Join us at AAS Friday 16 March 1pm for a lively roundtable discussion:

"Change or Die": Immigrants, Foreigners and the Future of Human Capital Development and International Relations in the Japanese Political Economy

Sponsored by the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership

Panel Abstract
Outside the corporate conference room of Tadashi Yanai, Chairman and CEO of Fast Retailing Co., owner of UNIQLO Japan, hang a series of picture frames, each containing the company slogan for a given year. The 2011 slogan is "Change or Die" - in English. UNIQLO is one of Japan's fastest growing multinational companies, which now has more operations in China than in Japan. As part of the firm's global business strategy, two years ago Yanai announced that as of 2012 all communication would be conducted in English. Since this bold announcement, new Japanese applicants plummeted, while those throughout Asia continue to rise. In a meeting with a delegation of American scholars and policy experts in June 2011, Yanai said that he expected in 2012 to hire 75% non-Japanese. Japan's forward thinking corporations, including Yanai's Fast Retailing have reformed radically, and these reforms pre-date the systemic shock of the Earthquake and Tsunami of March 11, 2011.

Our roundtable convenes a group of senior scholars and policy experts to debate and discuss specific policy changes responding to the dire need for Japan to adapt to the challenges posed by an aging society, low birth rates, and rising economic competition from other Asian countries. Failure to develop a high skill, competitive workforce means increased hollowing out of innovative and productive capacity (through outsourcing and off-shoring). On the other hand, increased openness to immigrants from countries including Brazil, China, India and Korea can support economic growth, improve Japan's social networks within these countries and potentially better bilateral relations. Can Japan, through a more open immigration system, pursue its economic and political interests in the region, while improving its international relations?

Debate is maximized by a dynamic and interactive moderated discussion format. Participants shall each present a brief policy recommendation, based on extensive fieldwork-based research within a number of immigrant and foreign communities in Japan. Anthony D'Costa, Professor in Indian Studies and Research Director, Asia Research Centre, Copenhagen Business School shall present arguments about how Japan could benefit from increases in high skill Indian technologists in several industrial sectors. Helene LeBail, Research Fellow, French Institute on Contemporary Japan shall contrast challenges and opportunities within immigrant communities in rural and urban Japan, including Chinese residents. Kathryn Ibata-Arens, Associate Professor, Political Science, DePaul University, shall show evidence of how attracting foreign entrepreneurs can have a multi-faceted impact on domestic human capital development. Alexandre Uehara, Vice President, Brazilian Association for Japanese Studies, shall discuss the opportunity for better integration of Japanese-Brazilians into Japanese society, despite significant cultural differences.

We shall be joined by two experts on Japanese immigration and immigration policy: Erin Chung, Johns Hopkins University, and Deborah Milly, Virginia Tech, who shall challenge participants to craft effective national policy recommendations.

For more information, including paper abstracts and papers, contact Kathryn Ibata-Arens (kibataar@depaul.edu).

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Kathryn Ibata-Arens, Associate Professor, DePaul University