A special lecture was held to commemorate the sister city agreement between the City of Kranj, Republic of Slovenia, and the City of Fukui.

On September 22, 2025, the City of Fukui signed a sister city agreement with the City of Kranj in the Republic of Slovenia. Prior to the signing ceremony, a delegation from Kranj, led by Mayor Matja? Rakovec, visited our university’s Bunkyo Campus. Mayor Rakovec paid a courtesy call to President NAIKI Hironobu, and the university hosted a special lecture to commemorate the agreement.
This was the first visit by Mayor Rakovec to the university since President NAIKI took office. The mayor provided an overview of Kranj and discussed the city¡¯s initiatives for achieving a climate-neutral and smart city, a goal for which it was selected for the EU Mission “100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities.”

The special lecture began with opening remarks by Prof. NAGAI Niro, Dean of the School of Engineering, Mr. Toa? Lani?ek, Head of Unit for Development, Smart Community and Projects from the City of Kranj, took the stage. His lecture, titled “Digital Transformation and Climate-Neutral Smart Cities,” introduced Kranj’s advanced initiatives. He gave a detailed account of the cutting edge of citizen-participation platforms and the urban data space developed through the EU pilot project “UrbanMind.” The lecture was attended by approximately 70 people, including students, faculty, staff, and Fukui City officials, who listened intently to the advanced case study from abroad on smart city development.

During the Q&A session after the lecture, in response to the question, “How can the university contribute to realizing a smart city?” Mr. Lani?ek emphasized the importance of “contributing through research.”

The lecture was a very meaningful experience for attendees, offering a chance to consider the integration of digital technology and urban development. Our university will continue to deepen its collaboration with the City of Kranj and contribute to the development of our local community.