NEWSLETTER

17NO.

2009 . 7. 8

GRADUATE SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY
THE UNIVERSITY OF TOKYO
東京大学公共政策大学院

INDEX

1

Sompo Japan “Risk Management and Public Policy” Third Public Forum : Considering Food Safety - Its Costs and Beneﬁts

2

Special Public Seminar : “The Science and Technology Policies of the Obama Administration” ／ International Workshop on Piracy

3

Student Interview : Mr. Hiroki Nomiyama

4

The 4th ITPU International Seminar ／ Topical News

Sompo Japan “Risk Management and Public Policy”

Third Public Forum（45 th Public Policy Seminar）

Considering Food Safety- Its Costs and Beneﬁts

Naoto Adachi
Part-Time Lecturer

The Third Public Forum sponsored by Sompo Japan “Risk Management andPublic Policy” convened on March 4, 2009.
In the keynote speech, Ms. Junko Nakanishi (Director, Research Institute ofScience for Safety and Sustainability, National Institute of Advanced Industrial
Science and Technology (AIST)) discussed that trade-oﬀs emerge when themitigation of one of the risks ampliﬁes other risks. Using BSE as an example,
she described how individual inspection of cattle would result in a slightly lower
health risk but the cost would be enormous and other risks might be ampliﬁed.
Consequently, funding for mitigating other risks would be diminished, thereby,amplifying their potential impact. She emphasized that the notion of “safety” isa relative concept in that it reﬂects the norms of the era and the situation. The
misperception that food safety may need special attention leads to excessive
regulation, misrepresentation of threats and other distorted practices. To thecontrary, as with other risks, proper risk assessment and evaluation is an ineluctable facet of food safety.
A panel discussion, which was moderated by Dean Yoshitsugu Kanemoto ofGraduate School of Public Policy, marked the commencement of the second
half of the forum. Panellists included Mr. Atsuo Kishimoto (Head of GovernanceGroup, Research Institute of Science for Safety and Sustainability, AIST), Mr.
Kazuhito Yamashita (Senior Fellow, Research Institute of Economy, Trade andIndustry/ Chief Representative Fellow, the Tokyo Foundation), Mr. Yasuhiroof Japan) and Mr. Takashi Seo (President, Sompo Japan Risk Management). The
panellists engaged in a discussion that focused on the pros and cons associatedwith altering perceptions on the costs of food safety in relation to enterprisemanagement.

NEWSLETTER

Kawaguchi (General Manager, Quality of Life Bureau, Cabinet Oﬃce, Government1

Special Public Seminar“The Science and Technology Policiesof the Obama Administration”
Sponsored by the Graduate School of Public Policyʼs Science, Technology and Public Policy Research Unit (SciTePP)

Go Yoshizawa, Project Lecturer
A special seminar was held on March 10, 2009, at the Sanjo Con-nology policy as we now know it was referred to as “innovation policy” .

ference Hall featuring Professor Christopher Hill of George Mason

In concluding his lecture, Professor Hill conveyed a strong sense ofUniversity. Professor Hill is a leading authority in the ﬁeld of science

optimism in responding aﬃrmatively to a query regarding whether orand technology policy in the United States with over 25 years of

not the Obama Administration was capable of meeting the challenges

experience in academia, industry and government service.

faced.

Professor Hill began his talk by introducing the main challenges

Respondent Mr. Michael Rogers, who has long been well-versed inconfronting the new Obama Administration. Domestically, a keyEuropeʼs science and technology policies, cautioned that the process

challenge involves the Presidentʼs emergency policy initiatives, facili-of employing a number of top level scientists does not necessarily

tation of global economic recovery and restoration of Americaʼsmean that the nomination process is transparent. He put forth an

reputation overseas. In Professor Hillʼs evaluation, President Obamaargument that it was essential to adopt a balanced approach to science

brings a new perspective to science and technology. Distinguishingand technology policy that goes beyond the input of scientiﬁc advisorsfeatures of the new approach includes an ampliﬁcation of funding

and attempts to unite disparate political stakeholders by seeking thefor technology and R&D and the employment of world class scientists.

input of various specialists and citizens alike. Professor Hill addressed

An interesting point put forth was that since early 2005, the term

this concern by pointing out that in the government appointment“technology policy” was commonly used to denote IT policy. Tech-system in the US, scientists occupy a special ground.

