and gaining a deeper understanding of our world. I am very pleased to be working with Aberystwyth University to further deepen this research.
In addition, I hope that we can widely promote research exchange between the two universities.

Comment from Professor Sarah Davies (Aberystwyth University)

This agreement builds on the longstanding research relationship between the two universities, and I am very pleased to confirm the commitment of both schools in writing. Our research into paleoclimatology and dendrochronology will make an important contribution to our understanding of climate change and its role in the development of human civilization.

■Aberystwyth University
Aberystwyth University is a public university in Wales in the United Kingdom that has three faculties: Arts and Social Sciences, Business and Physical Sciences, and Earth and Life Sciences. It was named the Welsh University of the Year in The Times Good University Guide 2020 and ranked number one in Wales in teaching excellence and student satisfaction in The Times Good University Guide 2023.