T . I . T .

S A G E

th

6 ASCENT
THE FUTURE IMAGE OF ENERGY

JOSHUA COLLADO
11118555

WHAT IS ASCENT?
ASCENT stands for Asian Students
Collaboration Encouragement Program
in Technology. It aims to further
establish international networks among
students in Asian countries by studying
developments in the Asian Industry.
The program contains company visits,
laboratory tours in Tokyo Tech and
outside Tokyo Tech, special lectures,
group presentations, and a final
presentation which is to be presented to
company representatives of the
laboratories the students will visit.

On March 13, 2015, Tokyo Institute of Technology (TIT) once

again welcomed students from different Asian universities such
as DLSU, TIT, Chulalongkorn University, and ITB. for
6th ASCENT, which is a 10-day program that focused on the
theme of the future image of energy. There were a total of 19
delegates who attended the program, which was solely
organized by students of TIT through their organization called
S.A.G.E. (Student Association for Global Exchange).

CONTENTS
DAYS 1-3

DAYS 4-6

DAYS 7-10

3/13-15/2015

3/16-18/2015

19-22

Welcome Party

Neo-Morgan Lab

Pre-study Presentation

Toshiba & Tokyo Gas

Special Lecture by
(NEDO)

Presentation Lecture

TIT Super Computer

Tsubame,
Suzukakedai
Campus Visit
Presentations, Hiking

It was first held in March 2010 by

SAGE in TIT as a complement to TITs
AYSEAS (Asia Young Scientist and
Engineer Advanced Study Program),
which is organized by TITs
international Office, wherein TIT
students were sent to other Asian
countries to learn more about science
and engineering.

6TH ASCENT: THE FUTURE IMAGE OF ENERGY

MARCH 2015

The first few days of the program were very

exciting as I met other foreign students who were
also friendly and approachable. It was great to be
exposed to different customs and cultures, and
learn from the different working habits of other
students, especially the professionalism that the
Japanese student organizers have shown.

DAY 1
The first day was when the students arrived in Japan
and gathered at the hotels lobby (Tokyo Central Youth
Hostel, Iidabashi). After the orientation, the students
gathered at a Japanese-Indian restaurant in Iidabashi
for the welcome party.

DAY 2
The pre-study presentation was held during
the second day where each country
presented about the energy situation in their
respective countries. Afterwards the students
went on a sight seeing trip to Tokyo Tower.

DAY 3
On the third day, the participants once again gathered
at a classroom in TIT for a special lecture given by a
NEDO representative who discussed about solving
issues regarding energy. Afterwards the students had
their cultural exchange party where the participants
shared their own countrys unique culture. The students
went to Odaiba afterwards, where they visited several
places such as the Trick Art Museum at Diver City
Tokyo Plaza.

2
1

6TH ASCENT: THE FUTURE IMAGE OF ENERGY

MARCH 2015

DAYS 4-6
For the fourth day, the students went on a
laboratory tour to Neo-Morgan Laboratory,
which is a genetics laboratory that is also
developing biofuel derived from algae that they
cultivate. The technology is promising as it is
sustainable and helps address issues on carbon
dioxide emissions as the algae consume the gas.
The students went to Kamakura afterwards
despite the rain. At Kamakura, they posed next
to the Giant Buddha for memorable photos,
explored the traditional streets, and of course
tried the fish delicacy of the place. The fifth day
was a busy day for the participants as they
visited Toshibas power plant assembly plant

and Tokyo Gas. The students learned a lot from

the lab tours such as the different processes and
parts involved in a nuclear power plant, and the
recent technological developments in Tokyo
Gas. The participants went to Yokohama
afterwards and enjoyed the scene and Chinese
food at Chinatown. The sixth day was mellow
as the participants listened to a lecture on how
to deliver a presentation effectively, and the
students went sightseeing at Asakusa to see the
beautiful and famous Kaminarimon and shop
around the beautiful market that led to the
temple. On the way home, they visited another
famous landmark - Sky Tree.

The laboratory tours really gave me a new

perspective on the future of energy as new methods
of deriving energy from biomass has been presented
to us. Despite the energy situation we have in the
Philippines as an impending energy crisis is
looming near, I believe that if our country invests
on the development of biofuel, our energy situation
can improve.

