The “Audacious Young Lady” continues her work, and my opinions

Posted on by kiyoshi kurokawa

→Japanese

There are people who have chosen very diverse careers after working at the National Diet of Japan Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission (NAIIC). The three people whom I introduced in my column, Mr. Shiina, Mr. Ishibashi and Ms. Aikawa, the “audacious young lady,” are examples of this.

Ms. Aikawa’s book, Hinanjakusha [The Vulnerable Evacuees] has been read widely, and recently there has been an online article of her interview (in Japanese). It makes me happy that her message is being spread. Young people will take action. It is quite impressive.

The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan’s magazine, The Number 1 Shimbun ran an article by me following up on NAIIC after it was disbanded, also featuring Ms. Aikawa, Mr. Shiina and Mr. Ishibashi.

NAIIC is the first independent investigation commission in Japanese constitutional history. As it is the first, many politicians, bureaucrats, media, academics and the people of Japan do not understand what NAIIC stands for. The response in Japan has been much weaker than abroad (1, 2).

It takes time for democratic systems to fully function.

I am very concerned about the situation at Fukushima Daiichi. We must not forget that there are many people around the world who are truly worried and concerned about Japan.

To Guam University

Posted on by kiyoshi kurokawa

→Japanese

I visited Guam from October 13th for four days and three nights. I was invited by Dr. Robert Underwood, the President of Guam University, whom I met at the Pacific Science Association two years ago and have kept in touch with since. The main industry of this area is tourism and the largest number of tourists are from Japan.

Professor Ko Nakajima of emergency medicine at Tokai University and Mr. Ichida of Birdlife International came along for the program to conservation program of the Guam rail (in Japanese) (1). The color of the beak is different from that of the Okinawa rail, but they are very close.

The next day was the Presidential Lecture series where academic and administrative staff as well as students participated and gathered in the lecture hall. There were many engaging questions and we had a fun time. The board and senior members of the university, including Dr. Kurashina, an emeritus professor of the University of California Berkley had a dinner and Governor of Guam Mr Calvo joined with us.

The next day, I had a seminar with the students, which many academics also joined, and we all enjoyed the discussion. Afterwards, I met with Guam council members and was able to hear their opinions.

There is a connection with Okinawa, so I talked about the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology OIST.

The next day, although there was a typhoon headed towards Japan, my flight in the morning departed as scheduled and I was surprised when I saw the water rising in northern Chiba before landing in Narita.

The typhoon swept through a while before but it was clear that there was significant damage.

To Various Places

Posted on by kiyoshi kurokawa

→Japanese

After attending the Mansfield Foundation’s U.S.-Japan Nuclear Working Group convention, I flew to Okinawa to attend the meeting of the board of governors at the OIST.

It was to be a three days two nights meeting (the 2nd , 3rd and 4th of October), but because I was feeling not well, I returned to Tokyo on the second day and participated through video-conference on the 4th. Although there is still a lot left to be done, I feel that it is wonderful that we have accomplished so much in so little time. I feel that this tenth anniversary will mark some big changes as well.

The next day, the 5th, I participated in the  Japanese Society of Nephrology’s ‘Panel Discussion For Gender Equality’ (link in Japanese), after which I headed to Kyoto for the STS forum (5th to 8th October). This event too was celebrating its tenth year in existence. With more than a thousand participants and with Prime Minister Abe giving the opening speech, the forum was off to a great start.  I was on the panel for ‘Education and ICT (Information and Communication Technology)’. I met with many friends and colleagues at the forum, and I also had the good fortune of meeting people from the Qatar Foundation who were attending for the first time. We had the opportunity to have a conversation and I also managed to provide them with the names of some researchers who would be able to cooperate with them.

On the 8th, after returning from Kyoto, I had a dinner with an executive of a foreign capital enterprise, and on the 9th and the 10th, I was invited to the 35th anniversary celebrations of Oriental Giken, where I lectured and shared the stage with Ken Kornberg, the architect who designed OIST. Ken is the son of Arthur Kornberg, a recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, and Roger, one of his brothers is a Nobel Prize Laureate in Chemistry. Another brother Thomas is an outstanding scientist in the field of molecular biology.

