The Japanese government has made a decision to award former Rector of the Jagiellonian University Prof. Wojciech Nowak with the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon for his contributions to Polish-Japanese cooperation. The decision was announced by the Embassy of Japan in Poland on 29 April 2022.
‘Professor Wojciech Nowak, as the Rector of the Jagiellonian University, was actively engaged in the development of scientific collaboration with Japanese higher education institutions. During his term in office, the Jagiellonian University signed agreements with 16 universities across Japan. Cooperation with Kobe University was particularly fruitful, resulting in establishing the School of Japanese Law and Culture at the JU Faculty of Law and Administration. Professor Nowak also hosted numerous high profile visitors from Japan. He has received Their Imperial Highnesses Crown Prince and Crown Princess Akishino as well as Ms. Akie Abe in the representative rooms of Jagiellonian University Collegium Maius.
‘The Embassy of Japan in Poland expresses its heartfelt congratulations and thanks to Professor Wojciech Nowak for his many years of service, hoping that the strong ties of friendship he helped forge will contribute to further development of Polish-Japanese relations’, reads the statement released by the Embassy.
The Order of the Rising Sun is a Japanese order established by Emperor Meiji in 1875 and the first national decoration bestowed by the Japanese government in the same year. The order is awarded to persons who have made distinguished achievements in international relations, promotion of Japanese culture, advancements in their field, development in welfare or preservation of the environment in the name of the Emperor of Japan.
Prof. Wojciech Nowak was born in 1949 in Kraków. He studied and received his PhD and professorship at the Academy of Medicine in Kraków (separated from the Jagiellonian University during the communist period). He served as the Rector of the Jagiellonian University in the years 2012–2020. Throughout his entire career, he combined his research and teaching activities with practicing surgery. He is a member of a variety of Polish and international academic associations.
