開催趣旨

21世紀にはいって世界全体に変革の嵐が渦巻き、人々は新しい技術に大きな期待を抱く一方、社会構造の激しい変化にとまどっています。国際化・グローバル化が唱えられて久しいのに、世界中で共有できる新しい方向性を見出すことができず、混乱は増すばかりです。このような時代においては、物事を新しい視点から複合的に分析し判断していくことが必要なのではないでしょうか。しっかりした理念を持ち、それを如何に実践していくか、一人一人の意識の改革と行動が問われているのではないでしょうか。

近年、アジアの各国は急激な経済発展を遂げていますが、地球環境問題の発生や社会経済のグロール化の進展とともに、国境という枠組みを越えた問題が生じています。さらには、急激なグローバル化と同時に進むローカリゼーション、あるいはナショナリズムなど様々な問題が発生し、新しい課題となっています。社会の構成員である市民や組織は、個々の利益の追求と同時に、周辺社会の利益も検討しなければなりません。グローバル化に伴う様々な問題を解決するために、国境や学問領域の壁を越えた相互協力によって、物事を多面的に評価分析して問題の解決をめざしていくことが求められているのです。

アジア未来会議は、このような状況を鑑み、国際的かつ学際的なアプローチを基本として、グローバル化に伴う様々な問題を、科学技術の開発や経営分析だけでなく、環境、政治、教育、芸術、文化など、社会のあらゆる次元において多面的に検討する場を提供することを目指しています。本会議は、関口グローバル研究会(Sekiguchi Global Research Association:SGRA)が、SGRA会員だけでなく、日本留学し現在世界各地の大学等で教鞭をとっていらっしゃる方々、その学生の皆さん、そしてどなたでも日本に興味のある方々が一同に集まり、知識・情報・意見・文化等の交流・発表の場を提供するために、趣旨に賛同してくださる諸機関のご支援とご協力を得て開催するものです。

関口グローバル研究会は、公益財団法人渥美国際交流財団の一部署で、2000年7月に東京で設立されました。世界各国から渡日し長い留学生活を経て日本の大学院から博士号を取得した知日派外国人研究者が中心となって活動し、グローバル化に関わる問題提起を行い、その成果をフォーラム、レポート、ホームページ等の方法で、広く社会に発信しています。ある一定の専門家ではなく、広く社会全般を対象に、幅広い研究領域を包括した国際的かつ学際的な活動を狙いとしています。良き地球市民の実現に貢献することがSGRAの基本的な目標です。
皆様の積極的なご参加をお待ちしています。

Aim of the Conference

The twenty-first century has seen the world thrust into a maelstrom of change and unpredictability. We remain hopeful in the face of rapid technological advancements, but many of us struggle to regain our bearings as longstanding social structures become upended. Internationalization and globalization have long been heralded as the keys for the future, yet a truly global path forward remains elusive, serving only to heighten the sense of uncertainty. As global citizens in this era of change, we are called anew to reexamine our world and our collective future and to seek new multidimensional and inclusive perspectives on myriad global issues.

The achievement of rapid economic development has also led to dramatic changes in Asia. At the same time, a complex set of transnational problems have been brought about by global environmental issues and increased socioeconomic globalization. In the midst of an ever-expanding understanding of “society,” the global citizenry—individuals, governments, and the business community—must adopt policies that not only allow for the pursuit of individual interests but also respond to concerns for the peace and happiness of society as a whole. Solving these problems requires the development of multifaceted evaluative and analytical strategies with cooperation across national and disciplinary borders.

The Asia Future Conference is interdisciplinary at its core and encourages diverse approaches to global issues that are both mindful of the advancement of science, technology, and business and also take into consideration issues of the environment, politics, education, the arts, and culture. The Asia Future Conference is organized by the Sekiguchi Global Research Association (SGRA) in partnership with likeminded institutions, in order to provide a venue for the exchange of knowledge, information, ideas, and culture, not only by SGRA members, but also by former foreign students of Japan from various educational institutions throughout the world, their own students and collaborators, and anyone interested in Japan.

The Sekiguchi Global Research Association (SGRA) began operating in Tokyo in July 2000 as a division of the the Atsumi International Foundation, a charitable organization. At its core is a community of non-Japanese researchers who come from all over the world to conduct advanced studies in Japan and obtain doctoral degrees from Japanese graduate institutions. SGRA identifies issues related to globalization and seeks to disseminate research results to a wide audience through forums, reports, and the internet. SGRA’s aim is to reach society at large rather than a specific group of specialists through wide-ranging research activities that are inherently interdisciplinary and international. The essential objective of SGRA is to contribute to the realization of responsible global citizens.
We look forward to welcoming a diverse and active group of conference participants.

Theme of the Conference

Sustainable Shared Growth: Our Common Home, Our Common Happiness

Sustainable Shared Growth refers to a type of development that strives to achieve a good balance among the three goals of efficiency, equity, and environmental-friendliness. It is a type of development that is inspired by the East Asian Miracle, which was the focus of a World Bank report covering the unique and geographically concentrated experience of eight highly performing East Asian economies, led by Japan. Efficiency is manifested in the ability of an economy to grow rapidly, equity in the improvement of income and wealth distribution, and environmental-friendliness in reducing its ecological footprint.

Most unfortunate is the exclusion of the Philippines in the list of the highly performing East Asian economies covered in the World Bank study.  Far from being deterred, however, this has been a source of inspiration for the Philippine-based research team of the Sekiguchi Global Research Association (SGRA) of the Atsumi International Foundation (AIF) to push Sustainable Shared Growth in the Philippines. AFC 5 represents the culmination of many years of seminars (since 2004) undertaken under the very same theme. These sustainable shared growth seminars have come to be called KaKaKa seminars representing the three goals as translated to the Philippine language: Kagalingan (Efficiency), Katarungan (Equity), Kalikasan (Environment). KaKaKa (in the ancient local script) was also the symbol adopted by the valiant revolutionaries during the Spanish colonization of the Philippines: Katataastaasan, Kagalanggalangan, Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (the most high and most respected fellowship of the sons of the nation). As characteristic of SGRA’s activities, the seminars cut across disciplinary, nationality, and sectoral lines.

AFC 5 recognizes that Sustainable Shared Growth is also a global concern. We need to bear in mind that our destinies are intertwined because we share a common home, the planet Earth, and because we seek a common happiness, the ability to lead humanly fruitful lives.