Guest speaker to address the importance of studying Japanese

KALAMAZOO—A talk on the importance of studying Japanese highlighting the ties between Michigan and Japan is slated for 4 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 27, in 3025 Brown Hall on Western Michigan University’s campus.

In celebration of WMU’s new Japanese major, which was launched in fall 2012, the Soga Japan Center welcomes the Honorable Consul General Kuninori Matsuda to campus.

The Consul General will talk about the important economic and cultural ties between Michigan and Japan and how the study of Japanese can help students benefit from and contribute to expansion of these ties. He has extensive diplomatic experience and has spent long periods of time stationed in important diplomatic positions in Russia and Israel before coming to the Midwest in 2010.

Japan is the third largest international contributor to Michigan’s economy, and currently has the third largest economy in the world overall. There are 484 businesses in Michigan that are wholly or partially Japanese-owned, and there are over 17,000 Japanese inhabitants in Michigan and Ohio combined.

For more information about the talk, contact Dr. Jeffrey Angles via email at @email.