LUJ has been officially shortlisted in the highly competitive “Partnership of the Year” category. This nomination recognizes LUJ’s collaborative initiative with Archipelago Education Consultancy, a global firm, focusing on “Post-pandemic HEI (Higher Education Institution) revitalization”.

This nomination underscores LUJ’s agile response to complex global challenges. The distinguished judging panel, drawn from across the international education community, specifically seeks out bold ideas, outstanding impact, and fresh thinking that pushes boundaries and raises standards. By collaborating with Archipelago Education Consultancy, LUJ has successfully strategized the university’s post-pandemic growth, cementing its position as an innovative American university in Tokyo.

For LUJ undergraduate and postgraduate students, by attending an institution recognized for its award worthy global partnerships, students gain the advantage of learning in a resilient, forward-thinking academic environment. Students directly benefit by seeing how high-level strategic partnerships operate to solve systemic international issues. This global recognition elevates the value of the LUJ American liberal arts experience, ensuring that graduates, whether entering the global workforce or advancing through the M.B.A. and M.S. in Leadership programs, are prepared to thrive and lead in the modern, rapidly evolving educational and corporate landscape.

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Brand trust starts long before a product reaches the customer. On Wednesday July 8th 2026, Lakeland University Japan (LUJ) proudly welcomed Mr. Mehmet Uysal, a Senior Manager at Amazon Japan, to present a special guest lecture titled, Brand Trust as Strategy: Protecting Brand Value Through Ethical Supply Chains. Students from LUJ’s MBA and undergraduate programs joined the highly interactive session.

Hosted by Dr. Seval Yurtcicek Ozaydin as part of the MBA course BA750 Applied Marketing Management, the session explored how global companies build, protect, and sometimes rebuild brand trust through ethical supply chain management, transparency, and effective crisis communication.

A Global Journey of Impact and Challenge

Mr. Uysal shared his expansive 16-year professional journey, which began in telecommunications with Ericsson in Turkey and took him across the globe to the Middle East, Sweden, the United States, India, Ethiopia, Taiwan, and Japan. Continuing his trajectory, he will soon be transitioning to AWS Australia to lead digital and supply chain transformations.

When asked by a student about the most impactful role he has held, Mr. Uysal explained that impact is deeply tied to the level of difficulty and commitment involved. Reflecting on a high-stakes, near-break-in contract during his time in Taiwan, he noted, “When you look at the impact for the society, for the customer, for my company, for me in my career, I would say that was definitely a very good turnout. The most challenging assignment became the most impactful success story as well.”

Visibility, Risk, and Brand Trust

Connecting supply chain realities directly to Dr. Yurtcicek Ozaydin’s marketing curriculum, Mr. Uysal emphasized the fragility of brand trust. He asked the class to consider if they knew whether the workers behind their recent online deliveries were paid fairly, illustrating the massive disconnect between consumer trust and supply chain visibility.

Addressing a student’s question about how massive corporations prevent supplier abuses, Mr. Uysal offered a grounded perspective on risk management. “It’s impossible to 100% avoid these kind of problems,” he explained. “But we more focus on try to bring more visibility on where the risks are and to be prepared how to respond when the incident happens.” He emphasized that a company’s true test is how its top management responds to crises and protects its core brand value.

Academic Rigor, Student Benefits, and Institutional Impact

For LUJ undergraduate and MBA students, interacting with a global executive like Mr. Uysal offers profound, real-world developmental benefits. Students gained practical insights into the growing connection between marketing, sustainability, and corporate reputation while engaging in thoughtful discussions throughout the session. By examining practical case studies involving major brands like Nike and Amazon, students develop advanced executive insight into the intersection of corporate social responsibility and marketing strategy.

Lakeland University Japan’s guest lectures are open to all undergraduate and postgraduate students.

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The Evolution of AI Discourse and Methodology

To understand how AI evolved from a specialized technology into a mainstream societal force, Dr. Kiprop and his research team utilized Python to extract public transcripts, performing rigorous corpus statistics, lexical analysis, and thematic analysis. The findings revealed a dramatic shift in global discourse:

• 2019–2020 (AI as Infrastructure): The tone was highly optimistic, viewing AI primarily as a specialized educational and tutoring tool.
• 2021–2022 (AI as Enhancement): The discourse matured into a pragmatic approach, focusing on enhancement.
• 2023–2024 (Generative AI Disruption): Following the widespread release of generative models, the tone shifted to cautious, treating AI as a massive disruptive force.
• 2025–2026 (Institutional Adaptation): Current discussions have adopted a strategic tone, focusing heavily on how institutions must navigate and implement the new AI landscape.

