Panel Discussions: The New Era for Japan: Business, Economy and Regional Security
2019/12/2
The Consulate General of Japan in Los Angeles and JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles are co-presenting panel discussions on business, economy and regional security at JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles on December 12, 2019. The event will start off with a keynote from Ambassador Nina Hachigian, Deputy Mayor of International Affairs at the City of Los Angeles. Following the talk, the first panel will be on "Trade & Investment in the Asia Pacific" followed by the second panel on "Changes in Japan's Political Economy and Foreign Policy." Join us for engaging and informative panels with prominent speakers!
Date: Thursday, December 12, 2019 from 2:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
(Doors open at 1:30 p.m., Reception from 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.)
Place: JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles, 5F Salon
At Hollywood & Highland, 6801 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028
("Self-parking" full validation available for Hollywood & Highland parking structure - Bring your ticket!)
RSVP:
RSVP at japanconsulatela@ls.mofa.go.jp with the name, title and affiliation (company/school/other) of each person attending.
Timeline:
1:30 p.m. Doors Open & Refreshments
2:00 p.m. Welcome Remarks
2:10 p.m. Keynote Speaker
・Ambassador Nina Hachigian, Deputy Mayor of International Affairs at the City of Los Angeles
2:45 p.m. Panel 1: Trade & Investment in the Asia Pacific
・Dr. Fukunari Kimura, Professor at the Faculty of Economics at Keio University
Chief Economist, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA)
・Dr. Kristi Govella, Assistant Professor at the School of Pacific and Asian Studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa
・Ms. Christine Peterson, Director at the International Trade & Investment at the Mayor's Office at the City of Los Angeles
・Moderator: Dr. Saori Katada, Professor and the Chair of Political Science and International Relations Department
at the University of Southern California
4:15 p.m. Panel 2: Changes in Japan's Political Economy and Foreign Policy
・Dr. Harukata Takenaka, Professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo
・Dr. Sheila Smith, Senior Fellow for Japan Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations
・Dr. Gene Park, Associate Professor and Director at the Global Policy Institute at Loyola Marymount University
・Moderator: Dr. Michael Thies, Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science at the University of California, Los Angeles
5:30 p.m. Closing Remarks & Reception
6:30 p.m. End of Reception
Date: Thursday, December 12, 2019 from 2:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
(Doors open at 1:30 p.m., Reception from 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.)
Place: JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles, 5F Salon
At Hollywood & Highland, 6801 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028
("Self-parking" full validation available for Hollywood & Highland parking structure - Bring your ticket!)
RSVP:
RSVP at japanconsulatela@ls.mofa.go.jp with the name, title and affiliation (company/school/other) of each person attending.
Timeline:
1:30 p.m. Doors Open & Refreshments
2:00 p.m. Welcome Remarks
2:10 p.m. Keynote Speaker
・Ambassador Nina Hachigian, Deputy Mayor of International Affairs at the City of Los Angeles
2:45 p.m. Panel 1: Trade & Investment in the Asia Pacific
・Dr. Fukunari Kimura, Professor at the Faculty of Economics at Keio University
Chief Economist, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA)
・Dr. Kristi Govella, Assistant Professor at the School of Pacific and Asian Studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa
・Ms. Christine Peterson, Director at the International Trade & Investment at the Mayor's Office at the City of Los Angeles
・Moderator: Dr. Saori Katada, Professor and the Chair of Political Science and International Relations Department
at the University of Southern California
4:15 p.m. Panel 2: Changes in Japan's Political Economy and Foreign Policy
・Dr. Harukata Takenaka, Professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo
・Dr. Sheila Smith, Senior Fellow for Japan Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations
・Dr. Gene Park, Associate Professor and Director at the Global Policy Institute at Loyola Marymount University
・Moderator: Dr. Michael Thies, Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science at the University of California, Los Angeles
5:30 p.m. Closing Remarks & Reception
6:30 p.m. End of Reception
Keynote
Ambassador (ret) Nina Hachigian
Deputy Mayor of International Affairs
City of Los Angeles
From 2014 to 2017, Ambassador Hachigian served as U.S. Ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). During her tenure, the United States established a strategic partnership with ASEAN, held the first Leaders’ Summit in the United States, and grew the youth program to over 100,000 members. She was awarded the State Department’s Superior Honor Award for her service. She is also a founder of WASA, Women Ambassadors Serving America.
