The Gujarat National Law University (GNLU) held another lecture for its “Ambassador Lecture Series” with Mr.Akitaka Saiki, Japan's Ambassador to India delivering a lecture on January 31, 2012.

The Japanese Ambassador was accompanied by Mr. Shinichi Iida from the Consulate-General of Japan, Mr. Tsukada Tamaki, the Minister for Economic Development and Mr. Yasujiro Miyake, First Secretary of the Embassy of Japan.

Previously, the Ambassadors from Israel, Indonesia and Australia had visited GNLU to deliver lectures and interact with the students, informs Dr. William Nunes who heads the Centre for Foreign Policy Studies (CFPS) at GNLU.

The idea behind these lectures, explains Nunes, is to provide students with a clearer understanding of how international relations actually work. While international relations is taught as a subject, these lectures tend to provide a more practical insight into the world of foreign policy.

“We wanted to do something that is relevant in the globalised world,” says Nunes, “and by interacting with such individuals, we get an idea of how different countries perceive our country. It is a good way to get students to learn about international policy.” The eventual goal, according to Nunes, is to encourage and facilitate makers of foreign policy.

Organising such events is a bit of a tricky ask though, says Nunes. Due to security protocols, the confirmation from the consulates often come with barely enough time to organise the event. Yet, the CFPS soldiers on and is currently in talks with the representatives of neighbouring countries for future lectures.

It is hoped that such initiatives reflect the changing role that law schools are playing in policy development and make for an optimistic outlook on law schools and policy creation.