Events category: Seminar

29 May 2019

Reiwa – a new era in Japan

On the 1st May, a day after Emperor Akihito abdicates, Japan entered the Reiwa era. Since the Gengo system began in the 7th century, the country has adopted almost 250 eras. This one, however, will be marked by Japan’s first imperial abdication in over 200 years. In this seminar, Matthew Butson, of Getty Images, showed rarely seen images of Japanese Emperors throughout the various eras; Dr Daniel Schley spoke about abdication in early Japan and the Insei system; and Dr Angus Lockyer discussed the current Japanese imperial system.

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23 May 2019

Japan’s economic stagnation and Abenomics

The Japanese economy has been continuously struggling over the past 30 years. Since the bursting of the 1980s economic bubble, the country seems to have been caught in economic and financial stagnation. In response, Abe’s administration has implemented a bold monetary and financial policy as part of its so called ‘Abenomics’ strategy. Yet economic growth remains limited. This seminar looked at the reasons behind Japan’s long-term stagnation, the limitations of Abenomics policies, and the challenges faced by Japanese productivity.

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16 May 2019

Hikikomori in Japan and the UK

Hikikomori, social withdrawal, is a major social problem in modern Japanese society. It appeared in the latter half of the 1980s, becoming a serious social problem since the 2000s. The phenomenon is also found in Asia and Europe. In this seminar, the artist Atsushi Watanabe shared his experience of suffering from Hikikomori and his recovery story, and explain how he is using his art to raise awareness of this social issue. Dr Tadaaki Furuhashi analysed the factors leading to Hikikomori in Japan and Professor Hamish McLeod discussed similar issues in the context of the UK.

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1 May 2019

Tokyo 2020 and Japan’s Soft Power

Amidst the flux of the liberal international order, Japan’s public diplomacy, which relies solely on its cultural uniqueness, is inadequate. Professor Yasushi Watanabe of Keio University proposes new principles for an age where the diplomatic sphere is expanding from negotiation tactics to agenda setting and norm setting. In this presentation, Professor Watanabe reviewed the trajectory of Japan’s public diplomacy, its challenges and possibilities, with particular attention to the Tokyo 2020 Games.

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25 April 2019

Shinkansen and the Tokyo Olympics

The Shinkansen, or bullet train, is an icon of Japan. The first Shinkansen line, which opened in 1964, coincided with the previous Tokyo Olympics and marked the welcoming back of Japan into the international community after the war. As the Olympics returns to Tokyo, whilst Japan is facing new challenges, the country is still willing to adopt a long-term approach and invest in new infrastructure. This seminar discussed the development of the Shinkansen between the 1964 and 2020 Olympics, looking at the history of transport in Japan and the technological developments of the railways.

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20 March 2019

Sustainable Development Goals: Japanese and UK approaches

Since their adoption by the United Nations in 2015, the Sustainable Development Goals have been embraced with remarkable enthusiasm by the Japanese government and institutions. In this seminar, Fumie Imabayashi of the Japan Science and Technology Agency explained the background to this stance. Her talk was followed by a presentation by Dr Chris Anastasi who has over 30 years’ experience of encouraging longer-term strategic thinking on global development issues.

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13 March 2019

Prevention of Recidivism: Trends in Japanese Criminal Policy

One of the most serious current issues in criminal policy in Japan is the prevention of recidivism. In this talk Andrew Watson discussed the basics of the Japanese probation system and the challenges it faces, with comparisons to probation in England and Wales. Taichi Yoshikai then discussed the 2016 “Act to Promote Prevention of Recidivism,” and the current plan which was drawn up in 2017 by the Cabinet in response to the Act, with consideration of key characteristics of the Japanese criminal justice system.

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14 March 2019

Foreign Refugee Flows into Japan: Asylum Seekers’ Circuitous Path

This seminar attempted to explore the paradoxical ways that Japan has positioned itself on the issue of refugees. The speaker used video clips from extended narrative interviews with current asylum seekers in the Tokyo area to discuss these paradoxes. The video clips allowed the asylum seekers to speak for themselves and showed us the circuitous path taken by asylum seekers, as they navigate Japan’s arcane immigration and support systems, try to find and keep work, endure incarceration in detention centres, and struggle with the vagaries of community connections and political positionality.

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9 October 2018

Health and Care Systems in the Era of Super Ageing

Various demographic, social and economic shifts across Europe and Asia have increased concern regarding the ability of these societies to provide sufficient quality and quantity care for their older citizens. As both the UK and Japan continue to age health and care systems will have to adapt to be able to afford health services. This seminar discussed how health and care systems in Japan and the UK are adapting to cope with these challenges in their efforts to provide affordable, quality care.

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26 September 2018

Fintech trends in Japan and the UK

The financial industry is facing a rapid change as new disruptive technologies emerge for the benefit of consumers. In this seminar, the development of payment related services, open banking and cryptocurrency legislation in Japan was discussed. This was followed by a talk on the recent developments in the UK fintech sector.

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