International House of Japan | Program Activities | Lunchtime Lecture

Past I-House Lunchtime Lectures

“The Arab Spring” that Passed by the Gulf Countries

Lecturer: Kawai Akio
(Research Fellow, Middle East Research Institute)
Date & Time: Wed., October 19, 12:15–1:30 pm
Venue: Kabayama-Matsumoto Room
Admission: 1,000 yen (Students: 500 yen, IHJ Members: Free)
(Reservation required) *Lunch is NOT included.
Language: Japanese (no English translation provided)

With the surge of pro-democracy movements in various parts of the Arab world this year, the influence on the Gulf countries, the world’s major source of energy, became the focus of global attention. In Bahrain, we witnessed an escalation of civil uprising of the disaffected Shias, who have been discriminated against by the minority but the ruling Sunnis. Mr. Kawai, who has researched this region for many years, will talk about how each Gulf country reacted to the “Arab Spring.”

Kawai Akio:
Born in 1968. After graduating from the University of Tokyo (Middle Eastern Studies), Mr. Kawai worked for NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) as a reporter and in program production. He was involved in website translation in Dubai after mastering the Arabic language in Jordan, and then served as a researcher at the Japanese Embassy in Saudi Arabia, followed by his career at the Qatar News Agency (QNA). Assumed his current position in 2008.

Change in the Middle East and Future Prospects

[An edited version of this lecture is available in the IHJ Bulletin, Vol.31, No.2, 2011]

Lecturer: Yamauchi Masayuki
Professor, University of Tokyo; Executive Director, Middle East Research Institute of Japan
Date & Time: Wednesday, July 6, 2011, 12:15-1:30 pm
Venue: Kabayama-Matsumoto Room
Admission: 1,000 yen (Students: 500 yen, IHJ Members: Free)
(Reservation required) *Lunch is NOT included.
Language: Japanese (no English translation provided)

Starting with the Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia, the democratic movement has spread widely to Egypt, Libya, and Syria in the past few months. Yet the situation each country faces is different due to the social systems, ruling clans, religions and the divides in resource ownership. We will invite Prof. Yamauchi Masayuki, a seasoned researcher of Islam and the Middle East, to talk about the current situation and future prospects of the Middle East.

Yamauchi Masayuki:
Born in 1947. Ph.D. University of Tokyo. Served as a visiting associate professor at Cairo University and a visiting researcher at Harvard University and has headed government-appointed missions for Cultural Exchange and Dialogue with the Middle East on three occasions. His books include The Green Crescent under the Red Star: Enver Pasha in Soviet Russia, 1919-1922 (1991) and Isuramu to Amerika (Islam and America, 1998).

The Life of Isamu Noguchi Journey without Borders

[An edited version of this lecture is available in the IHJ Bulletin, Vol.31, No.2, 2011.]

Lecturer: Masayo Duus, Writer
Date & Time: Thursday, May 26, 2011, 12:15-1:30 pm
Venue: Kabayama-Matsumoto Room
Admission: 1,000 yen (Students: 500 yen, IHJ Members: Free)
(Reservation required) *Lunch is NOT included.
Language: Japanese (no English translation provided)

Though more than two decades have passed since his death, Isamu Noguchi continues to draw attention worldwide for his intriguing life and works. Ms. Masayo Duus who wrote The Life of Isamu Noguchi, Journey without Borders (Princeton University Press 2004), which was "One of Choice's Academic Titles for 2005" and also "2005 Nonfiction Finalist for the Kiriyama Prize, Pacific Rim Voices," based on eight years of research, describes him as a “fated border crosser.” In this program, we will invite Ms. Duus to talk about Isamu Noguchi, who crossed many “borders” and desperately sought for belonging between cultural divides such as those that lay between Japan and the United States or between sculpture and architecture, to think about the current meaning and relevance of Noguchi and his works.

Masayo Duus:
A prize-winning author, has lived in the United States since 1963 and has written widely on the history of Japanese Americans. Among her other works translated into English are Tokyo Rose: Orphan of the Pacific (Kodanshsa International), Unlikely Liberators: The Men of the 100th and 442nd (University of Hawaii Press), The Oahu Sugar Strike of 1920 (University of Calif. Press).

