President’s Address at the Saitama University Graduation Ceremony
for the Academic Year 2023
Congratulations to everyone celebrating their graduation and course completion here at Saitama
University’s graduation ceremony today. On behalf of all our faculty members and staff, I would liketo express my sincere affection and gratitude to the family and friends who watched over and supported
you throughout your journey here.
Today, we acknowledge the graduation and completion of 1,521 undergraduate students, 556 Master’sstudents, and 36 Doctoral students. These totals include 100 international students from countries suchas China, Korea, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and India.
This year marked the 150th anniversary of Saitama University’s founding. The foundation of theUniversity was laid in 1873, when the Saitama Prefecture began training elementary school teachers.
Saitama Normal School, Saitama Youth Normal School, and the former government-run Urawa HighSchool would then go on to be integrated into Saitama University, which was established in 1949. Since
then, we have sent over 90,000 graduates and alumni out into the world. Last October, one of our alumni,
Miloiko Spajic, who graduated from the Faculty of Economics, was appointed Prime Minister ofMontenegro at the age of 36. I hope that you will take pride in yourselves as graduates and alumni of
this university, and move forward into the future to contribute to the development of society.
Now, as you come to your graduation, one of the milestones in your life, some of you are anxious about
going out into the world, while there are others who are excited to test their abilities as soon as possible.
I am sure the same holds true for those of you who have chosen to go on to graduate school. Today, Iwould like to talk about something that I would like you to keep in mind, in the midst of such anxiety
and elation.
That is, I would like you to re-examine your attitude toward "failure.”
When confronted with something, people have a tendency to think, "I mustn't fail, I don't want to fail.”This is the case for students, and even more so for working adults. Of course, living in a society where
you need to be independent and responsible, it is a prerequisite to be careful and continue striving toprevent mistakes. However, is there such a thing as a phenomenon without failure in the human world?
Failure is something that happens. First, have a mindset that acknowledges failure. This does not meanthat you should take a “so what” attitude and let yourself fail. I want you to connect that mindset to theattitude of learning from failure. Learning from failure refers to the series of processes that include
acknowledging your failures, examining and exploring their causes, and considering new strategies forthe next step. Admitting failure is the starting point for that lesson. Furthermore, I would like you tokeep in mind that you have to be willing to actively include the perspectives of others, not just yourown, in all aspects of this process. If we sincerely confront failure from multiple viewpoints - both ourown and those of others - and work together, we can accumulate many different case studies and createa variety of strategies. Failure is the key to building strong individuals and organizations, as it is a richexperience for the individual and a significant shared asset for the organization.
In his book "Black Box Thinking," renowned British columnist Matthew Syed contrasts two different
kinds of organizations: the airline industry and the medical field. Examining both in terms of the numberof fatal accidents over the last few decades, he says that while the airline industry has dramaticallyreduced that number, the decline in fatalities in the medical field has been limited. What accounts forthis gap?
The gap exists because they have completely different ideas about failure. In the airline industry, thepremise that failures happen is an organizational standard. A system has been established where if asingle accident occurs, all mistakes are shared and the causes are thoroughly examined. Those results
are then put to use in subsequent measures. On the other hand, in the medical field, the assumption isthat there are no failures, and this can lead directly to an attitude of not admitting failure. This bookvividly describes a series of small unexpected events that occurred in front of a surgical team during
surgery - in other words, a series of small failures - which unfortunately resulted in a fatal accident inwhat was considered a very common kind of surgery, as a result of the team constantly responding withan attitude of "that can’t have happened, it’s not possible.” Furthermore, Sayd points out that such
failures in the medical field are not recognized as failures, even after the fact, and are not easily sharedwith others. This leads to a "closed loop phenomenon," wherein failures do not lead to subsequent
progress.
These are examples of severe cases in which human lives are at stake, and the difference between
aircraft and the more complex human body must also be taken into consideration. However, thisdemonstration of how different basic attitudes and responses to failure can lead to different results isvery instructive for our lives in society.
Individuals who do not admit failure, as well as organizations that do not share it, do not just lose
opportunities for growth, but create the risk that they will suffer from major accidents and fraud. Thisis evident from the cases of corporate scandals that have been occurring frequently in recent years. On
the other hand, the concept of accepting failure, collaborating with others, and using it to your advantage
leads to the ability to develop oneself and to deal appropriately with ensuing crises. This also creates a
climate that naturally develops people and organizations who are accepting of the failure of others, aswell. By extension, this will lead to the realization of society which is similarly accepting of failure. It

is said that today's Japanese society is intolerant of failure, and in some respects, it can be stifling.
However, it is my fervent wish that each of you will become a member of society and a researcher witha mindset to break through this barrier, and that each of you will play a role in promoting social change.
Now, during your enrollment, the world was thrown into turmoil due to major events, including theCOVID-19 pandemic that spanned most of your student life, the tragic realities in Ukraine and Palestine,
and the seriousness of climate change, which should be called the global boiling age. There have also
been an unrelenting series of large-scale disasters in Japan, such as the Noto Peninsula earthquake andmajor flooding in various areas. These various events must have greatly shaken your sensibilities.
However, up until this point, I am sure that you have accumulated many tangible and intangible assets
within yourselves. You have gained a great deal, not just from the specialized studies you pursued on
campus, but also from the lifelong friends you made and the many activities you engaged in outside of
the campus. Going forward, these diverse experiences of your young days will be the strength thatsustains you, and the foundation you will rely on. While keeping the current domestic and internationalsituation - which is rife with challenges - in mind, wield the power of your experiences and take yourfirst step into the new world of tomorrow. You have certainly cultivated the ability to do just that. Take
that step with confidence.
It is my sincere desire that you all move forward with a heart full of hope, and a blazing bright spirit.
With that, I would like to conclude this ceremony. Congratulations on your graduation and course
completion.

March 25, 2024
Takafumi Sakai
President, Saitama University