6TH ASCENT: THE FUTURE IMAGE OF ENERGY

MARCH 2015

DAY 7
For the seventh day, the students
gathered at TIT and visited Tsubame,
TITs super computer, and then the
students visited TITs Suzukakedai
campus and listened to lab tours and
presentations given by professors and
lab researchers. The participants went
to Jiyugaoka, which was a classy
beautiful neighborhood to eat some
unlimited designer pancakes and took
wacky Purikura photos for souvenirs in
an arcade.

DAY 8
As the final day is drawing near, the students prepared
for the interim presentation, which practiced them for
the final presentation, wherein they talked about their
plans for the future of energy as they integrated all the
information they have learned from the lab tours.
Stressed in preparing for the final presentation they
only ate at an Okonomiyaki house near TIT for dinner
and headed home

DAY 9
The students gathered at an auditorium in Tokyo Tech
to present their ideas on the future sources of energy in
front of company representatives from Tokyo Gas,
Toshiba, and Neo-Morgan. The closing ceremony was
held afterwards. During the night they went to sing at a
karaoke and went to Shibuya to pose with Hachiko.

DAY 10
For the final day, everyone went on a hike to climb the
spiritual and famous Mt. Takao. Everyone enjoyed
climbing as food stalls scattered on the way to the top.
Dango and other snacks were everywhere. Shrines,
gates and temples were also along the way to the top.
On the summit, the students had a picnic and enjoyed
the mountain-view, and afterwards, the students had a
farewell party at an Izakaya where people became
emotional as they said their goodbyes
4

2
1

6TH ASCENT: THE FUTURE IMAGE OF ENERGY

MARCH 2015

THE 6TH ASCENT EXPERIENCE

6th Ascent has truly been a fruitful and
wonderful experience on my part as I was
exposed to different Asian cultures such as
Japanese, Indonesian, and Thai. Besides the
exchange of cultures and norms, I was exposed
to recent developments in the field of bio-energy
as we were toured in high-profile companies
and laboratories, and the people there were so
accommodating and informative.

energy system they operate is a hybrid of biofuel

and fossil fuel. The last lab tour was at TIT
Suzukakedai campus where we toured the
laboratory for biofuel.
The discussions, lab tours, and presentations
challenged me since I did not have a good
background regarding the field of energy since I
major in Civil Engineering Structural Design,
and most foreign students major in chemistry,
nano-engineering and other energy related
courses, but I did not let that hinder me from
learning as I further researched into the recent
energy developments.

The lab tours, discussions, and presentations we

had broadened my perspective regarding the
field of sustainable energy as we have seen the
latest developments in biomass such as the
photosynthetic algae which is being developed
and cultivated together with another algae that
does not need light, and instead relies on
organic matter for sustenance, and both algae
are good for the production of large amounts of
oil. In Tokyo Gas, we were shown the
polyethylene pipes they use for gas lines and
demonstrated it on a universal testing machine
and had the pipes reach its plastic limit. They
also are developing biofuel derived from food
wastes although it still has a long way to go as
the energy it produces is less than the energy
used to operate the whole system. They are also
marketing, Ene-farm, a joint project with
Panasonic, which is an energy generator that is
based on fuel cell for the household. At
TokyoTech, we were toured inside their EEI
building, which is covered with solar panels as
it derives energy from the sun to power the
whole building and produce energy for other
buildings in the university. Of course the solar
panels could not produce substantial amounts
of energy to run the whole structure so the

ASCENT was truly a special experience for me

and should be a program that future Lasallians
should also experience. It was one of a kind and
professionally organized as everything ran so
smoothly and on time. I still could not believe
the professionalism that TIT students have
shown as they organized, facilitated, and ran
the whole program. I believe that if we work
hard and discipline ourselves, we as Filipino
and Lasallian students can also be as
hardworking and professional like them. TIT
was also kind to give us a scholarship of a total
of 26,000.
Next year, 7th ASCENT will be held, and I hope
more Lasallians can apply and join the
program, and I am willing to interview them, as
SAGE has suggested, for screening purposes. I
am blessed to be part of the Lasallian
community with a lot of international
opportunities, and I know that in the future
more international programs will be available
for every Lasallian.
5

6TH ASCENT: THE FUTURE IMAGE OF ENERGY

TOKYO
DISNEYSEA
Since we were already in Tokyo, we rode the train to Chiba and
stayed from morning to midnight in Tokyo DisneySea! Our
friends from TIT who toured us since day 1 knew very well how
the Fastpass works and got us quick access to the best rides!

MARCH 2015