The Piracy Issue Off the Coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden

Lecturer: Nakahata Yasuki, Head, C4 Systems Operations Division, C4 Systems Department (J-6), Joint Staff, Ministry of Defense
Commentator: Ueno Hideshi, Adviser, Ocean Policy Research Foundation
Date & Time: Friday, April 22, 2011, 12:15 - 1:45 pm
Venue: Kabayama-Matsumoto Room
Admission: 1,000 yen (Students: 500 yen, IHJ Members: Free)
(Reservation required) *Lunch is NOT included.
Language: Japanese (no English translation provided)
In cooperation with the Japanese Shipowners’ Association

Since Japan is highly dependent on imports via sea shipping for its energy, its economy and everyday life is greatly affected when the safety of sea lanes is threatened. Of the 445* incidents reported as piracy attacks in 2010, almost half occurred off the coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden, which are the lifeline of energy supplies to Japan. In this program, we will invite Captain Nakahata, the commander of the Escort Division Four that escorted ships off the coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden in 2010, and Mr. Ueno, an expert on the Somali piracy issue, to talk about the current situation and the background to it.

*Source: International Maritime Bureau Annual Report

Nakahata Yasuki:
Born in 1963. Graduated from the National Defense Academy and from the University of Tsukuba master’s course (International Area Studies). Held prominent positions such as the Commanding Officer, JS Setoyuki, Chief Staff Officer, Escort Flotilla One. When he was Commander, Escort Division Four he took part in Anti-Piracy Measures from Sept. 2009 to March 2010 as Commander, the 3rd Dispatch Surface Unit for Anti-Piracy Measures off the Coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden.

Ueno Hideshi:
Born in 1942. Graduated from Nihon University. Before he assumed his present post, he worked as a senior fellow at the National Institite for Defense Studies. He specializes in U.S. defense policy and Japan and Asian security issues. His books include Shin Kokusai Chitsujo no Koso (The vision of a new international order, co-author, Nanso-sha, 1996).

Cities of China in Rapid Transition:
Trends of City Reformation, Shenyang, Dalian, and Dujiangyan

[An edited version of this lecture is available in the IHJ Bulletin, Vol.31, No.1, 2011.]

Lecturer: Ishikawa Mikiko, Professor, Graduate School of Engineering, University of Tokyo
Date & Time: Wednesday, December 8, 2010, 12:15 - 1:30 pm
Venue: Kabayama-Matsumoto Room
Admission: 1,000 yen (Students: 500 yen, IHJ Members: Free)
(Reservation required) *Lunch is NOT included.
Language: Japanese (no English translation provided)

China is facing a rapid economic growth, and not only in big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, but remarkable developments have spread out all over China. How has the landscape of Chinese cities changed in recent years with or as a result of economic development? With what kind of vision are these cities striving to change further? By introducing the cases of local cities undergoing rapid change in urban environment and design, such as Shenyang, Dalian, and Dujiangyan recovering from the Sichuan Earthquake, Prof. Mikiko Ishikawa, a leading specialist in urban environmental planning, will delineate current China, its agenda and its future.

Ishikawa Mikiko: Ph.D. in Agriculture, University of Tokyo; MA in Landscape Architecture, Graduate School of Design, Harvard University. Has been involved in water and greenery plans for some 200 municipalities in Japan, including the renewal design of Shinjuku Gyoen and “Green and Water Corridor in Kakamigahara City (the Prime Minister Award of Japan 2005).” The recipient of numerous awards such as the first award of the International Landscape Competition of the Regeneration of the Hun River in Shenyang (2007). Major books include City and Green Space (Iwanami Shoten 2001).

The Significance of the “Secret Agreement” Issue: Its Historical Background and the Future of Japan-U.S. Relations

Lecturer: Hatano Sumio, Professor, University of Tsukuba
Date & Time: Friday, September 3, 2010, 12:15 - 13:30 pm (Lecture only)
Venue: Kabayama-Matsumoto Room
Admission: 1,000 yen (Students: 500 yen, IHJ Members: Free)
*Lunch is NOT included.
Language: Japanese (no English translation provided)

This March, the Expert Committee on the so-called Secret Agreements between the United States and Japan submitted its report to the Foreign Minister. Some of the secret agreements between the two countries regarding the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty and the reversion of Okinawa to Japan that were said to be “nonexistent ” were certified as existing agreements, and the debate over its judgment is continuing. Meanwhile, with the closure of the investigation into the secret agreements, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has disclosed many of the related classified documents. Based on these newly disclosed documents, Prof. Hatano Sumio, who was a member of the above Committee, will talk about the issue in regard to the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty, which is at the root of the “secret agreement issue,” the reversion of Okinawa and the “secret nuclear pact,” and the difference in understanding between Japan and the United States.