The next day, I went to a discussion with the Liberal Democratic Party about the form that a new Nuclear Regulatory Commission would take. After this meeting, I headed to a workshop organized by IOCA, a group that I met at the summer course on Global Health organized by HGPI. This workshop was getting some good reviews from among various organizations, so I wanted to take a look.

At night, I was invited to the Swiss Embassy, where I met with Honorable Doris Leuthard, one of leading Swiss politicians who is the Minister of the Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications portfolio, and I talked about nuclear energy.

Again, I was busy as always, but if I am asked what I have accomplished, or what I have contributed, I would be forced to pause and think.

The Mansfield Foundation’s U.S.-Japan Nuclear Working Group

Posted on by kiyoshi kurokawa

→Japanese

I participated in the Mansfield Foundation’s U.S.-Japan Nuclear Working Group convention in Osaka.

This group recently published a report detailing the strategic priorities regarding nuclear power in Japan and the U.S, and these conventions were part of their campaign. Although similar events were held in Fukuoka and Tokyo, I was only able to participate in the Osaka Convention.

The recommendations refer to the increased cooperative relations that are expected in the coming years, and most of them are very reasonable. One of the members of the committee, Charles Ferguson, was the chairperson during my NAIIC Capitol Hill Briefing that was organized by the Japan-U.S Council last October. He played no small part in ensuring that my briefing got the attention that it deserved by highlighting its importance.

At the Osaka convention, the panelist discussion was followed up by comments made by me and Professor Shunya Hoshino of Osaka University.

Because each of the panelists was well-versed in nuclear energy, the talk did not go into technical details, but rather focused on the larger issues, such as the significance of the NAIIC, the dangers of groupthink, as well as other problems that arose specifically because the accident occurred in Japan.

One such Japan-specific problem was the composition of the audience. Barring the two female simultaneous interpreters, there were only three or four women in the audience of more than two hundred. Talk about strange. I believe that this can occur only in Japan.

Among the four panelists, there was one woman, Sharon Squassoni(Director and Senior Fellow, Proliferation Prevention Program, CSIS).

After the convention ended, the members of the working group headed to Fukushima, while I headed to Kansai Airport, from where I would be flying to Okinawa in order to attend the meeting of the board of governors at the OIST.

San Diego to San Francisco

Posted on by kiyoshi kurokawa

→Japanese

This is my third time (1) visiting San Francisco this year.

I wish I could say that this time, I was here to see the America’s Cup, but it is not so. The reason for my visit was to attend Prime Minister Najib of Malaysia’s GSCIA (1, 2) at the Fairmont Hotel. I was able to see many people in and around the hotel from the America’s Cup and people involved in Oracle.

The first and second days were the last round of the America’s Cup, in which the champion would be decided. The race was the Emirates Team New Zealand vs. the Defending Champion Oracle Team USA, with the score being 8:5, and the challenger being one race away from winning. The rooms at the Fairmont Hotel were priced steeply and there were very few vacancies.

The first day was the reception and the morning of the second day were three panels on the High Level Forum Green Future, of which I was on the first panel. All three were very interesting.

At lunch, Prime Minister Najib gave a speech and there were four MOU ceremonies. I participated in the signing of Japan’s cooperation. This was because the Prime Minister’s chief scientific advisor is my old friend, Mr. Zakri. Future relations should involve not only governments but also the private sector, with multiple levels of cooperation among many people.

At night, there was a banquet with people of the local businesses, as well as a speech by the Prime Minister and interviews. As this was an official public banquet, wine and other alcohols were not served and I felt a bit wistful but there is no use being remorseful.

Especially for people like myself who are in the academic world, the trust that is developed between us is free from special interests and forms a basis that is different from the relationships formed between governments and companies. This allows the advantage that new projects can be started on such occasions.

Oracle won the America’s Cup, but I had to return to Japan before the final results.

On the day after I departed for Japan, Oracle Team USA did not back down and there was a major reversal in the outcome.

San Diego

Posted on by kiyoshi kurokawa

→Japanese

I came to Coronado, the city next to San Diego. The first reason was to attend the Cell Society meeting. This is the third of the meeting in the past but was unable to join last year because I was in the middle of my duties with the National Diet of Japan Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission (NAIIC). It is not my area of specialization but I have come to participate in its first meeting. There have been many results in the clinical cases of adipose stem cell that are interesting from a medical point of view.

