“I want to eliminate disparities in the world through the power of engineering.”
Inomata Laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University
Suiri Takizawa
Vowing to overcome language barriers, she embarked on overseas training once more. Fueled by her aspirations, she took up the challenge of a highly difficult subject for her graduation research.
Ms. Takizawa's new attempt began in the same School of Engineering's “International Engineering Training” which she participated in when she was in her third year. In her first visit to Central European countries, she toured an engineering university in Poland, a laboratory in the Czech Republic, Auschwitz, and a steelworks. She was surprised at the free and open campus life and at the large number of female students in engineering school. She says, “There are only a few females in engineering schools in Japan. But in Europe, the male-female ratios were the same as in other schools. I honestly thought that that was a good environment. And I was impressed once again with Tohoku University's School of Engineering, which allows students to go overseas many times even during undergraduate years.” Ms. Takizawa once visited a manufacturing plant as part of a class, and she began to take an interest in the manufacturing process. With her aspirations boosted by her overseas training, in her fourth year, she chose the Inomata Laboratory which was conducting research on optimization in overall processes. Her research subject was “Monomer Solubility Acting in Accordance with Propylene Combined Polymers and the Measurement and Estimation of the Diffusion Coefficient.Measurement and Prediction of Monomer Solubility and Diffusion Coefficient in Polypropylene-co-polymer.” Days were spent in trial and error. “Research isn't flashy in any way. You can't really foresee what the results would be, and you don't know where the goal would be to begin with. I began my research in the spring, but I only realized for the first time what I was doing in the winter,” she says. While failing repeatedly, she tackled her research believing that she would be able to do it if she kept trying.
Studying abroad in Denmark, her days were filled with bewilderment and discoveries. Polishing her language skills, her worldview broadened.
After successfully completing her graduation research, she decided to go to graduate school because there were things that she still needed to do. She explains, “I felt that I still lacked research skills and skills in dealing with people and events overseas, which I realized from my overseas training during my second and third years. Thus, in the fall of my first year of graduate school, I went to the Technical University of Denmark on an exchange program for a year.” She was bewildered at the social systems that were completely different from Japan's and at the communication using a mixture of English and Danish, and the communication style unique to Scandinavia. “If you don't say something plainly, it won't be conveyed. It took a while until I got used to stating my opinions clearly. But I've always liked talking. I wanted to join other people's conversations so I was proactive in talking to others, polishing my language skills in the process,” she says. When conversation flowed smoothly, classes and friendships became naturally fulfilling. She became close to Danish people and with students from all over the world. One of these students told her that in her country, women are not encouraged to learn. Ms. Takizawa realized that depending on where one is born, one's world can be broadened or narrowed.
Having realized what she really wants to do, her aim is to “eliminate economic disparities in the world.”
Education is precisely the foundation of a person. Circumstances wherein one can study to their satisfaction isn't necessarily a given. This is one of the things that Ms. Takizawa learned in her studies overseas. She realized that before she went overseas, she tried to conform to people around her. She also learned that what is common sense in Japan is not necessarily what is considered as common sense elsewhere. She also came to realize that she shouldn’t mind what someone else says but rather do what she wants to do. After returning to Japan, Ms. Takizawa decided to take on “the world's disparities” that she witnessed firsthand while studying overseas. She explains, “I have always had an interest in the manufacturing process in factories, but as I spoke to international students from developing countries, I realized what I really wanted to do. I now want to contribute to rectifying economic disparities in the world through the fields of chemistry and engineering.” Should she press forward in the energy industry or in infrastructure maintenance? It might also be interesting to explore untapped research fields. The possibilities before Ms. Takizawa are endless. She says, “Taking an extensive view of the world, most of the things around us are borne out of engineering. This is true of electricity, gas, and even cleaning technologies. People just aren't aware of it. Because engineering is at the heart of industry, common practices throughout the world could surely be changed through our efforts. I would like to continue taking up the challenge no matter how many times I fail.”
Inomata Laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University
Suiri Takizawa
Studied science and mathematics at Yashiro High School in Nagano Prefecture, and graduated in 2010. Admitted into the School of Engineering, Tohoku University in the same year. Participated in “Creative Engineering Training” sponsored by the School of Engineering in 2011. It was her first time to present her research overseas, and she began to aim for success overseas. Decided to study overseas after touring engineering schools in Poland and the Czech Republic and a steelworks which was part of her “International Engineering Training” in 2012. After continuing her studies at the Graduate School of Engineering of Tohoku University, she participated in a one-year overseas exchange program. Returned to Japan where she is currently staying in June 2015.