Hatano Sumio: Specializes in diplomatic and political history of Japan. Before his coming to University of Tsukuba in 1988, has researched as a professor at the at the Institute for Defense Studies of Japan. Has researched as a visiting scholar at the Edwin O. Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies of Harvard University. Currently chair of the Editorial Committee of Nihon gaiko bunsho [Diplomatic Documents of Japan] of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. His books include Taiheiyo senso to Ajia gaiko [The Pacific War and Diplomacy in Asia] (University of Tokyo Press, 1996; Winner of the Yoshida Shigeru Award), The End of the Pacific War: Reappraisals (Tsuyoshi Hasegawa, ed., Stanford U.P., 2008, coauthored).

“East Asian Community” ― A Fantasy?

Lecturer: Ogura Kizo, Associate Professor, Kyoto University
Date & Time: Friday, May 28, 2010, 12:15 - 13:30 pm (Lecture only)
Venue: Iwasaki Koyata Memorial Hall
Admission: 1,000 yen (Students: 500 yen, IHJ Members: Free)
*Lunch is NOT included.
Language: Japanese (no English translation provided)

While some economic or political regional frameworks such as the East Asia Summit and ASEAN+3 are already functional, Japan’s new prime minister Hatoyama Yukio is holding up the ideal of an “East Asian Community” under his banner of yuai, or fraternity. With repeated historical and territorial disputes, however, Japan’s bilateral relations with China and South Korea have not improved much for years. Under such circumstances, is it really possible to form an East Asian Community? It is essential to understand the cultural differences among the three countries before holding dialogues in order to build up a relationship of trust without misunderstanding, says Ogura, a leading scholar of Eastern thought. In this lecture, he will talk about the possibility of realizing an East Asian Community from a cultural and philosophical perspective.

Ogura Kizo: Born in Tokyo. Graduated from the University of Tokyo (German literature). Prof. Ogura studied Eastern philosophy and finished his doctoral course at the graduate school of Seoul National University. After working at Tokai University as an associate professor, he became an associate professor in the Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies, Kyoto University. His academic interests include the structuring of East Asia based on Eastern thought, culture and media. Among his many publications are Rekishi ninshiki o norikoeru [Overcoming Historical Perceptions] (Kodansha, 2005), Kokoro de shiru Kankoku [Knowing South Korea Heart-to-Heart] (Iwanami Shoten, 2005) and Nicchukan wa hitotsu ni narenai [Japan, China and South Korea Can Never Be One] (Kadokawa Shoten, 2008).

Kokugo (National Language) in the Era of English
~from a Writer's Perspective

Lecturer: Mizumura Minae, Novelist
Date & Time:Thursday, February 25, 2010, 1:30 pm- －2:45 pm (Lecture only)
Venue: Iwasaki Koyata Memorial Hall
Admission: Lecture only: 1,500 yen (IHJ Members: 1,000 yen)
　　　　　　　　 Lecture and lunch ticket: 3,000 yen (IHJ Members: 2,000 yen)
Language: Japanese (no English translation provided)

The novelist Mizumura Minae says that we are living in an age where dealing with the world depends on our ability to use the English language. Indeed, the need to learn English is so strongly felt in Japan that English education now starts in elementary schools. Although more works in Japanese language by non-Japanese are winning literary awards and more Japanese novels are being translated into other languages, the state of the national language of Japan or kokugo is no longer secure. It has now become more important than ever to examine its historical significance and its future. Ms. Mizumura, who in her own work has been taking on new challenges by mixing English in a Japanese novel, will talk from a writerfs point of view about how the education of Japanese language and literature needs to be reconsidered.

Mizumura Minae
Born in Tokyo. Moved to the United States at age twelve. After studying French Literature at Yale College and Yale Graduate School, she came back to Japan on a fellowship from the Japan Foundation. She has taught modern Japanese literature at Princeton, the University of Michigan, and Stanford. Her books include: Zoku meian [Light and Darkness Continued] (1990; the Minister of Education Award for New Artists), Honkaku sh.setsu [A Real Novel] (2002; Yomiuri Prize for Literature), Nihongo ga horobiru toki [Fall of the Japanese Language in the Age of English] (2008; Kobayashi Hideo Award), Nihongo de yomu toiu koto [To Read in the Japanese Language] (2009) and Nihongo de kaku toiu koto [To Write in the Japanese Language] (2009).

