This week NBR is releasing a series of interviews as part of a special retrospective on the one-year anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake. The first Q&A in this retrospective is with Richard J. Samuels (MIT) that discusses the public policy impact of the disaster. A link to the full interview and a summary are below:

"Policy Change in a Post-Crisis Japan"

Richard J. Samuels, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Link: http://m.nbr.org/z3QFMH

SUMMARY
One year after the March 11, 2011, earthquake, tsunami, and subsequent nuclear crisis, Japan still faces numerous public policy challenges affecting national security, energy usage, and local government reform.

To better understand the current state of post-disaster Japan, NBR asked Richard J. Samuels (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) to discuss the internal debates surrounding Japan's policy changes, as well as comment on how Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and his administration have handled the crisis.

Read the full interview for a discussion of the following questions:
- What has been the impact of the Tohoku earthquake and Fukushima nuclear crisis on public policy in Japan?

- How has the March 11 disaster galvanized reform at the local government level?

- How has the Japanese public's view of Prime Minister Noda and his administration's leadership evolved during the continuing recovery efforts?

Link: http://m.nbr.org/z3QFMH

Tracy Timmons-Gray
The National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR) Seattle, WA