Japanese Government to Recognize Mitch Daniels
(Image courtesy of Purdue University/ Mark Simons)
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowPurdue University President Mitch Daniels Thursday will receive one of the highest honors from the government of Japan. During a ceremony at the Embassy of Japan in Washington D.C., Daniels will receive the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star for "significant contributions to the strengthening of economic relations and mutual understanding between Japan and the United States."
The embassy notes several of Daniels’ Japan-related accomplishments during his time as Indiana’s governor, including around 70 direct investments from Japanese companies in Indiana from his time in office between 2005 and 2013 and designating Japan as the first country with its own dedicated pavilion during the Indiana State Fair in 2010. Japanese companies with a presence in Indiana include Subaru, Honda, Toyota, Aisin, KYB, Keihin, NTN, Nachi, Sony, Itochu, Mitsubishi and NSK.
Purdue says over the past four years, close to $5 million in Japanese-sponsored research awards have been secured by the school during Daniels’ tenure, with record totals streaming in during the 2016-2017 academic year. Daniels says "my prior business years of exposure to the Japanese people and their great entrepreneurship convinced me that they could play a central role in Indiana’s economic comeback. The mutual prosperity and friendship that flowed from our efforts were one of the great joys of my years in public office."
Daniels received the title of Shogun in Tochigi Prefecture at a traditional Shinto religious shrine in 2005. He visited the prefecture twice as governor and in 2011, hosted its Governor Fukuda.