“Big Power” Russia Now
―The Future of the “Tandemocracy”

Lecturer: Nobuo Shimotomai, Professor, Hosei University
Date & Time: Wednesday, October 7, 2009, 12:15-1:15 pm (Lecture only)
Venue: Kabayama/Matsumoto Room
Admission:
Lecture only: 1,500 yen (IHJ Members: 1,000 yen)
Lecture and lunch ticket: 3,000 yen (IHJ Members: 2,000 yen)
*Lunch tickets, which can be used at the tea lounge “The Garden” from 11:30 am to 2 pm on the day of the lecture, will be available at the door from 11:30 am.　
Language: Japanese (no English translation provided)

Twenty years after the end of the Cold War, the United States has welcomed President Obama and a new multipolar world order is expected, while Russia continues to walk its own independent path. Recent developments such as the rise in nationalism with the emergence of Vladimir Putin (former President and current Prime Minister), the flow of oil money, and the Russia-Georgia War in August 2008 give the impression of the resurgence of Russia as a big power. A year after the establishment of the “tandemocracy” with Prime Minister Putin and President Medvechev, this lecture invites Professor Nobuo Shimotomai, a seasoned researcher in Russian politics and society, to talk about present-day Russia and the future of Japan-Russian relations.

Nobuo Shimotomai
Born in 1948. LLD in Law and Government. Specializes in Comparative Politics, Russia/CIS Politics and Political History of Soviet Union. He has conducted research in the former Soviet Union, United Kingdom, and the United States as a fellow of the Ministry of Education, Nitobe Fellowships, Harvard University and the Fulbright program. Has held prominent positions such as visiting editorialist of the Asahi Shimbun and chairman of the Japan Association of International Relations. His books include Roshia hendo no kouzu—Eritsin kara Puchin e [The Structure of Russia in Transition—From Yeltsin to Putin] (ed. Hosei University Press, 2001), Ajia reisen shi [The History of the Asian Cold War](Chuokoron-Shinsha, 2004; Special Award of the Asian Pacific Awards), and Mosukuwa to Kimu Iru-son—reisen no naka no Kita Chosen 1945-1961 [Moscow and Kim Il-sung—North Korea during the Cold War, 1945-1961] (Iwanami Shoten, Publishers, 2006).

Learning from Education in Finland: Japanese Education in the World

Lecturer: Manabu Sato, Professor, Graduate School of Education, University of Tokyo
Date & Time: Tuesday, June 23, 2009, 12:15－1:15 pm
Venue: Kabayama/Matsumoto Room
Admission: Lecture only: 1,500 yen (IHJ Members: 1,000 yen)
　　　　　　　 Lecture and lunch ticket: 3,000 yen (IHJ Members: 2,000 yen)
Language: Japanese (no English translation provided)
Lecture Report

Since the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) started the PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) evaluations in 2000, Finland, with the highest general score three times in a row, has drawn the world’s attention for its education system. (In the 2006 programme, 57 countries participated. Japan ranked fifteenth in reading literacy and sixth in scientific literacy.) The reason Finland ranks top in the world is often attributed to its uniqueness as a country, being a small welfare state and having a small immigrant population. However there are lessons Japan and other countries could learn from Finland. This lecture invites Prof. Manabu Sato, who has interviewed the former Education Minister, Mr. Olli-Pekka Heinonen, who led educational reforms in Finland to talk about the situation of Japanese education in the world by introducing Finnish education, detailing the characteristics of its classes and how it might be applied to education in the Japanese context.

Manabu Sato
Born in 1951. Graduated from the Graduate School of Education, University of Tokyo. President of the Japanese Educational Research Association since 2004. He specializes in school reform and school curriculum. He has visited more than 1500 schools in Japan and 300 schools abroad and promotes school reform from within the schools in cooperation with teachers. His books include, Jugyo o kaeru gakkou ga kawaru sogogakushu kara karikyuramu no sozo e [Changing Classes Changes Schools—From Integrated Study to Curriculum Innovation] (Shogakukan, 2000), Shujukudobetsushido no naniga mondaika [The Issue of Competence-based Teaching] (Iwanami Booklet, 2004), and Olli-Pekka Heinonen “gakuryoku sekaiichi” ga motarasumono [Olli-Pekka Heinonen What “World’s Top-ranked School Achievement” Provides] (NHK Books, 2007).

