In April 2025, the Global Nursing Research Center (GNRC) hosted a series of four hybrid seminars featuring Professor Ainat Koren, PhD Program Director at the Solomont School of Nursing, University of Massachusetts, Lowell, USA. The events were held both onsite at the University of Tokyo and online via Zoom, attracting participants with diverse backgrounds and interests from Japan and abroad. Each seminar was attended by around 40 people, creating a dynamic platform for discussion and exchange.
The first seminar focused on holistic approaches to women’s reproductive health, particularly mental well-being during the peripartum period. The second seminar highlighted various models of collaboration between academia and industry, showcasing how such partnerships can create value for all stakeholders. Professor Koren emphasized the critical role of nurses and their unique position in the healthcare system to drive innovation and engage meaningfully with the business and industrial sectors. In the third seminar, she presented real-life examples of community participatory research, with a focus on engaging multiple stakeholders and leveraging community resources—especially non-profit organizations—to initiate and sustain public health projects. The final seminar centered on childhood obesity, exploring its early predictors and feasible measures for prevention. The session also prompted rich discussion around cross-cultural variability in approaches to addressing this public health issue.
Across all four seminars, opportunities for future research collaboration emerged, sparking new ideas and potential partnerships. The series showcased the ongoing efforts of UTokyo Nursing and GNRC to disseminate knowledge and promote learning opportunities within and beyond Japan.
