On February 20, a group of 13 students from the Knowledge Investment Programs (KIP) and KIP President Keiko Packard visited Consul-General Takaoka at his official residence. KIP was founded in 2008 with the goal of encouraging Japanese university students to educate themselves to become better global citizens. This goal is met through study tours, cultural exchanges, and symposiums in both Japan and abroad. This year the group will visit Houston, Boston, and San Francisco from February 18 to March 11.
At the meeting, Consul-General gave a lecture detailing the relationship between Texas and Japan. He noted three examples of the economic importance of Texas; investment in the energy sector such as LNG export, the strategic positioning of Texas within the United States, and high technology such as high speed railways. He also spoke about the activities of the consulate and Texas politics. After his lecture there was a lively Q&A session with many insightful questions from the students.
In addition to meeting with Consul-General in Houston, the students had the opportunity to exchange with students from St. Thomas and Rice University, visit Japanese companies, and visit NASA.
 
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