Iraq: In Search of New U.S. Relations

Lecturer: Keiko Sakai, Professor, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies
Date & Time: Thursday,February 5, 2009, 12:15-1:15 pm
Venue: Kabayama / Matsumoto Room, International House of Japan
Admission: 3,000 yen (members 2,000 yen) with a lunch ticket*
　　　　　　　　2,000 yen (members 1,000 yen) lecture only
Language: Japanese (with no English translation)
Supported by The America-Japan Society, Inc.

U.S. President George W. Bush, who led the “War on Terror,” will be leaving office at the end of January 2009 and the world’s attention is now on the new United States under President-elect Barack Obama. Meanwhile, Iraq, which has produced several millions of refugees and is faced with various difficulties in its new administration, is increasingly falling into disarray.
This lecture invites Prof. Keiko Sakai, one of the leading researchers on Iraq in Japan, to talk about the current situation and the future of Iraq including the Iraq War, the relationship of the new Iraqi government with its neighboring countries such as Iran and Turkey, and the impact of the new Obama administration which has indicated an early withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.

Keiko Sakai
Born in 1959. Graduated from the University of Tokyo. M.A. from the University of Durham. Sakai was a researcher and counselor at the Institute of Developing Economies until 2005 when she assumed her current position. Specializes in the modern political history of Iraq. Her books include Iraku wa taberu－Kakumei to nichijo no fuukei [Iraq Eats－Scenes from the Revolution and Everyday Life](Iwanami Shoten, 2008), Fusein Iraku seiken no shihai kozo [Power Structure of the Saddam Regime in Iraq] (Iwanami Shoten, 2003), and Iraku to Amerika [Iraq and America] (Iwanami Shinsho, 2002).

The New American President and U.S.-Japan Relations

Lecturer: Fumio Matsuo, Journalist
Date & Time: Thursday, December 11, 2008, 12:15-1:15 pm
Venue: International House of Japan
Admission: 3,000 yen (members 2,000 yen) with a lunch ticket*
2,000 yen (members 1,000 yen) lecture only
Language: Japanese (with no English translation)

The speaker of this lecture, to be held right after the 44th president of the United States is decided, is Mr. Fumio Matsuo, who has worked as a journalist for Kyodo News, and has extensive experience covering the United States as a correspondent starting from 1964. He is well known for his article in Chuo Koron about the possibility of U.S.-China reconciliation in 1971 and was among the first to write about the influence of the neo-conservatives soon after he returned as a freelance journalist in 2002. This seasoned observer will address aspects of present and future U.S.-Japan relations, feared to be hollowing out in recent years. Mr. Matsuo is planning to visit the United States at the end of October following his visit there in June and July.

Fumio Matsuo
Born in 1933, Matsuo joined Kyodo News in 1956 and served as New York and Washington correspondent from 1964 to 1969. In 1971 Mr. Matsuo established his reputation as a keen observer of American politics with his article titled "Nixon's America: Its Skillful Approach to China." He also served as Bangkok and Washington bureau chief and president of the Kyodo Tsushin Markets. In 2002 he returned to active journalism as a specialist on the United States. His books include Nixon's America (1972) in Japanese, and Democracy with a Gun--America and the Policy of Force (the Japanese version received the 52nd Annual Award of the Japan Essayist Club Award in 2004) in English.

The American Myth, the U.S.-Japan "Salad Bowl"

Lecturer: Takayuki Tatsumi, Professor, Keio University
Date & Time: Friday, July 4, 2008, 12:15-1:15 pm
Admission: 3,000 yen (members 2,000 yen) with a lunch ticket*
2,000 yen (members 1,000 yen) lecture only
Language: Japanese (with no English translation)

This year's Independence Day will give us a wonderful chance to reconsider the Founding Fathers, such as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, as the heros of the American Myth. The "magic words" of the Declaration of Independence have consistently enchanted the whole world, and now we are about to witness the birth of a new American President responsible for the global history of the 21st century. Prof. Tatsumi, who has reexamined American literary and cultural history from the perspective of contemporary critical theory, plans to discuss the "salad bowl" of Pacific rim culture brought about by U.S.-Japan relations since Herman Melville and Yukichi Fukuzawa.

