
The charm offensive was coordinated by Prof. Shellard, who visited the country many times while pro vice chancellor for external affairs at the University of Sheffield (which boasts one of the UK’s best-known Japanese departments). Using his considerable contacts, he set up partnerships with the universities of Meisei, Hiroshima and Tohoku, which is close to the Sendai area devastated by the Japanese earthquake and tsunami in March 2011. Last year, De Montfort students raised £40,000 to host 14 Tohoku undergraduates at their Leicester campus, and Prof. Shellard was keen to meet the participants almost 12 months on.
(Excerpted and adapted from Times Higher Education)
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