International Workshop on Piracy
Masahiro Matsuura, Associate Professor
The issue of piracy, as exempliﬁed by the recent episodes in Somalian(Singapore), and Joshua Ho, Senior Fellow of Nanyang Technologicalwaters, is becoming an issue of vital international concern. As an avenueUniversityʼs S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (Singapore).

for examining eﬀective resolution strategies in regard to this issue,

Following the presentations, Professor Hideaki Shiroyama of thethe Ocean Policy Education and Research Unit, sponsored by theUniversity of Tokyoʼs Graduate Schools for Law and Politics chaired

Japan Foundation, held the “International Workshop on Piracy” ona lively panel discussion that clariﬁed the United Nations resolutions

March 16, 2009, at the auditorium of The International House of Japan.

to counteract piracy and examined the composition of the groups

The workshop invited scholars in the ﬁeld as well as practitioners

involved in piracy. Coming on the heels of a cabinet decision to im-

involved in activities aﬀected by these acts of piracy to share theirplement anti-piracy measures, participation in the event by members

insights and to seek solutions on the issue.

of the general public was high. The Ocean Policy Education andAfter an opening salutation from Professor Naoya Okuwaki of theResearch Unit, which investigates a number of maritime issues fromUniversity of Tokyo Graduate Schools for Law and Politics delivereda public policy perspective, plans to oﬀer more public events of thispresentations on topics ranging from legal aspects of policies totype in the future.

counteract piracy to the design and implementation of such policies.
Presenters included Associate Professor Robert Beckman from theNEWSLETTER

National University of Singaporeʼs Faculty of Law, Professor Shigeki

2Sakamoto from Kobe Universityʼs Gradate School of Law and Facultyof Law, Carolin Liss, Research Fellow from Murdoch Universityʼs Asia
Research Centre (Australia), Mr. Yoshiaki Ito, Executive Director ofReCAAPʼs (Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracyand Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia) Information Sharing CenterIn 2003, I enrolled in the Civil Engineering program mainly because I was enthralled by civil
infrastructures. It is quite common for those who graduate with an undergraduate in Engineeringto continue on to Engineering graduate school. However, as I was interested in a course taught
by Professor Kanemoto called “Economic Evaluation of Public Policies” , I decided to join theGraduate School of Public Policy (GraSPP). The course, which is a core element of the Economic
Policy Course, incorporated cost and demand analysis exercises of infrastructure projects.
Infrastructure issues are ineluctably entwined with development initiatives.
-You visited the Grameen Bank last summer.
I think that, in the future, I would like to be involved with development
activities in developing countries. I want to work for an organization that creates
opportunities for people living in those countries by proving suitable social andeconomic foundations. That is also what the Grameen Bank is aiming at.
In addition to visiting the Grameen Bankʼs headquarters in Bangladeshʼs capital

GRADUATE SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY THE UNIVERSITY OF TOKYO- I heard that your undergraduate degree is in Engineering. So what prompted you to enrol in a public policy school for graduate studies?

city of Dhaka, I visited a village in the region in order to meet with individuals
that had actually borrowed funds to start up their own enterprises. After seeing
ﬁrsthand how strong the relationship was between the Grameen Bank staﬀ andthe people of the village, I readily understood why the Grameen Bank enjoys
such a high rate of loan repayment. I felt that the social system structure for

Mr. Hiroki Nomiyama
Economic Policy Course, the Class of 2009delivering ﬁnancing to promising impoverished individuals and the grassroots
activities designed to support such initiatives epitomized an exceptionallyeﬀective balancing of macro and micro activities within the bank. In graduate
school, we learn about international cooperation; but, I feel that there is anoveremphasis on the macro perspective. The micro-macro perspectives cannot
by separated.

Student-Please tell us why you have decided to search for work with a private

Interviewﬁnancial enterprise.
I feel that I would like to hone my specialisation.The ﬁnancial institution whereIʼll join provides a system that individual students will be able to specify the area
they like to engage in. I hope to ﬁnd work in project ﬁnance as an infrastructure
specialist, although I realise that proﬁtability is a central objective in privatebanking. Currently, in the Asia marketplace, such enterprises are only seen as
being viable in China, Vietnam and Thailand. I think that establishing suchenterprises in places like Bangladesh also hold promise.
-Iʼ d like to ask you for your impressions of GraSPP.
In comparison to the economic, law and science graduate schools which aim to cultivate
specialists, the objective of the public policy school is to cultivate generalists. The level of student
resolve to mastering speciﬁc areas is much lower. To put it another way, with such a mindset, theknowledge imparted in GraSPP is knowledge which can be gleaned at the undergraduate level.
On the other hand, one of GraSPPʼs main strengths is that there is a closer relationship between
faculty and students. There are no other schools where one can connect in such a collegial mannerwith leaders from all ﬁelds. The ratio of teachers to students is also noteworthy. The program isideally designed for individuals who are willing to take the initiative in their studies. I hope thatthe future students shall bring a stronger sense of problem awareness derived from specialised
or social experiences.
communication between students. In other graduate programs, students donʼt have nearly as
much interaction, whereas in this school, there is a lot of group work. Studying together withhighly motivated, intelligent individuals is something that I have come to treasure.
(interview and text by editor)