Earlier, Ambassador Hachigian was a Senior Fellow and a Senior Vice President at the Center for American Progress and the director of the RAND Center for Asia Pacific Policy for four years. Ambassador Hachigian served on the staff of the National Security Council in the Clinton White House. She is the editor of Debating China: The U.S. – China Relationship in Ten Conversations (Oxford University Press, 2014) and co-author of The Next American Century: How the U.S. Can Thrive as Other Powers Rise (Simon & Schuster, 2008).
Ambassador Hachigian was a founding Board member of the State Department’s International Security Advisory Board. Hachigian received her B.S. from Yale University, magna cum laude, and her J.D. from Stanford Law School, with distinction.
Deputy Mayor of International Affairs
City of Los Angeles
From 2014 to 2017, Ambassador Hachigian served as U.S. Ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). During her tenure, the United States established a strategic partnership with ASEAN, held the first Leaders’ Summit in the United States, and grew the youth program to over 100,000 members. She was awarded the State Department’s Superior Honor Award for her service. She is also a founder of WASA, Women Ambassadors Serving America.
Earlier, Ambassador Hachigian was a Senior Fellow and a Senior Vice President at the Center for American Progress and the director of the RAND Center for Asia Pacific Policy for four years. Ambassador Hachigian served on the staff of the National Security Council in the Clinton White House. She is the editor of Debating China: The U.S. – China Relationship in Ten Conversations (Oxford University Press, 2014) and co-author of The Next American Century: How the U.S. Can Thrive as Other Powers Rise (Simon & Schuster, 2008).
Ambassador Hachigian was a founding Board member of the State Department’s International Security Advisory Board. Hachigian received her B.S. from Yale University, magna cum laude, and her J.D. from Stanford Law School, with distinction.
Panel 1: Trade & Investment in the Asia Pacific
Fukunari Kimura, Ph.D.
Professor at the Faculty of Economics at Keio University
Chief Economist for Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA)
Dr. Fukunari Kimura has been Professor, Faculty of Economics, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan since 2000, Chief Economist, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), Jakarta, Indonesia since 2008. He received his Bachelor of Laws from the Faculty of Law, University of Tokyo in 1982 and M.S. and PhD from the Department of Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1990 and 1991. He worked for the Department of Economics, State University of New York at Albany as Assistant Professor in 1991-1994, and the Faculty of Economics, Keio University as Associate Professor in 1994-2000. He served as President, Japan Society of International Economics (JSIE) in 2010-2012, Representative Director, Tokyo Center for Economic Research (TCER) in 2012-2014, Dean, Graduate School of Economics, Keio University in 2015-2017, Program Officer, Research Center for Science Systems, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science in 2016-2019, and Director, Center for International Economics, Keio University since 2017. He majors in international trade and development economics. He has recently been active in academic/semi-academic writing on production networks, economic integration, and the digital economy in East Asia.
Professor at the Faculty of Economics at Keio University
Chief Economist for Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA)
Dr. Fukunari Kimura has been Professor, Faculty of Economics, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan since 2000, Chief Economist, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), Jakarta, Indonesia since 2008. He received his Bachelor of Laws from the Faculty of Law, University of Tokyo in 1982 and M.S. and PhD from the Department of Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1990 and 1991. He worked for the Department of Economics, State University of New York at Albany as Assistant Professor in 1991-1994, and the Faculty of Economics, Keio University as Associate Professor in 1994-2000. He served as President, Japan Society of International Economics (JSIE) in 2010-2012, Representative Director, Tokyo Center for Economic Research (TCER) in 2012-2014, Dean, Graduate School of Economics, Keio University in 2015-2017, Program Officer, Research Center for Science Systems, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science in 2016-2019, and Director, Center for International Economics, Keio University since 2017. He majors in international trade and development economics. He has recently been active in academic/semi-academic writing on production networks, economic integration, and the digital economy in East Asia.
