Greeting From Hitachi

Foreword by Mr. Kazuo Furukawa, Executive Vice President & Executive Officer, Hitachi, Ltd.

Dear Friends,

The 7th Hitachi Young Leaders Initiative is now over and once again the programme has achieved its objective of providing a platform to identify and nurture Asia's future leaders.

As in previous years, we brought together 24 of the region's brightest university students from Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand for the rare opportunity to interact with Asia's current leaders and be inspired by their knowledge and insights. Under the overall theme of "Balancing People, Planet and Profit for Asia's Future", the delegates engaged with speakers from the public, private and academic sectors during the two-day forum, to formulate their own opinions on how to address critical regional issues. The week-long programme also consisted of intensive workshops and a meaningful community work activity.

As a result of their collaboration and hard work, our HYLI delegates have developed some unique recommendations which are included in this report for your reference.

With each initiative, it is indeed heartening to see the enthusiasm, passion and commitment demonstrated in each of our HYLI delegates. More importantly, they have shown a good cross-cultural understanding of regional economic, environmental and educational issues. In partnering with their hearing-impaired counterparts during the community work activity, this year's delegates have also demonstrated an understanding of the social responsibilities and realities that true leadership requires.

The contents of this website are testimony to their efforts in helping to realize a better future for Asia by balancing people, planet and profit.

In conclusion, I would like to extend my appreciation and gratitude to everyone who contributed to the success of the 7th Hitachi Young Leaders Initiative. Although the 7th initiative has concluded, the ideas that have been shared and the friendships that have been forged will be remembered for a long time to come.

Yours sincerely,