NEWSLETTER

I think one of the hidden secrets that distinguish this graduate school is the elevated level of3

The 4th ITPU International Seminar(46 th Public Policy Seminar)
Katsuya Hihara, Professor
An international seminar sponsored by the Graduate School ofat Japan Airlines, Mr. Junichiro Miyagawa, Manager at All Nippon

Public Policyʼs (GraSPP) International Transport Policy Research Unit

Airways and Mr. Yasushi Muto, executive director of Starﬂyer Airlines.

(ITPU) was held in collaboration with Todai Policy Alternative Research

At the panel discussion, it was generally agreed that a form ofInstitute (PARI) on March 19, 2009, at the Sanjo Conference Hall. In

government intervention was necessary to mitigate congestion andJuly 2007, ITPU held a seminar on congestion in general. This time,environmental impacts. However, it was also acknowledged that there

the seminar focused on airport congestion.

are various approaches to tackling these challenges such as combining

Presentations by Professor Jan Brueckner of the University of California

free slot auctions with secondary transaction between airlines. It wasIrvine, and Assistant Professor Yosuke Yasuda of the National Graduate

pointed out that a ﬂexible system design was essential to ensure that

Institute for Policy Studies recounted the theoretical underpinnings

tangible concerns related to competitive conditions of the marketplaceof transportation economics and market structure respectively. Thisand information asymmetry amongst stakeholders have been suﬃciently

was followed by presentations by Associate Professor Hideki Fukui ofaddressed. In designing such a system, a completely diﬀerent approach

Ehime University and Mr. Yasuhiro Shinohara, Director of the Aviationis needed which does not forget to prioritise user beneﬁts and which

Industries Division of the Civil Aviation Bureau at the Ministry of Land,aims to minimize administrative costs. To address the challenge ofInfrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The two presenters explained

seeking such a solution, it is exceedingly important to forge opportunities

the slot allocation process at congested airports in the United States

for theorists and practitioners to come together to share insights.

and outlined the state of aﬀairs related to airport congestion in Japan.

Accordingly, there was a consensus amongst the principals of the event

Following these presentations, a panel discussion ensued featuringthat there was signiﬁcant merit in striving to build on the momentum

the four presenters who were joined by Mr. Arata Yasujima, Vice President

generated from this seminar.

Topical News

Social Gathering for Departing Foreign
Students and Support Team Memberswith University President
On March 5, 2009, foreign students who have graduated or completed
their stay in Tokyo joined members of the support team for a social

DDNet 2009 & GraSPP Day Heldgathering with University President (now President Emeritus), Hiroshi
Komiyama at Uenoʼ s Totenko Restaurant. Six students from GraSPP joined

On March 15 & 16, 2009, two international events (DDNet 2009 & GraSPP

the gathering to exchange accounts of their experiences. Bambang IndrawanDay) took place under the sponsorship of GraSPP. DDNet 2009 was orga-Cahya Putra, a GraSPP student from Indonesia spoke on behalf of thenised to allow faculty and support staﬀ engaged in international academic

GraSPP foreign students. He delivered a sincere speech which conveye

aﬀairs from universities involved in the Global Public Policy Network (GPPN)

his impressions of life in Japan and expressed gratitude to those involved

to come together to discuss emergent challenges and resolution strategies

in managing the program. (Kotoko Ogawa, International Student Advisor)

associated with realisation of double degree programs.
On March 16, about 40 students from Columbia Universityʼs School ofInternational and Public Aﬀairs joined approximately 50 students fromGraSPP for a day of an academic discussion event as GraSPP Day. In addition
to providing an opportunity to share scholastic interests, the event provideda venue for establishing interpersonal networks.

NEWSLETTER(Kotoko Ogawa, International Student Advisor)

4Editorʼs
Postscript

NEWSLETTER
This edition of the newsletter
described a host of intriguing

seminars. The type of academic diversity highlighted in this edition exempliﬁes the practicalnature of research which is ongoing at GraSPP.
(Editor)

17［Editor+publisher］GRADUATESCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY
THE UNIVERSITY OF TOKYONo.

東京大学公共政策大学院［date of publication］2009 . 7 . 8［design］Masahiro ABiCo

7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan tel 03 -5841-1710 fax 03 -5841- 7877

E-mail grasppnl @ pp.u- tokyo.ac. jp

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