Graduation Speech
（2025年9月17日開催　2025年度「東アジア教養学」修了証授与式に際して）

EAA 修了生挨拶 GUAN YIFEI

Dear professors, EAA faculties, my family and friends, thank you for being here today. It is truly a privilege to share my reflections on what EAA has meant to me during my years at the University of Tokyo.

When I was in my second year, I made the decision to transfer major within the PEAK programme from Japan and East Asia to Environmental Sciences. It was a significant step, as the two tracks are very different. While I was excited to pursue my passion for environmental studies, I also felt a lingering regret that I could not continue with my both interests.

Discovering EAA was a turning point. Here was an opportunity to bridge the divide between the humanities and sciences within my university life. That is why I applied immediately, and it became a continuation of my first two years. University life is filled with difficult decisions we often make before we feel fully prepared, and EAA gave me the rare gift of not having to choose between passions.

Looking back, I would like to thank EAA for bringing me: opportunities, memories, and connections. Beyond the core classes of my major, EAA opened many opportunities where I could engage freely with philosophy, cultures, and society. One vivid memory is the class discussion on the film Parasite. It left a deep impression on me, because it gave me the chance to think and talk about social classes, values, and the complexity of life in ways that my core courses rarely allowed. These discussions not only broadened my understanding but also offered me space of mind and a sense of balance during my university years.

Among the many memories, the 2023 trip to Peking University stands out as the most special. Sharing a room with friends, exchanging ideas, and building friendships that continue today were unforgettable experiences. These friendships also endure – when I return to Beijing, many of the friends I look forward to seeing are people I first met through this programme. EAA has thus enriched not just my university life, but also the next chapter beyond graduation.

These long-lasting relationships are both personal and professional. I want to mention some particularly warm stories here. For example, my friendship with Saki-chan led to a chance meeting in China during the New Year. It was a warm and memorable moment, and one that would not have been possible without EAA. Another unexpected connection came with Viktoriya, our former RA. I discovered that we lived at the same train station in Tokyo. We began to run into each other by chance, and every conversation we shared on the way home gave me comfort during the stressful final year. Beyond friendships, the guidance of professors and mentors throughout the programme has shaped me into a more mature and thoughtful person than I was when I first arrived at university.

For all these reasons, I am and will always be grateful to EAA. I sincerely hope that one day I will be able to give back to this programme, to contribute to its growth, and to help future students experience what I have been so fortunate to enjoy. To my professors, EAA faculties, friends and family: thank you for standing by me throughout this journey. I wish you all the best in the future, and look forward to the chance when our paths cross again.