The Four Stakeholder Perspectives

Dr Kiprop explained that as AI becomes a major societal issue, understanding how different groups interpret its impact is critical. The research compared four key stakeholder groups, revealing widely varying priorities:

1. Education Specialists and Learning Experts: Initially optimistic, educators have become highly cautious and strategic. Their primary concerns revolve around students, academic integrity, assessment, and pedagogical support.
2. Industry Leaders and Tech Executives: Maintaining a pragmatic and opportunity-oriented tone, this group focuses on business value, enterprise disruption, workforce skills, and human-AI collaboration.
3. Policy and Research Institutions: Organizations like UNESCO and the OECD have shifted from cautious optimism to action-oriented policy building, focusing heavily on AI governance, ethical frameworks, regulation, and systemic adaptation.
4. AI Creators and Tech Influencers: Representing the fastest adopters, this group is highly enthusiastic. They show the least concern for educational risks and focus heavily on technical capabilities, coding, and entrepreneurial empowerment.

The Liberal Arts Advantage in the AI Era

One of the most dynamic moments of the seminar occurred during the Q&A session, which sparked a debate regarding who truly benefits most from generative AI. While many assume science and engineering students have the upper hand, Dr. Kiprop presented a compelling counter-argument: Liberal Arts students might be the biggest beneficiaries of AI tools.

Historically, Liberal Arts students have excelled in soft skills, such as critical thinking, leadership, and communication, but may have lacked specialized technical skills like coding. Dr. Kiprop believes that generative AI is able to bridges this technical gap. He explained that because complex coding and data analysis are now easily accessible via AI, students with strong communication and critical thinking skills can use AI to execute technical tasks. This makes them incredibly empowered in areas like entrepreneurship, allowing them to seamlessly execute their creative and strategic visions.

Academic Rigor, Student Benefits, and Institutional Impact

For LUJ undergraduate and postgraduate students, engaging in these high-level academic seminars offers profound, real-world developmental benefits. By analyzing how different sectors view artificial intelligence, students gain a strategic understanding of the modern workforce. Addressing questions on how to implement AI in teaching, Dr. Kiprop noted that the tone in education has shifted from resistance to acceptance, meaning the focus must now be on the best strategies for adoption. LUJ’s robust Liberal Arts curriculum ensures that students develop irreplaceable human skills while learning to confidently command AI as a technical tool. This holistic approach ensures that LUJ graduates are not intimidated by technological disruption, but are uniquely equipped to lead the future of human-AI collaboration.

Lakeland University Japan’s Lunch and Learn sessions are open to all undergraduate and postgraduate students.

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Dr. Kiprop and LUJ Vice President, Dr. Anderson Passos, previously attended the main SusHi Tech Tokyo event on May 29th, 2026, with a group of enterprising students and met with business specialists from across Japan and around the world. Closely collaborating with SusHi Tech co-founder Mr. Masataka Keireiji, Dr. Kiprop invited a select group of speakers who are authorities in their respective fields to judge the LUJ Global Student Innovation Challenge:

Mr. Masataka Keireiji (One-stop Inc. and City-Tech Tokyo) –Masataka Keireiji is the Founder of One-stop Inc., a startup launched in 2024 that supports foreign companies entering the Japanese market. He previously engaged in general consulting spanning strategy, HR, systems, and BPR at PwC Consulting, where he also served as an expatriate in Singapore. He later oversaw global projects as a department head at Deloitte Tohmatsu Venture Support and served as the Project Lead for “City-Tech Tokyo,” the predecessor to “SusHi Tech Tokyo.”

Ms. Sasha Lee Seals (Nagareyama LEAD and Global Jamaica Diaspora Council) – Sasha Seals is Representative Director and incoming CEO of Nagareyama LEAD, a youth entrepreneurship organization preparing children aged 10–14 in Japan for the AI era through bilingual curriculum and real-world venture-building. A Jamaica-born, Japan-based founder of 20+ years, she is an alum of Techstars, AWS Impact Bootcamp Tokyo, and UBS Project Female Founders, and serves as APAC Lead on the Global Jamaica Diaspora Council.

Prof. Tatsuya Tsubuki, (Musashino University) – Tatsuya Tsubuki is a faculty member at Musashino University’s Faculty of Entrepreneurship, where he is involved in the establishment and management of the faculty. He began his career at Matsushita Electric Industrial (Panasonic), gaining experience in overseas sales across Asia and stationed in Indonesia, before leading international business development at a domestic IT company. Since 2008, he has been active in higher education, teaching at Rikkyo University and launching next-generation leader development programs at the Kyoto Institute of Technology. A recipient of the 2014 Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry Career Education Award, he holds an MBA from GLOBIS Graduate School of Management.

Ms. Aska Kuwabara (anosa.ai and GetItDoneWith.AI) – Aska Kuwabara is the Representative Director of anosa.ai, a company building AI-powered conversational soft toys, and the Founder of GetItDoneWith.AI, an operational and product strategy advisory. With over two decades of experience across Japan, Singapore, and the Middle East, she has held product and managerial roles at companies including Rakuten, Twilio, AI Singapore, and Liquidity, leading AI and ML-powered products across finance, e-commerce, and telecommunications. Today, she works across both enterprise advisory and hands-on product development, bringing an execution-oriented perspective to global organisations navigating the AI-driven world.

