February 24, 2010
Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences' Fine Arts Institute Confers Honorary Doctorate
Uzbekistan delegates receive a warm welcome from Soka University and Soka Women's College students
On February 24, 2010, the Fine Arts Institute of the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences presented Daisaku Ikeda, founder of the Min-On Concert Association, which promotes peace through cultural exchange, and Soka University, with an honorary doctorate for his contributions to the advancement of culture worldwide and his global humanitarian efforts.
Attending the conferral ceremony from Uzbekistan was Fine Arts Institute Director Pidaev Shakirdjan and Fine Arts Research Centre Department Head Bahodir Turgunov. SGI Vice General Director Hiromasa Ikeda accepted the citation on behalf of his father.
The Institute was established in 1928 for the research of ethnic Uzbek music and historical musicology. Now located in Tashkent, it has broadened its field of research to include architectural studies, the performing arts and filmmaking. In 1989, it collaborated with Soka University in mounting archaeological expeditions in Dalverzin-Tepe, a citadel of the ancient Indian Kushan Empire--now part of Uzbekistan--resulting in a total of six joint excavations.
[Adapted from an article in the February 25, 2010, issue of the Seikyo Shimbun, Soka Gakkai, Japan]
