Sakihito Ozawa
Early career. In 1981, Sakihito obtained a job within the Bank of Tokyo. Two years later, Sakihito received an invitation from Representative Takujiro Hamada to join the Freedom Society Forum policy study group and became its Secretary General. In 1992, Sakihito joined the Japan New Party under Morihiro Hosokawa. During Morihiro's tenure, Sakihito served as a policy advisor. After Mohiro's resignation and the collapse of the JNP, Sakihito joined New Party Saigake. Two years later, Sakihito contested a seat within the Southern Kanto PR block, Sakihito won the seat and entered the diet. Sakihito joined the  Democratic Party of Japan in 1998. During the late 90s, Sakihito held numerous positions within the DPJ, including Deputy Secretary General and Director of the Policy Research Council. During the 2000s, Sakihito held many environment-related committee roles. In 2004, he was appointed as the Chairman of the Committee on the environment in the House of Representatives. In 2008, he was appointed as the Deputy-Chief of the Global Warming Prevention Headquarters. Minister of the Environment. As Minister of the Environment, Sakihito spearheaded multiple initiatives related to global warming, including a 25% reduction in Carbon Dioxide emissions known as the  Hatoyama Initiative. However, his proposals were met with opposition by business lobbyists, who argued that such initiatives could hamper economic growth and worsen the contextual recession. Sakihito encouraged other nations to adopt a cap on Carbon Dioxide emissions. Sakihito encouraged the research and implementation of electric powered taxis throughout Tokyo, in an effort to reduce CO2 emissions and improve air quality In December 2009, Sakihito created a $15 billion climate aid package for developing countries, in an effort to fight desertification and climate change in developing countries. Sakihito also entered Japan into a $3.5 billion forest preservation pact  with America, Australia, France, the United Kingdom and Norway. Post-Cabinet. In 2011, Sakihito was appointed as Chair of the DPJ tax panel. He advocated for the central bank to purchase debt and an increase in bond sales, to serve as an alternative to Naoto Kan's proposed tax hike after the 2011 earthquake. In 2012, Sakihito joined the nationalist Japan Restoration Party. He helped to sponsor a bill to legalise casino gambling in 2014. He encouraged cross-party dialogue and bi-partisanship in the process of legalizing casino gambling.