On November 2, the APIE Program Batch 5 concluded its core course activities with a final e-workshop featuring Takashi Tomine from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan. This batch was marked by significant milestones, including the first participation of students from Myanmar and the active involvement of teaching assistants in promoting APIE within their institutions.

e-Workshops

In the last session of Batch 5 activities, guest lecturer Takashi Tomine (NAOJ) introduced the research and education network in the Asia-Pacific region, ARENA-PAC, of which he is one of the key figures. He showcased a range of experiments run in this 100 Gbps connectivity environment, highlighting its potential for future endeavors and collaboration with other RENs.

Tomine has extensive experience in network operations and shared a glimpse of his experiences in Japanese and global settings such as the Interop, the IETF, and other communities.

Takashi Tomine (left) and Keiko Okawa, director of SOI Asia, in the Q&A.

To conclude his session, Tomine emphasized that ARENA-PAC is more than a typical network and incited students to envision the kinds of experiments they would like to conduct in this environment. He challenged their creativity and encouraged them to contribute to the network’s growth and development.

Before Tomine, learners in this batch also had the chance to hear from guest speakers on various topics:

  • Indonesia Research and Education Network (IDREN), by Achmad ‘Abazh’ Basuki (Universitas Brawijaya)
  • Internet Exchange Points (IXPs), by Che-Hoo Cheng (APNIC)
  • Cybersecurity Response, by Adli Wahid (APNIC)

What is next?

Students who completed this stage can now apply for future APIE camps. The next camp will be hosted by Universitas Brawijaya (UB) in Malang, Indonesia, in February 2025.

Congratulations to all learners who participated and completed the course, and a big thanks to everyone who contributed to making Batch 5 another success!