In the field of stem cell research, the breakthrough finding of “iPS” by Nobel Laureate Dr. Yamanaka is also a promising area. Although the approach differs from that of modern medicine and some of the findings of the molecular and genetic analysis cannot be accounted for by logical explanations, it is very safe and there are no other effective methods of treatment but we can get results through this approach.

In the West, where modern science was established, until roughly one hundred years ago, there were forms of treatment, such as blood transfusions and phlebotomy that would be unthinkable today. It was also around one hundred years ago that the blood types of ABO were discovered. In research, it is often times the case that new discoveries are made through such experiences.

I made some time to meet with approximately twenty young Japanaese people from Japan who were in San Diego for study abroad programs, research and business. There were many students in undergraduate and graduate programs at the University of California San Diego this gathering was organized around Dr. Maki (PhD) (in Japanese). They are all very bright and seem to be feeling the changes in their awareness that come with living abroad and are in the process of contemplating their future careers. Japan is not the only place where they can become successful and the fact that they are Japanese will not change. I look forward to their next career choices and achievements.

The following day, I gave a seminar at UCSD. It was organized by the UCSD School of International Relations and Pacific Studies (IPRS) and the Rady School of Management. IPRS Professor of Japanese Business, Professor Ulrike Schaede (until last year, Professor Hoshi had been in charge) moderated the seminar. As the topic of the seminar was the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident, it was not only students who were in attendance, but also professors and some Japanese who have been living in this area for a long time. Since two and a half years have passed since the accident and the recent situation has been reported widely throughout the world and there was a lively question and answer session.

In addition to students, there were many people from Japan as well as people from CONNECT (1). After the seminar, there was a reception on the terrace, where we could see a lovely sunset, typical of southern Californian. Afterwards, we had dinner at the local favorite, Sushi Ota, and I had some delicacies such as the sea urchin.

It is very important for young people to gain more experiences abroad and to expand their career choices.

Newspaper Article in the Netherlands

Posted on by kiyoshi kurokawa

→Japanese

The problem of leakage of contaminated water at the Fukushima nuclear power plant is still ongoing and has become widely known throughout the world. The media abroad has been reporting frequently on this fragile situation.

I served as the chairman of the National Diet of Japan Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission (NAIIC), the first independent investigation commission in the constitutional history of Japan, and the Commission’s report has been highly evaluated by the world. As a result, I have been interviewed many times by the foreign press. This is a major issue facing Japan and I feel it is my duty to speak out in the media.

Recently, I was interviewed by Trouw, the major newspaper in the Netherlands. Through this website, I received an email from Ms. Nishimoto, who read this article and kindly translated it into Japanese. This is possible in the age of the internet. I made some edits and it can be read here in Japanese version. Its English version was translated by Mr. Wouter van Cleef, who wrote the original article in Dutch.

“Japan Needs Independent and ‘Against the Grain’ Thinkers.” (Trouw, 2013/9/16)
in English
in Japanese

I would like to send my thanks to Ms. Nishimoto.

My message in the article is quite the same as you see often in my blog posts, eg, most recent one, my speech at GRIPS Commencement.

My Commencement Speech at the Autumn Graduation Ceremony at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS)

Posted on by kiyoshi kurokawa

→Japanese

The autumn graduation ceremony at GRIPS is made up of mostly foreign students (seventy percent of the students are foreign students who come from over sixty different countries). The diversity and uniqueness of each country shines through and is awe-inspiring and is a rare sight in Japan. The ambassadors and staff members from embassies of the students’ countries often are present at the ceremony.

This year, the graduation ceremony was held on September 17th. The program includes the conferment of diplomas, the Dean’s award, the President’s address, and the valedictory speech.

I was chosen to give the Commencement speech. I am grateful for this opportunity. It is my third time this year to give a commencement speech. In April, I gave the speech at the entrance ceremony at the University of Tokyo (although it is not the graduation ceremony, I believe it has the same significance as graduation ceremonies in universities abroad), and in July have the speech at the graduation ceremony at the United Nations University (1).

In recent years at GRIPS, one person has been chosen to give the commencement speech. Last year, it was given by the executive director of ASEAN, Surin Pitsuwan (the speech can be viewed here).

The speech for the 2010 graduation ceremony was given by Haruhiko Kuroda, who has been paid much attention recently by the world on ‘Abenomic’ as head of Bank of Japan and he was the President of the Asian Development Bank at the time.

