Dear Colleagues:


Hope this mail finds you in good health. We will have an Asia-Pacific Studies seminar on 26 January (Saturday)
at Toyonaka Campus, Osaka University. If you wish to attend the seminar, please let me know by 23 January.
Yoneyuki Sugita sugita@lang.osaka-u.ac.jp



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Asia-Pacific Studies Seminar at Osaka University

Date: 26 January 2019 (Saturday)

Venue: Seminar Room S1, 1st floor of Building C, Toyonaka Campus, Osaka University

https://facility.icho.osaka-u.ac.jp/daigaku-hall/access.html (Access map: Japanese)

https://www.osaka-u.ac.jp/en/access/index.html#toyonaka (access map: English)

http://www.celas.osaka-u.ac.jp/facilities/floormap/ (campus map: S1 - Top of the map)


Session 1:09:30-10:30

Outi Luova (Associate Professor, Centre for East Asian Studies, University of Turku, Finland & Specially-Appointed

Lecturer, Osaka University)

https://www.utu.fi/en/people/outi-luova


Title:

SEA OF JAPAN ECONOMIC RIM: GEOPOLITICAL ECONOMY OF ANTICIPATION


Abstract:

This paper focuses on a North East Asian region that has remained marginal in regional economy, and also in academic research: the Sea of Japan. However, there are two reasons why this region requires a closer scholarly scrutiny: there is a multitude of regional cross-sea development plans both among coastal provinces and cities in the region, and recent regional developments make these plans extremely topical. This paper utilizes the term geopolitical economy of anticipation to analyze the various regional development strategies in the Sea of Japan Economic Rim.

During the past decades, littoral regions along the Japan Sea Rim have made several strategies to invigorate cross-sea economic contacts. However, political factors at several scales have obstructed their implementation: political tensions between the states, the threat of North Korea, and the negligence of these coastal regions in the regional plans of the littoral states.

However, now, the Sea of Japan is seeing exceptional changes. Japan's New National Spatial Strategy places unforeseen emphasis on Japan's Western coast and cross-sea contacts over the Sea of Japan, the inter-Korean reconciliation gives much hopes for the dissolvement of the geopolitical lock-in, and new continental and maritime transportation routes are opening (Arctic Route, Northeast China's Chang-Ji-Tu plan). These changes have brought new energy to the Japan Sea Rim, and littoral regions are eagerly making preparations in the anticipation of the opening up of North Korea.

In order to study the current situation in the Sea of Japan Rim, this paper coins two terms: geopolitical economy, and economy of anticipation. The concept of geopolitical economy of anticipation is apt for the analysis of the regional development plans that are heavily influenced by regional and sub-national geopolitics and the anticipation of a prosperous future. The study is based on an analysis of relevant printed and online documents and on focus-group interviews conducted in the region.

Discussants:

+Dr. Mayako Shimamoto (Osaka University)



Chat over snacks after the seminar



-- Yoneyuki Sugita <sugita@lang.osaka-u.ac.jp>
Osaka University
http://sugita.us/
https://osaka-u.academia.edu/sugita