Thursday, March 5, 2026, 13:00-14:30 JST (Doors Open at 12:30)

Following LDP's historic landslide victory in Japan’s lower house election, the Takaichi administration starts deliberating a temporary consumption tax cut, which LDP pledged during the campaign. This seminar examines what these promises imply for Japan’s consumption tax system and fiscal structure more broadly. Will this be just a short-term relief measure or the first step toward deeper reform, or a combination of both?

Wednesday, March 25, 2026, 14:00-15:00 JST

The concept of transition, derived from the Latin transire, meaning “to change state,” has been employed across a wide range of fields since the nineteenth century. In contemporary discourse, it is most often associated with climate change and the notion of an “energy transition.” This lecture introduces the concept of power transition – understood as energy flow over time – to account for the rapid acceleration of eco-social change since the mid-twentieth century. It examines the unprecedented challenge of voluntarily moving away from highly powerful fossil fuels. Moving beyond purely techno-solutionist approaches, the seminar emphasizes the central role of social and human innovation. Adapting to renewable and fluctuating energy sources will require a profound rethinking of lifestyles, drawing inspiration from the long-term resilience of living organisms.

Wednesday, 18 January 2023, 2:00-3:00 pm

Higher education around the world is experiencing vast changes in its multiple environments as a result of numerous factors, including globalization, shifts in the boundary conditions of truth, the effects of technology, geopolitical uncertainties, and calls for ‘decolonisation’. This seminar series explores the impact of these factors on the future of higher education.

Friday, 16 December 2022, 12:00-1:00 pm

Higher education around the world is experiencing vast changes in its multiple environments as a result of numerous factors, including globalization, shifts in the boundary conditions of truth, the effects of technology, geopolitical uncertainties, and calls for ‘decolonisation’. This seminar series explores the impact of these factors on the future of higher education.

Thursday, 15 December 2022, 4:00-5:30 pm

What can be gained from holding high-level summits with a “rogue state” like North Korea? Do those potential gains outweigh the risk of lending prestige and legitimacy to a dictatorial regime? Two speakers will lead a critical discussion of these questions.
Ambassador Alastair Morgan discusses the high-level meetings with the DPRK in 2018-19, and Dr. Meredith Shaw explains how summits are depicted in North Korean domestic propaganda.

Saturday, 10 December 2022, 10:00-11:00 am (Doors open: 9:30 am)

The special lecture will be presented by the Chairman of the Tata Group, one of India’s foremost business leaders. It will highlight learnings from its heritage that made it successful for over 150 years. It will also outline a vision for thriving in the future, adapting to the challenges of AI, jobs and data security, including India and Japan collaboration.

Tuesday, 6 December 2022, 1:15 pm - 2:45 pm

The lecture discusses several initiatives to clarify physical processes leading to large earthquakes by geophysical observations, experiments, and modeling; and to improve society’s preparation for large earthquakes through upgrades of instrumental monitoring and early warning alerts, developing better building codes, and community education activities.

Sunday, 4 December 2022, 3:30 - 5:30 pm

Two professional Go players, two AI researchers, and one humanities researcher take a deep dive into the relationship between Go and AI, compare AI (i.e., artificial intelligence) and the human brain, and engage in a thorough public discussion on the potentials and limitations of AI.

Wednesday, 30 November 2022, 10:00-11:15 am JST

This event will explore areas of overlapping innovation: in Climate Change and Sustainability, and Blockchain and Data/IT. Leading Silicon Valley technologist Bram COHEN, CEO of Chia Network, and Gemma Torras VIVES of the World Bank will discuss the pioneering use of decentralized blockchain technology to empower a new global carbon market infrastructure.

Thursday, 24 November 2022, 4:00-5:30 pm

Outsiders have been fascinated by Japan’s economy since Marco Polo described Cipangu as a land of gold. Centuries later Columbus sailed to discover it. External observers’ descriptions may not always have been accurate but they have often been influential. This lecture will look at some of the most important discussions in the English language literature on Japan’s economy and will reflect on how the major themes have changed over the last half century.

Friday, 18 November 2022 9:00 am - 10:30 am JST | Thursday, 17 November 2022 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm EDT

The lecture explores the role that tropes of racialization played in the production of kokugo, or the Japanese national language.

Wednesday, 9 November 2022, 9:30-11:00 am

This event explores the cultural and medical context behind cleanliness and hygiene. The second analyzes “how do we face the contemporary and future challenge of hygiene?” contributing to a better public health system.

【Cancel】Wednesday, 9 November 2022, 6:30-8:00 pm (Doors open: 6:00 pm)

Ms. Mona Chollet is a journalist and essayist who has had an immense influence on feminist debates in Europe. At the invitation of the Embassy of France in Tokyo, she is in Japan to celebrate the translated edition of her bestseller Sorcières: La puissance invaincue des femmes (English title: In Defense of Witches: The Legacy of the Witch Hunts and Why Women Are Still on Trial). In this work, she uncovers the history of the witch-hunts that swept through Europe in the Middle Ages and Early Modern Period and discusses it in connection with the modern social calamity known as “misogyny.” Professor UENO Chizuko, pioneer of women’s studies in Japan and longtime feminist leader, will engage in an in-depth discussion with Ms. Chollet on women today and where to go from here.

Friday, 4 November 2022, 5:00-6:30 pm

In 1970 the physicist Hannes Alfvén was awarded the Nobel Prize. This recognition by the international scientific community strengthened his national status and critique of the Swedish nuclear policy. His resignation in 1980 from the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences illustrates conflicting views on nuclear politics which still haunts us today.