Kristi Govella, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Asian Studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa
Dr. Kristi Govella is an Assistant Professor in the School of Pacific and Asian Studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, an Adjunct Fellow at the East-West Center, and an Adjunct Fellow at Pacific Forum. She specializes in international relations and comparative politics in Asia, with a particular focus on regional economic and security policy. She is currently working on a number of projects related to economics-security linkages, regional institutional architecture, trade agreements, multinational firms, Japanese politics, and the global commons. Her publications include Linking Trade and Security: Evolving Institutions and Strategies in Asia, Europe, and the United States (2013). Prior to joining the University of Hawaii, Dr. Govella was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard University and an Associate Professor at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies. She has also been a visiting research fellow at the University of Tokyo and Waseda University. She holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley and a B.A. in Political Science and Japanese from the University of Washington.
Assistant Professor of Asian Studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa
Dr. Kristi Govella is an Assistant Professor in the School of Pacific and Asian Studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, an Adjunct Fellow at the East-West Center, and an Adjunct Fellow at Pacific Forum. She specializes in international relations and comparative politics in Asia, with a particular focus on regional economic and security policy. She is currently working on a number of projects related to economics-security linkages, regional institutional architecture, trade agreements, multinational firms, Japanese politics, and the global commons. Her publications include Linking Trade and Security: Evolving Institutions and Strategies in Asia, Europe, and the United States (2013). Prior to joining the University of Hawaii, Dr. Govella was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard University and an Associate Professor at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies. She has also been a visiting research fellow at the University of Tokyo and Waseda University. She holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley and a B.A. in Political Science and Japanese from the University of Washington.
Christine Peterson, J.D.
Director of International Trade & Investment at the Mayor's Office at the City of Los Angeles
Ms. Christine Peterson is the Director of International Trade & Investment for Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. She facilitates global trade opportunities, strengthens foreign government and business relationships, attracts foreign investment, and supports sea and air cargo for companies, workers, manufacturers and innovators in Los Angeles. Previously, Ms. Peterson was a Director of Innovation and Intellectual Property in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in the Executive Office of the President where she worked on negotiations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Ms. Peterson has also worked in the International Trade Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce to promote U.S. exports. She was born in Anchorage and raised in Seattle. She holds a JD from American University Washington College of Law and a BA from Smith College.
Director of International Trade & Investment at the Mayor's Office at the City of Los Angeles
Ms. Christine Peterson is the Director of International Trade & Investment for Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. She facilitates global trade opportunities, strengthens foreign government and business relationships, attracts foreign investment, and supports sea and air cargo for companies, workers, manufacturers and innovators in Los Angeles. Previously, Ms. Peterson was a Director of Innovation and Intellectual Property in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in the Executive Office of the President where she worked on negotiations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Ms. Peterson has also worked in the International Trade Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce to promote U.S. exports. She was born in Anchorage and raised in Seattle. She holds a JD from American University Washington College of Law and a BA from Smith College.
Moderator: Saori Katada, Ph.D.
Professor and the Chair of Political Science and International Relations Department at the University of Southern California
Dr. Saori N. Katada is Professor and the Chair of Political Science and International Relations Department at University of Southern California. She is a co-author of two recent books: The BRICS and Collective Financial Statecraft (Oxford University Press, 2017), and Taming Japan’s Deflation: The Debate over Unconventional Monetary Policy (Cornell University Press, 2018). Her new book Japan’s New Regional Reality: Geoeconomic Strategy in the Asia-Pacific is forthcoming from the Columbia University Press in spring 2020. Her single-authored book Banking on Stability: Japan and the Cross-Pacific Dynamics of International Financial Crisis Management (University of Michigan Press, 2001) received Masayoshi Ohira Memorial Book Award. Her Ph.D. is from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Political Science) in 1994, and her B.A. from Hitotsubashi University (Tokyo). Before joining USC, she served as a researcher at the World Bank in Washington D.C., and as International Program officer at the UNDP in Mexico City.
