Dr. and Mrs. Ushioda Scholarship 2023 award ceremony | PHOTO GALLERY
Dr. and Mrs. Ushioda Scholarship was established in 2019 in honour of Dr. and Mrs. Ushioda’s major contribution to the development of the Ireland Japan Association and Ireland-Japan relations, and to underpin the association’s strong commitment to supporting Japanese studies in Ireland.
In 2023, the scholarship was awarded to Ben Murphy, studying Japanese Language at University of Limerick. Ben will be travelling to Japan for an exchange year at Waseda University, Tokyo.
From left: Mrs. Yoshiko Ushioda, IJA founder member and Scholarship Patron, H.E. Mr. Norio Maruyama, Ambassador of Japan to Ireland, and Ben Murphy, Univeristy of Limerick & Ushioda Scholarship winner in 2023.
The small but heartwarming award ceremony of the scholarship took place on 30th August 2023 at the beautiful offices of the IJA Patron Member – ElectroRoute. Ben was greeted and congratulated by Mrs. Yoshiko Ushioda, IJA founder member and Scholarship Patron, Ms. Tsugumi Yamamoto, IJA Vice-Chaiperson, Ms. Paula Kelly, IJA Council and Scholarship coordinator, and Mr. Donal Flyn, CFO, Managing Director of Finance & Operation at ElectroRoute.
H.E. Mr. Norio Maruyama, Ambassador of Japan to Ireland and Ms. Keiko Nakata, Embassy of Japan in Ireland, were the special invited guests at this event. Ambassador dedicated well wishes and words of encouragement to Ben as he is preparing to travel to Japan for his year abroad.
I have always wanted to explore and discover another culture and language. Studying Japanese in UL has granted me the opportunity to do so. Since my first class in Japanese, I have been captivated by Japan and its history and culture. I have met some of my closest friends, both Japanese and non-Japanese through my studies, and I hope to see them all in Japan when I complete my study abroad in Japanese at Waseda University in Tokyo!’ – Ben Murphy
We would like to thank Ms. Paula Kelly, IJA Council, and Barbara Geraghty, University of Limerick, for their support and assistance with the scholarship management and administration process this year.
Many thanks to Azumi Uchitani and her team at ElectroRoute for a very warm welcome, reception set up and looking after all the guests during this event.