Takayuki Tatsumi
Born 1955. Specializes in American literature and critical theory. Graduated from Cornell University (Ph.D. 1987). His major works include Cyberpunk America (Tokyo: Keiso Shobo Publishers, 1988; the winner of the 1988 American Studies Book Prize [Japan-US Friendship Commission]); New Americanist Poetics (Tokyo: Seidosha Publishers, 1995: the 1995 Yukichi Fukuzawa Award [Keio University]); and Full Metal Apache: Transactions between Cyberpunk Japan and Avant-Pop America (Durham: Duke UP, 2006). He is currently the director of the English Literary Society of Japan, president of the Tokyo chapter of the American Literature Society and editor of The Journal of Transnational American Studies.

Cooperation of Kazakhstan and Japan

Lecturer: Akylbek A. Kamaldinov, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Kazakhstan to Japan
Date & Time: Friday, May 16, 2008, 12:00-1:00 pm
Fee: 3,000 yen (members 2,000 yen) with a lunch ticket*
2,000 yen (members 1,000 yen) lecture only
Language: Japanese (with no English translation)

Cooperation with countries such as Kazakhstan, which are rich in natural resources, growing in importance in line with the increasing severity in the global situation concerning energy resources. Kazakhstan has many mineral resources such as rare metal for which its output ranks within the top ten in the world. Kazakhstan is also one of the members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and has cultivated ties with other countries since its independence in 1991. It is one of the countries in Central Asia that is gaining increasing attention. With the President of Kazakhstan scheduled to visit Japan in June, Ambassador Kamaldinov will speak about the political and economic priorities of Kazakhstan and its economic cooperation and exchange with Japan.

Akylbek A. Kamaldinov
Born in 1961. Graduated from Kazakh State University. Studied in Institute of Asian and African States, Moscow State University and London School of Economics and Political Science etc. Held prominent positions such as the First Secretary, Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan in Japan, Head of Section of the Department of Bilateral Co-operation and Deputy Director of the Department of Asia, Middle East and Africa in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Head of External Economic Division, Office of the Prime Minister. Assumed current post in 2007.

On the Future of Japan-China Relations

Lecturer: Ryosei Kokubun, Professor, Keio University
Date & Time: Thursday, April 17, 2008, 12:15-1:15 pm
Admission: 3,000 yen (members 2,000 yen) with a lunch ticket*
2,000 yen (members 1,000 yen) lecture only
Language: Japanese (with no English translation)

We have asked Prof. Ryosei Kokubun, a specialist on Chinese politics and foreign policy, to talk about contemporary China (hosting the Olympic Games this year) and the future of Japan-China relations. He will touch upon the influence of personnel changes in the recent party congress and recent developments in China's foreign policy, particularly in regard to Japan, and also compare differences in the development in both countries.

Ryosei Kokubun
Born in 1953. He is currently the Dean of the Faculty of Law and Politics, Keio University and a member of the New 21st Century Commission for Japan-China Friendship. He is president of the Japan Association of International Relations and former president of the Japan Association for Asian Studies. His works include The Rise of China and the Changing East Asian Order (coeditor) and Politics and Bureaucracy in Contemporary China, Keio University Press, 2004 (Suntory Prize for Social Sciences and Humanities, 2004). He is also Councilor of the International House of Japan.

The U.S. Presidential Election and Japan-U.S. Relations

Lecturer: Fumiaki Kubo, Professor, University of Tokyo
Date & Time: Wednesday, February 6, 2008, 12:15-1:00 pm
Admission: 3,000 yen (members 2,000 yen) with a lunch ticket*
2,000 yen (members 1,000 yen) lecture only
Language: Japanese (with no English translation)

With the U.S. presidential election now attracting much attention not only within the United States but also from the rest of the world, the first speaker for this series is Professor Fumiaki Kubo of the University of Tokyo, a specialist in the history of U.S. politics and diplomacy and the author of numerous books on U.S. politics, who will speak on the latest developments in the U.S. presidential election and the prospects for the Japan-U.S. relations after the new administration takes office.

Fumiaki Kubo
Born in 1956. Former visiting scholar at Cornell University, Johns Hopkins University, Georgetown University and the University of Maryland. Awarded the Sakurada-kai Prize for Political Research as well as Keio University's Gijuku-sho Prize in 1990 for his book, Nyudiiru to Amerika Minshu-sei (The New Deal and American Democracy). An editor/author for the recent work, Amerika Gaiko no Sho-choryu (Various Currents of American Foreign Policy). Comptroller of the International House of Japan, since 2007.