ICAS Lecture Series

The ICAS lectures are a set of ICAS events where we bring a speaker, or a panel, to address issues of interests that range from Asian affairs and Japanese politics to American society and global issues.

Past lectures have included a presentation given by University of Chicago professor Bruce Cumings on North Korea and its impact on the politics of the region and a panel discussion on the difficulties of balancing urban development with historic preservation. In 2006, TUJ Adjunct Professor Doug Karsner led a discussion on the competition between Japanese and American airlines for transpacific air routes, a talk by Geeta Mehta, formerly with TUJ on Japanese architecture, a discussion on the role of Starbucks in American culture, a talk on Japan's embrace of digital technology, a panel on Japanese defense issues. Professor Mala Htun of the New School for Social Science Research joined us to discuss the relationship of gender equality to the state. The NGO Polaris, based in America and in Japan, gave a presentation about human trafficking and its relation to the Japanese sex industry. There are also some special events such as "Nippon o kanjiru - A Taste of Japan."

Some of the presentations made by the guest speakers at ICAS events are available here.