
A major milestone for Swissnex
The new Consulate of Switzerland, Swissnex in Japan officially opened on September 30! The Grand Opening ceremony was a remarkable success, graced by the presence of State Secretary Martina Hirayama, State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation SERI, along with Ambassador Andreas Baum, Embassy of Switzerland in Japan, Mayor Hideyuki Yokoyama, City of Osaka, Vice Governor Nobuhiko Yamaguchi, Osaka Prefectural Government and Deputy General-Director Tetsuya Tanaka, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. In total, one hundred Swiss and Japanese dignitaries from government, academia, and industry joined the celebrations! Hosted by Swiss Consul & CEO Dr. Felix Moesner, this celebratory event featured a dynamic mix of engaging speeches and inspiring conversations, shining a light on โ๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ธ๐๐ต๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ด๐ต ๐ง๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฆ๐๐๐๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐โ and the remarkable achievements of Swiss innovation. We extend our special gratitude for the remarkable interventions from Dr. Michael Hengartner, Dr. Tanja Zimmermann, Director of Empa, Dr. Yuko Harayama, former Executive Member of CSTI, Cabinet Office, and Mr. Christoph Beuttler, Climeworks. The event also showcased nine pioneering startups and scaleups in the fields of solar fuels, carbon capture from the air, ambient PET recycling, autonomous-legged robots, and drones. Finally, the spotlight was also put on the upcoming Expo 2025 Osaka, with the theme โDesigning future society for our livesโ. Alexandre Edelmann, Presence Switzerland, introduced the key features of the Swiss Pavilion. Its three themes are in line with the focus areas of Swissnex โ "Life", "Planet" and "Augmented Humanโ, and our presence at the Expo is planned in close cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. As the first science consulate in Japan and the 6th main location of the global Swissnex, we will help to further promote collaborations between universities, research institutions, and startups of both nations and strengthen Switzerlandโs excellent bilateral research cooperation with Japan. Swissnex in Japan is notably going to foster collaboration on a systemic level in areas of strategic importance such as quantum science, AI, or robotics.
Grand Opening of Consulate of Switzerland, Swissnex in Japan
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Swissnex in JapanConsulate emblem
From left to right: Swiss Consul & CEO Dr. Felix Moesner, Ambassador Andreas Baum, Embassy of Switzerland in Japan, State Secretary Martina Hirayama, State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation SERI, Mayor Hideyuki Yokoyama, City of Osaka, Vice Governor Nobuhiko Yamaguchi, Osaka Prefectural Government.
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Swissnex in JapanKagami biraki
Sake barrel ceremony, "Kagami biraki".
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Swissnex in JapanPanel discussion
From left to right: Dr. Tanja Zimmermann, Director of Empa, Dr. Yuko Harayama, former Executive Member of CSTI, Cabinet Office, Mr. Christoph Beuttler, Climeworks.
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Swissnex in JapanANYmal
Autonomous-legged robot by ANYbotics.