- Speaker: John C. Campbell, Professor Emeritus, University of Michigan
- Moderator: Michio Muramatsu, Professor, Gakushuin University
- Date & Time: Wednesday, July 22, 2009, 7:00 pm
- Venue: Iwasaki Koyata Memorial Hall, International House of Japan
- Admission: 1,500 yen (Students: 1,000 yen, IHJ Members: Free)
- Language: English/Japanese (with simultaneous translation)
In his talk, Professor Campbell will discuss what has happened in old-age policy since 1990 (the cut-off point of his book), assess the performance of the Japanese government in comparative perspective, and consider the relationship of this policy area to Japanese politics in general. He will conclude by trying to put current catastrophic forecasts for Japan’s “aging society” into perspective.
John C. Campbell
Professor Campbell received his B.A. and Ph.D. from Columbia University and taught political science at the University of Michigan from 1973 until he retired. He works on Japanese politics in general, decision-making, and social policy. His books include Contemporary Japanese Budget Politics (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1977), How Policies Change: The Japanese Government and the Aging Society (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1992), and The Art of Balance in Health Policy: Maintaining Japan’s Egalitarian, Low-Cost System (Co-author with Naoki Ikegami, New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998). These books and many of his other writings also were published in Japanese. Professor Campbell served in administrative posts at UM, including director of the Center for Japanese Studies, at the Social Science Research Council, and as Secretary-Treasurer of the Association for Asian Studies. Since moving to Tokyo in 2006, he was a visiting professor, at the University of Tokyo, the Institute of Social Science, and the Keio University Medical School. Currently he is a visiting scholar at the Institute of Gerontology at the University of Tokyo. His research still centers on Japanese policy toward the aging society, particularly long-term care, as well as broader welfare state concerns in Japan and beyond.