As part of the 2015-2016 Mitsubishi Corporation Lecture Series, esteemed architect and professor Kengo Kuma delivered a series of lectures focused on creating a more sustainable Japan. Over the course of two days, his lectures focused on the architectural aspects and actions that could be taken to help contribute to this vision. His first lecture—entitled

Newer, smaller, and potentially transformative businesses are today bringing forth what can best be described as a revolution in space affairs, writes Jackson School Professor Saadia Pekkanen, an expert in outer space and international relations, in her latest Forbes article “Japan looks set to dominate “newspace” in Asia; India, China in play.” Pekkanen analyzes Japan’s policy

The Japan Studies Program was pleased to welcome Hitoshi Abe as he delivered a two-part lecture and panel discussion for the 2015-2016 Mitsubishi Corporation Lecture Series. On January 13th, he shared his insight and work related to the rebuilding efforts of post 3.11. Abe is professor and chair of the UCLA Department of Architecture &

Read why Japan is the space power to watch in Prof. Saadia Pekkanen’s latest Forbes article: “Japan’s Space Security Worries Are Not Just China And N. Korea, But Also The U.S.”

The Japan Times named “Japan Decides 2014: The Japanese General Election” (Palgrave Macmillan), a collection of 21 essays by prominent specialists on Japan and edited by Jackson School Professor Robert Pekkanen, Steven Reed and Ethan Scheiner, in its recommended reading for the holidays and beyond article published on Dec. 19.

A guest speaker for the UW Japan Studies program and the Simpson Center for the Humanities was denied a visa to speak at a three-day conference on Socially Engaged Art in Japan, according to a press release from the Simpson Center. Fram Kitagawa, a Japanese curator who espouses art’s return to slow, rural values as

Ph.D. student Christopher Pearson wrote an article for The Diplomat about how a Japanese party split could signal a new round of mergers and alliances.

In her latest contribution to Forbes, Professor Saadia Pekkanen writes that the “U.S.-Japan Military Space Alliance Promises To Grow In ‘New Ways.’”

Yoshihiko Miyauchi continued the 2014-2015 Mitsubishi Corporation Lecture Series with a talk that looked at the changing Japanese corporation and entrepreneurship from WWII to the present day. As a Japanese business icon and ORIX corporation senior chairman, Miyauchi demonstrated the changes in entrepreneurship through a close examination of ORIX’s experience from the post-war high economic

As part of the 2014-2015 Mitsubishi Corporation Lecture Series, Taro Kono gave a talk about Japan’s changing energy dynamics in the aftermath of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. Taro Kono is a member of the Japan National Diet House of Representatives. A graduate of Georgetown University in Washington, DC, Rep. Kono is currently serving his 6th term in