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4AIST TODAY 2013-1as a whole. AIST has also been working to build a strong, long-term cooperative relationship with national research institutes in Thailand. We take pride in the fact that we have played a significant role in the modernization of Thailand’s industrial sector. We decided to hold this workshop in Thailand in the hope that mutual understanding of this relationship between Japan and Thailand will contribute to the deepening of economic ties between the two countries.The workshop was composed of four sessions. The first three were a series of talks on the following topics: “Metrology Standards to Support Manufacturing in Thailand,” “Standards and Conformity Assessment to Guarantee Product Reliability,” and “Green Innovation through Japan-Thailand Collaboration.” The final session was a panel discussion on the theme, “Future Prospective Calibration, Standards and Conformity Assessment in Thailand."Metrology standards, and calibration and conformity assessments based on the metrology standards are indispensable for guaranteeing product quality, and their significance is increasing year by year. Even though the number of European organizations entering this field has recently been sharply increasing, it is my impression that we were able to demonstrate the solid functional improvements made by Japanese organizations and Thai national research institutes through the above-mentioned talks and panel discussion. We at AIST are determined to continue our support of these efforts.A large number of international collaborative projects are being carried out in Thailand with the support of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), and others. Among these projects, presentations were given on the research and development of biofuels and photovoltaics by both Japan and Thailand. The presentations of Thailand were made by Thai national research institutes and the presentations of Japan were made by company representatives, with each presentation offering insights on their current situations and challenges. Through these case studies that are successfully utilizing the fruits of AIST’s efforts in business development and the formulation of global standards, I believe that the participants from the industrial sectors of the two countries were able to confirm the effects of collaboration among national research institutes.The workshop was attended by a total of approximately 230 people. Of these, around 100 were corporate participants mainly from Japanese companies and their affiliates. About 100 were from Thai national research institutes and universities and some 30 were from AIST; the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI); the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO); and NEDO personnel in Thailand. In each of the talk sessions and the panel discussion, the participants actively asked questions and voiced their opinions.This workshop was supported by a wide range of organizations both in Japan and Thailand including the National Science and Technology Development Agency (Thailand) (NSTDA), the Thailand Institute of Scientific and Technological Research (TISTR), the National Institute of Metrology (Thailand), the Thai Industrial Standards Institute, METI, JETRO Bangkok, NEDO, the Technology Promotion Association (Thailand-Japan), and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce, Bangkok. JETRO in particular greatly supported us from the planning stage through the preparations and to the final workshop, and I would like to express my sincere gratitude for their cooperation.AIST also has tripartite collaborations with partner countries’ national research institutes and Japanese corporations in countries other than Thailand; for example, Indonesia, Australia, and China. I believe that we need to further strengthen our emphasis on these efforts.We also held a large event in Japan called the "AIST Open Lab 2012" on October 25 and 26. As a new endeavor, we scheduled talks by the presidents of two global companies, President Masayoshi Matsumoto of Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd. and President Taketsugu Fujiwara of Asahi Kasei Corporation; talks by executives of successful local companies; a talk to commemorate the receiving of the Ig Nobel Prize; and various other talks. The number of visitors at the event surpassed last year’s figure thanks partly to these talks, with more than 4,700 attending. As has been the case every year, the majority of the visitors were from corporations, accounting for about 80 % of the total. Slightly more than 20 % of the corporate visitors were from small- and medium-sized companies. With each passing year, increasing numbers of high-level personnel from companies’ technical departments are coming to the event. It seems that not only more people are visiting us in search of raw gemstones that can propel innovation, but that their enthusiasm is also increasing.First Global Summit of Research Institute LeadersThe 9th Annual Meeting of the Science and Technology in Society (STS) Forum was held in Kyoto early last October. This meeting was established as the result of a proposal and initiatives by Japan and has now achieved a presence as a venue where more than 1,000 influential people from around the world in the fields of politics, industry, and academia gather and engage in serious discussions. With the aim of creating an opportunity for exchanges of ideas among representatives of the world’s public research organizations prior to this STS forum, RIKEN and AIST jointly hosted the First Global Summit of Research Institute Leaders (RIL Summit).Sixteen institutes from 12 countries participated, with RIKEN

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