Professor and the Chair of Political Science and International Relations Department at the University of Southern California
Dr. Saori N. Katada is Professor and the Chair of Political Science and International Relations Department at University of Southern California. She is a co-author of two recent books: The BRICS and Collective Financial Statecraft (Oxford University Press, 2017), and Taming Japan’s Deflation: The Debate over Unconventional Monetary Policy (Cornell University Press, 2018). Her new book Japan’s New Regional Reality: Geoeconomic Strategy in the Asia-Pacific is forthcoming from the Columbia University Press in spring 2020. Her single-authored book Banking on Stability: Japan and the Cross-Pacific Dynamics of International Financial Crisis Management (University of Michigan Press, 2001) received Masayoshi Ohira Memorial Book Award. Her Ph.D. is from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Political Science) in 1994, and her B.A. from Hitotsubashi University (Tokyo). Before joining USC, she served as a researcher at the World Bank in Washington D.C., and as International Program officer at the UNDP in Mexico City.
Panel 2: Change in Japan's Political Economy and Foreign Policy
Harukata Takenaka, Ph.D.
Professor at National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo
Dr. Harukata Takenaka is an associate professor of political science at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo. He specializes in comparative politics and international political economy, with a particular focus on Japanese political economy. His research interests include democracy in Japan, and Japan's political and economic stagnation since the 1990s. He is currently working on aborted democratization in prewar Japan, the politics of Japan's financial crisis since the 1990s and the role of the Japanese Senate (House of Councilors) in postwar Japanese politics. He received a B.A. from the Faculty of Law of the University of Tokyo and an M.A. and Ph.D. in political science from Stanford University. He is the author of Senze Nihon ni okeru Minshuka no Zasetsu [Aborted Democratization in Prewar Japan], (Bokutakusha, 2002), and the co-editor of Akusesu Kokusai Seijikeizai [Access to International Political Economy], (Nihon Keizai Hyoronsha, 2003).
Professor at National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo
Dr. Harukata Takenaka is an associate professor of political science at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo. He specializes in comparative politics and international political economy, with a particular focus on Japanese political economy. His research interests include democracy in Japan, and Japan's political and economic stagnation since the 1990s. He is currently working on aborted democratization in prewar Japan, the politics of Japan's financial crisis since the 1990s and the role of the Japanese Senate (House of Councilors) in postwar Japanese politics. He received a B.A. from the Faculty of Law of the University of Tokyo and an M.A. and Ph.D. in political science from Stanford University. He is the author of Senze Nihon ni okeru Minshuka no Zasetsu [Aborted Democratization in Prewar Japan], (Bokutakusha, 2002), and the co-editor of Akusesu Kokusai Seijikeizai [Access to International Political Economy], (Nihon Keizai Hyoronsha, 2003).
Sheila Smith, Ph.D.
Senior Fellow for Japan Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations
Dr. Sheila Smith, an expert on Japanese politics and foreign policy, is senior fellow for Japan studies at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). She is the author of Japan Rearmed: The Politics of Military Power (Harvard University Press, 2019), Intimate Rivals: Japanese Domestic Politics and a Rising China (Columbia University Press, 2015), which was released in Japanese as 日中 親愛なる宿敵: 変容する日本政治と対中政策 (Tokyo University Press, 2018), and Japan's New Politics and the U.S.-Japan Alliance (Council on Foreign Relations, June 2014). She is also the author of the interactive website, “Constitutional Change in Japan.” Dr. Smith is a regular contributor to the CFR blog Asia Unbound, and frequent contributor to major media outlets in the United States and Asia. She is vice chair of the U.S. advisors to the U.S.-Japan Conference on Cultural and Educational Interchange (CULCON), a bi-national advisory panel of government officials and private sector members. She also serves on the advisory committee for the U.S.-Japan Network for the Future program of the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation. She teaches as an adjunct professor at the Asian Studies Department of Georgetown University and serves on the board of its Journal of Asian Affairs. She earned her MA and PhD degrees from the department of political science at Columbia University.
