From June 5 to June 21, 2010, Prof. Li Fengting, Vice Dean of UNEP-Tongji Institute of Environment for Sustainable Development (IESD), paid an official visit to Pyongyang along with fellow Tongji professors Dr.Li Gongyu and Dr.Niu Dongjie. The main purpose of the visit was to discuss cooperation with North Korea’s Ministry of Education and potential cooperation with its Ministry of Land and Environment. The group also paid a visit to Chief Secretary of International Cooperation Department of Ministry of Education, Vice Minister of Ministry of Land and Environment, and UNEP representatives Dr. Mahesh Pradhan, Hank and Professor Mario.

   Both sides reached broad consensus as follows:

1. The North Korean Ministry of Education will invite administrators of Tongji University to visit the DPRK during the Sino-North Korean College President Conference on Sep. 12, where Tongji University will sign a cooperation agreement with North Korean Kim II-sung University and North Korean Construction University. The North Korean counterparts will draft the agreement via the DPRK’s Department of Cultural Exchange in China to Tongji for appraisal.
2. The UNEP-Tongji IESD will help implement plans for environmental education made between UNEP and the North Korean Ministry of Education.

3. On Oct. 20, North Korean Ministry of Education will send 10 government officials and professors to attend the training session hosted by UNEP-Tongji for a thorough discussion regarding the cooperation.

3. The North Korean counterparts have requested Tongji to provide teaching materials for the exchange, and Tongji has agreed. Since Chinese is a popular second language among North Korean schools, such teaching materials will be gladly welcomed by North Korean universities.

4. On the topic of student exchanges: Tongji will encourage student exchanges. There will be no problem for students with Master’s and Doctor’s degrees, but exchanges between undergraduates will be a problem, as Tongji undergraduates have not been taught Korean. The North Korean universities, on the other hand, wish to send their students to Tongji University to learn Chinese—Tongji University has expressed their support for this plan. In return, Prof. Li Fengting has invited the North Koreans to send 15 to 20 representatives from the Pyongyang Music School to Tongji this Nov. for Feng Lin Festival. Prof. Li has also asked the delegation to exchange minds with the Tongji Music Department and to visit the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

5. As part of the exchange, North Korea will choose a middle school and an elementary school in Pyongyang to become sister schools with Tongji Middle School and Elementary School.