Professor Narahiko Inoue

Greetings

              On behalf of the Faculty of Languages and Cultures, Kyushu University, I am very happy to announce that our faculty is committed to support the Kyushu Debate Open, an international English debating tournament, here at our new Ito Campus, Fukuoka, Japan. Competitive debating has long been popular around the world to improve students’ skills in argumentation as a process of inquiry and advocacy about critical issues. Our faculty is strongly supporting students’ activities in improving language skills and cultural awareness so that they can be better prepared for a variety of communication situations in their career. Debating is the most effective and satisfying activity among them. Our tournament is an important contribution to this endeavor and would like to invite both domestic and overseas teams to enjoy debating in a competitive, yet cooperative atmosphere.

              Since last year, the tournament has developed further to commit itself to the SDGs. It is not only that participants will debate topics related to the SDGs but that the whole process of the preparation and the management of the tournament is concerned. Our students are not just practicing debating skills but they are connecting their activities with their life, their environment, and the world outside the campus.

              I wish all of you to come to Fukuoka to learn from one another and enjoy the activities in and outside the tournament, including local cuisine.

Narahiko INOUE, Ph.D.

Faculty Advisor of the Kyushu Debate Open 2019

Professor, Faculty of Languages & Cultures, Kyushu University

School of Interdisciplinary Science and Innovation

Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Global Society

(For more information about debate education, visit http://flc.kyushu-u.ac.jp/~debate/.)