Project on Japanese Economic Statecraft

During the 2020-21 academic year, the Program on U.S.-Japan Relations launched a new research project on Japanese economic statecraft.  The project’s goal is to promote collaboration among faculty, students, visiting scholars, and professionals interested in understanding the key opportunities and challenges for Japan’s economic statecraft. 

We are at a critical time when the United States, China, and Europe are in confrontation across a range of issues for global governance, including trade, climate change, public health, and digital governance. How can Japan enhance its economic statecraft and pursue its global leadership role? The project held a series of seminars which featured distinguished experts, including Takashi Shiraishi (Prefectural University of Kumamoto), Dan Drezner (The Fletcher School, Tufts University), Saori Katada (University of Southern California), Keizo Takemi (House of Councillors), Margarita Estevez-Abe (Syracuse University), Keiko Honda (Columbia University), Glen Fukushima (Center for American Progress), and Michael Green (Georgetown University and CSIS). The project also held invitation-only meetings and off-the-record conversations among the experts and Harvard faculty, students, and visiting scholars. 

Below is a listing of public events and videos (if available):

09-14-2020 

The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election: Politics, Economics, and Strategy

Glen S. Fukushima (Center for American Progress)

09-21-2020

Japan and ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance criteria): The Road Ahead

Keiko Honda (Columbia University) with Moderator Christina Davis (USJP Director)

[Video recording]

10-14-2020

Panel: Japan’s Response to COVID-19

Keizo Takemi (House of Councillors), Margarita Estévez-Abe (Syracuse University), and Aya Goto (Fukushima Medical University) with Moderator Michael Reich (Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health)

[Video recording]

11-09-2020

Japan's Strategy in Asia

Michael Green (Center for Strategic and International Studies; Georgetown University) with Moderator Christina Davis (USJP Director)

[Video recording]

12-09-2020

Schism 2.0: China and America’s Trade Conflict in the Biden Administration

Paul Blustein (Centre for International Governance Innovation) with Moderator Christina Davis (USJP Director)

[Video recording]

02-22-2021

Symposium: Japanese Economic Statecraft in an Era of U.S.-China Rivalry

Takashi Shiraishi (Prefectural University of Kumamoto), Saori Katada (University of Southern California), and Daniel Drezner (Tufts University) with Moderator Christina Davis (USJP Director)

[Video recording]

03-29-2021

Panel: Public Health and Wellness in the COVID-19 Era: Japan in Global Context

Karen Thornber (Harvard), Amy Borovoy (Princeton), and Andrew Gordon (Harvard) with Moderator Christina Davis (USJP Director)

[Video recording]

09-13-2021

A Region of Regimes: Prosperity and Plunder in the Asia-Pacific

T.J. Pempel (University of California, Berkeley) with Moderator Christina Davis (USJP Director)

[Video recording]

09-27-2021

Panel: Investment Screening and Supply Chain Security: Japanese, EU, and U.S. Perspectives on China

Sarah Bauerle-Danzman (Indiana University Bloomington), Sophie Meunier (Princeton University), and Kristin Vekasi (University of Maine) with Moderator Christina Davis (USJP Director)

[Video recording]

10-18-2021

Rethinking Japan’s Response to the Covid-19 Pandemic

Kenji Shibuya (Soma COVID Vaccination Medical Center) with Moderator Christina Davis (USJP Director)

[Video recording]