Wystąpienie JM Rektora UMG

Wystąpienie JM Rektora Uniwersytetu Morskiego w Gdyni 
prof. dr. hab. inż. kpt. ż.w. Adama Weintrita
podczas uroczystości nadania 
tytułu Doktora Honoris Causa Uniwersytetu Morskiego w Gdyni
dr. Yohei Sasakawie

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Esteemed academic community,

It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the ceremony for the conferral of an honorary doctorate of Gdynia Maritime University upon Dr. Yohei Sasakawa.

I welcome His Excellency The Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Poland Mr Akira Kono. Welcome to our special guest, Doctor Yohei Sasakawa, Honorary Chairman of the Nippon Foundation and the members of the Japanese delegation: Ms Kimio Noshida; Notatsu Suzuki; Mr Shota Nakayasu; and Mr Koji Mimura.

I welcome representatives of the national and municipal authorities. I welcome Mr Wojciech Gąsowski, representative of the Director of the Department of Maritime Education at the Ministry of Infrastructure. I welcome the Deputy Mayor of the City of Gdynia, Ms Oktawia Górzeńska. I welcome the former Rectors of the University: Professor Piotr Jędrzejewicz; Professor Józef Lissowski; and Professor Janusz Zarębski. I welcome members of the University Council: Professor Krzysztof Górecki; Professor Lech Murawski; and Professor Adam Przybyłowski. I welcome representatives of the Lech Wałęsa Foundation: Mr Marcin Wozikowski, the Management Board’s Plenipotentiary, and Mr Bogdan Wałęsa, President of the Management Board. I welcome members of the Senate of Gdynia Maritime University, as well as former and current members of staff. We are joined by many distinguished guests, whom, with your permission, I shall greet collectively.

The ceremony conferring the honorary doctorate is a great celebration for our entire University.

Your Execellency,

Distinguished Guests,

Pan Prezydent,

Szanowni Goście.

By the decision of the Senate of Gdynia Maritime University of 25 September 2025, with the support of the senates of World Maritime University, Dalian Maritime University, and Constanta Maritime University, and following the receipt of three independent opinions by Professor Maximo Mejia, Professor Tomasz Tarasiuk, and Professor Takeshi Nakazawa, the highest academic dignity of our University — that of Doctor honoris causa — was solemnly conferred upon Dr. Yohei Sasakawa, Honorary Chairman of The Nippon Foundation. This act constitutes an expression of profound recognition for his outstanding merits, long-standing commitment to the development of maritime affairs, and consistent support for initiatives serving the common good of the international community.

Dr. Yohei Sasakawa is a figure of exceptional authority, combining a vision of responsible leadership with tangible action undertaken in the service of peace, sustainable development, and cooperation among nations. His activities, carried out through The Nippon Foundation, have for decades contributed to the advancement of maritime education, the protection of the ocean environment, maritime safety and security, and the building of bridges of understanding between the cultures of the East and the West.

His global fight against leprosy, together with the stigma and social discrimination associated with the disease, is a cause to which he has been deeply committed for more than forty years.

Gdynia Maritime University, faithful to its mission of educating intellectual and professional elites for the maritime economy and transport sector, acknowledges with the highest esteem the contribution of Dr. Yohei Sasakawa to strengthening the role of knowledge, dialogue, and responsibility in the global maritime domain. These values are fully aligned with the mission of our University. A tangible manifestation of his engagement in maritime affairs is the co-financing of the activities of the International Association of Maritime Universities (IAMU). As a member of the IAMU International Executive Board in the years 2000–2025, and particularly during the period when I had the honor of serving as Chairman of the Association in 2023–2025, I had several occasions to meet personally with Dr. Sasakawa. These meetings were invariably of great significance; one could clearly sense that we were discussing matters of genuine importance for maritime safety, such as the joint initiative of The Nippon Foundation and the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) within the framework of The Nippon Foundation–GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project, aimed at mapping the entire ocean floor by the year 2030.

The conferral of the title of Doctor honoris causa is not only an act of honoring the extraordinary achievements of the Laureate, but also a symbol of friendship, respect, and cooperation between academic communities and institutions working for the future of the seas and oceans. We are convinced that this ceremony will be permanently inscribed in the history of Gdynia Maritime University as an event of special significance.

May today’s ceremony serve as an expression of our esteem and as a testimony to the inspiring life path and activity of Dr. Yohei Sasakawa.