Senior Fellow for Japan Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations
Dr. Sheila Smith, an expert on Japanese politics and foreign policy, is senior fellow for Japan studies at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). She is the author of Japan Rearmed: The Politics of Military Power (Harvard University Press, 2019), Intimate Rivals: Japanese Domestic Politics and a Rising China (Columbia University Press, 2015), which was released in Japanese as 日中 親愛なる宿敵: 変容する日本政治と対中政策 (Tokyo University Press, 2018), and Japan's New Politics and the U.S.-Japan Alliance (Council on Foreign Relations, June 2014). She is also the author of the interactive website, “Constitutional Change in Japan.” Dr. Smith is a regular contributor to the CFR blog Asia Unbound, and frequent contributor to major media outlets in the United States and Asia. She is vice chair of the U.S. advisors to the U.S.-Japan Conference on Cultural and Educational Interchange (CULCON), a bi-national advisory panel of government officials and private sector members. She also serves on the advisory committee for the U.S.-Japan Network for the Future program of the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation. She teaches as an adjunct professor at the Asian Studies Department of Georgetown University and serves on the board of its Journal of Asian Affairs. She earned her MA and PhD degrees from the department of political science at Columbia University.
Gene Park, Ph.D.
Associate Professor and Director for the Global Policy Institute at Loyola Marymount University
Dr. Gene Park’s research interests include comparative and international political economy; Japanese foreign policy and politics; and the politics of monetary policy, public spending and taxation. He also has a broad interest in East Asian security. His most recent co-authored book is Taming Japan's Deflation, The Debate over Unconventional Monetary Policy (Cornell University Press, 2018). An earlier book, Spending without Taxation, FILP and Politics of Public Finance, was published in 2011 (Stanford University Press). Dr. Park received a B.A. in Philosophy from Swarthmore College and Ph.D. in Political Science from University of California Berkeley. He is an avid tennis player.
Associate Professor and Director for the Global Policy Institute at Loyola Marymount University
Dr. Gene Park’s research interests include comparative and international political economy; Japanese foreign policy and politics; and the politics of monetary policy, public spending and taxation. He also has a broad interest in East Asian security. His most recent co-authored book is Taming Japan's Deflation, The Debate over Unconventional Monetary Policy (Cornell University Press, 2018). An earlier book, Spending without Taxation, FILP and Politics of Public Finance, was published in 2011 (Stanford University Press). Dr. Park received a B.A. in Philosophy from Swarthmore College and Ph.D. in Political Science from University of California Berkeley. He is an avid tennis player.
Moderator: Michael Thies, Ph.D.
Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science at the University of California, Los Angeles
Dr. Michael Thies brings a specialist’s theoretical knowledge of legislative institutions, electoral systems, and party competition to the study of Japanese politics. He is the co-author (with Frances McCall Rosenbluth) of Japan Transformed: Political Change and Economic Restructuring (Princeton Univ. Press) and author of articles on electoral politics and policy-making in Japan, appearing in such journals as the American Journal of Political Science, Legislative Studies Quarterly, and Comparative Political Studies. His current work studies Japan's "Twisted Diet" (nejire kokkai) period in comparative perspective, and suitability of strong bicameralism for parliamentary systems. He offers a popular graduate course on political institutions, delegation, and policy-making, and an introductory undergraduate course in comparative politics. He spent 1999-2000 as a National Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.
Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science at the University of California, Los Angeles
Dr. Michael Thies brings a specialist’s theoretical knowledge of legislative institutions, electoral systems, and party competition to the study of Japanese politics. He is the co-author (with Frances McCall Rosenbluth) of Japan Transformed: Political Change and Economic Restructuring (Princeton Univ. Press) and author of articles on electoral politics and policy-making in Japan, appearing in such journals as the American Journal of Political Science, Legislative Studies Quarterly, and Comparative Political Studies. His current work studies Japan's "Twisted Diet" (nejire kokkai) period in comparative perspective, and suitability of strong bicameralism for parliamentary systems. He offers a popular graduate course on political institutions, delegation, and policy-making, and an introductory undergraduate course in comparative politics. He spent 1999-2000 as a National Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.
Photo Credit:
Ambassador Nina Hachigian | Usmission2asean | CC BY-SA 4.0, Dr. Fukunari Kimura | ERIA, Dr. Kristi Govella | University of Hawaii at Manoa, Dr. Saori Katada | USC, Dr. Harukata Takenaka | GRIPS, Dr. Sheila Smith | CFR, Dr. Gene Park | LMU, Dr. Michael Thies | UCLA