I would like to wish everyone a very Happy New Year. I hope that you enjoyed a peaceful holiday season.

First, let me begin with a wrap-up of last year's activities. Major accomplishments in 2017 included founding the Faculty Organization, establishing the Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology and the Center for Highly Advanced Integration of Nano and Life Sciences (G-CHAIN), and opening the Gifu Prefectural Livestock Hygiene Service Center. Operation of these new departments is going well and they are beginning to produce results. In particular, I am happy to report that, thanks to everyone's support, we have been able to establish operational knowhow for the Faculty Organization within the first year.

Next, concerning our governmental budget request for fiscal 2018, according to information received from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, we have been able to obtain funds for personnel expenses and hiring new personnel. Last year, we were allocated personnel expenses for one person in order to establish G-CHAIN. This year, in addition, we will receive funding for one professor for setting up the Regional Revitalization Energy System Research Center (name tentative), providing a base for studies in the field of environmental sciences. If this Center can produce good results, I hope we will be able to obtain permanent funding for this position in three years' time. We have not heard from the ministry yet about operating expenses, so where that is concerned, we are still waiting.

Next, about university facilities. Refurbishing of the Faculty of Engineering building is about 80% complete, but since we do not have enough time during the period, we have filed an application to shift the funding to the Faculty of Applied Biological Sciences. We will start by obtaining one-third of the funding, for the total of three terms, needed for refurbishing that building. We were also notified that funding has been allocated for upgrading essential life-line services as part of the continued project budget. This is what we know so far about budget allocations for fiscal 2018.

And now, concerning new construction plan, etc. that will commence this year, construction on the building for the innovation Hub for Smart Mold Processing will be finished in February or March this year, and construction of the Gifu Prefectural Research Institute for Food Sciences will be so in January 2019. Last year, we signed an agreement for establishing a joint research course with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Thermal Systems (MHI Thermal Systems) Ltd., and we intend to set up several more such courses in the near future. As far as founding, application process, and preparations are concerned, we will be establishing four international collaboration joint degrees in cooperation with overseas institutions, starting in fiscal 2019. Rapid progress is being made on setting up the Master's Course in Medical Profession Education (name tentative), and we are also preparing to create a Faculty of Comprehensive Management (name tentative).

Lastly, this is the start of a busy year, but right now the most important issue is the National Center Test for University Admissions taking place on January 13 and 14, followed by the second stage of testing by Gifu University ourselves. Educating young people is a university's most important social mission, and we must devote our full attention now to the task of managing university admission processes.

I have covered a range of topics today, but I look forward to working together with you again this year to make Gifu University a more excellent institution. I ask for your continued cooperation as I conclude my New Year message.

January 4^th, 2018

Hisataka Moriwaki
President of Gifu University