Prof. Hiroshi Katayama, PhD (Waseda University) –Hiroshi Katayama is a Professor within the Department of Management Systems Engineering at Waseda University’s School of Creative Science and Engineering. Dedicated to bridging the gap between technology and business, his work focuses on fostering science and engineering talent equipped with the critical management skills necessary to lead in modern industries.

Nine LUJ students pitched to the panel on topics ranging from AI film-making to technology-driven subscription platforms for law firms specializing in medical malpractice. The judges presented three students with awards to celebrate their entrepreneurial spirit. 

1. Benjamin Emmanuel Anierobi – Benjamin pitched Rirrakusu Japan (Relax Japan), an organization that provides services to helping busy executives “Reclaim Your Peace and Your Time”. From organizing picnics and arranging the quality time that many executives lack, to taking care of client’s pressing home tasks to relieve the burdens of everyday life,  Rirrakusu Japan resonated with the expert panel thanks to Benjamin’s engaging presentation style.

2. Nidha Effat Jahan  – Dedicated to creating ‘Fashion Without Waste’, Nidha presented ReWear Bangladesh, a project that would encourage young people across Bangladesh to rent high quality fashion, rather than purchasing items they will only use once or twice.

3. Sung Won Kim  – Mikke, the app that Sung Won pitched, was designed to solve Japan’s tourism imbalance, which sees over-tourism in some areas and a lack of visitors in others. With its motto: ‘Ride, Collect, Remember,’ Mikke creates a series of collectable digital items for various undervisited Japanese areas that encourage tourists to explore all of Japan, rather than just the obvious sites.

After the event, Dr. Kiprop said that, “The students that took part in the LUJ Global Student Innovation Challenge have helped develop opportunities for themselves and for the university. By co-hosting an event with SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026, we have helped grow the university’s ecosystem and create new opportunities for student entrepreneurship, business partnership and academic collaboration. My goal is to spend the rest of 2026 preparing our students to have all the entrepreneurship skills they need to expand our presence at SusHi Tech Tokyo 2027 and show all of Tokyo what LUJ has to offer.”

Dr. Eliud Kiprop is an Assistant Professor at Lakeland University Japan with interdisciplinary expertise in environmental studies, engineering, sustainability, mathematics, geospatial analysis, entrepreneurship, and quantitative research methodologies. He teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses and has experience in interdisciplinary instruction spanning mathematics, quantitative reasoning, business research, organizational effectiveness, environmental studies, AI and sustainability, and contemporary global issues.

He holds a PhD in Environmental Studies from the University of Tsukuba, Japan, a Master of Engineering from Ashikaga Institute of Technology, and a Bachelor of Engineering in Chemical and Process Engineering from Moi University, Kenya.

The LUJ Global Student Innovation Challenge was a joint venture between Lakeland University Japan and SuShi Tech Tokyo 2026, and organized with assistance from Archipelago Education Consultancy (アーキペラゴ日本株式会社). Lakeland University Japan and アーキペラゴ日本株式会社 were nominated as finalists for the Partnership of the Year award at the PIEoneer Awards 2026, highlighting the versatility and forward thinking, student centered initiatives that both organizations have implemented.  

The LUJ Global Student Innovation Challenge aligns with SDGs 4 (Quality Education), 8 (Decent Work), 9 (Industry/Innovation), and 17 (Partnerships) by fostering student entrepreneurship through cross-sector tech collaboration.

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Hosting Strathmore University is a product in LUJ’s continued globalization efforts which aim to expand opportunities for students and faculty to a truly international scale and Dr Kiprop expressed his intention that both parties seize the opportunity presented to develop deep bonds for long term academic collaboration. “Given Strathmore University’s strengths in business and entrepreneurship, I believe there are many opportunities for joint innovation activities beyond traditional academic research. “ Dr. Kiprop said, continuing, “Strathmore’s students remarked that they had not expected an international university in Japan to place such importance on Japanese cultural education, and they appreciated how LUJ integrates local culture into the student experience.”

The delegation from Strathmore University was led by Dean of Students, Mr. Paul Ochieng, Senior Lecturer, Dr. Caroline Kariuki, Dr. Titus Orwa, Lecturer from the Strathmore Institute of Mathematical Sciences and Mr. Raymond Ochieng, Lecturer from Strathmore University.

LUJ was proud to include presentations from postgraduate students Mara Peppermuller and Benjamin Emmanuel Aniereobi, who recently won the 2026 LUJ Innovation Challenge, in Association with SusHi Tech 2026, for the presentation of his corporate start-up Rirakkusu Japan.

Dr. Kiprop described how impressed he was with Strathmore University’s experiential learning program, saying “Their students are expected to complete a substantial number of practical hours (approximately 400 hours), many of them in informal settlements and low-income communities. This approach gives students meaningful real-world experience while allowing them to make a tangible impact on society.”

Strathmore University was founded in 1961 as the first educational institution in pre-independence Kenya to accommodate all races, religions, and social standings. Having grown to boast a student population of over 8,000, Strathmore is consistently ranked as one of Kenya’s top private universities and everyone at LUJ extends their thanks to the faculty and staff who travelled so far to join us for a short time in Tokyo!

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