It is my hope that my wishes and congratulations that I have poured into the commencement speech (video is here) will reach outgoing student hearts.

I am always filled with a feeling of awe at graduation ceremonies, from which young people take off and carry the future on their shoulders.

This is a privilege that comes with being involved in education.

Philadelphia-2: Fireside Chat With Dr. Kiyoshi Kurokawa

Posted on by kiyoshi kurokawa

→Japanese

The main objective of this trip was to attend the two day conference of the Japan America Society of Philadelphia “Health Sciences Dialogue,” which I had been invited to for several times in the past but had not been able to attend. As an organization that connects Japanese　pharmaceutical companies and various bio-venture companies, it has received high acclaim.

A breakfast meeting in Japanese was arranged from seven a.m. primarily for around ten people for Japan and we had a lively and interesting discussion.

The session began at nine a.m. Mr. Ai, the Director of the Public Information Center of the Consulate General of Japan in New York, gave his greetings.

The session and panelists covered the topics of biotech venture and venture capital, focusing on the pharmaceutical sector in the United States and Japan. After lunch was my turn to speak at the eighty minute session entitled, “Fireside Chat with Dr. Kiyoshi Kurokawa: How Can Japan Better Foster Innovation?” I took questions from David Flores (Co-Founder of BioCentury Publications) and Howard Brooks (Partner, Americas Life Sciences Sector Leader, Ernst and Young: I was also able to talk with Glen Giovannetti, who specializes in the same area), and the rest was a question and answer dialogue session with the audience.

Philadelphia is a place to which I have many strong ties. The University of Philadelphia was the first place I lived abroad, and it was in the two years that I spent there that I changed my career from being based in Japan to the world. It was also here that Umeko Tsuda, for whom I have the utmost respect, studied abroad (please search on this site, “Umeko Tsuda”), as well as where Hideyo Noguchi, whom I have touched upon through my work with the Noguchi Hideyo Africa Prize (1) began his global career. It is a place of many fond memories for me.

I was able to spend a fulfilling day here at the session.

The next day, I departed at seven a.m. and after a three-hour drive by car, reached JFK and boarded my flight.

My stay in Philadelphia was a quick but nostalgic, meaningful trip.

Philadelphia-1: Visit to Swarthmore College

Posted on by kiyoshi kurokawa

→Japanese

Philadelphia was the first place that I lived in the United States (and my first time abroad). I was a researcher at the University of Pennsylvania for two years. It is over forty years ago. It was there that I had the inspirational encounter with Professor Howard Rasumussen, my boss at the time, who had a major influence on my future.

I departed from Haneda Airport on September 9th and arrived in JFK in New York City and took a three hour drive by car towards Philadelphia. I checked in at the Union League (1) which was built with the goal of supporting President Lincoln 150 years ago and is affiliated with the Republican Party. There are portraits of past presidents from the Republican Party.

After resting briefly, I headed towards Swarthmore College, where I met with President Rebecca Chopp. It has been three years since our last meeting.

Swarthmore College is a prestigious and top ranking Liberal Arts College in the US and is nearby Bryn Mawr College (where Umeko Tsuda (1 in Japanese, 2 in Japanese, 3) studied), and Haverford College (where Akira Irie, a well known professor of history at Harvard University and is an alumni of my high school, studied), together with which it comprises the Tri-College Consortium. There is a bus that runs between the three colleges.

I met with President Chopp, three Japanese women on the faculty, Kozue Tsunoda, Yoshiko Shiro, and Atsuko Suda (I have the impression that among the Japanese who have active careers abroad, many are women, thus I felt it was again the case this time). I also met with Dr. William Gardner, who teaches Japanese Studies (he has lived in Japan on the JET Program). We talked of many things for about an hour.

There are just under 400 students each year at this university. In their freshman year, all students live in on-campus dormitories and afterwards about ninety percent of students live in dormitories. There is no graduate school. As the students here are very talented and study hard, and the education level is very high, graduate schools welcome them with open arms.

This university is only a few kilometers away from where I used to live, so I went around the area, but everything had changed, with little remnants of the past. Only the train tracks remained the same.

It was a beautiful university campus and a nostalgic place for me. Time flies by quickly.