Kiyoshi Kurokawa's blog （en）

China Ranks 2nd, Japan Goes Down to the 3rd in the World in GDP; From the Article of The Economist

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GDP of Japan which used to be the 2nd largest in the world fell to 3rd after China.

This news itself is not so much to worry about because GDP is strongly affected by the size of the population. China with population 10 times larger than Japan to overtake her (Japan’s) position of the 2nd in the world ranking of the GDP was something that was predicted for a long time the only question being ‘when’.

What truly matters is the GDP per capita.  Japan has fallen off the position of the 2nd in GDP per capita the world and has keeping places somewhere around 18th or so for quite a while.  This is not surprising, since, to begin with, Japan’s GDP has not grown in the least for these 15 years.  I suspect that Japan is the only nation in the OECD (in Japanese) that has not achieved any growth in GDP for these 15 years.

Up to date no signs of growth are observed in Japan, and few in the world expects little sign of change from Japan, thus no investments come to Japan.  Changes in other OECD nations are obvious since the 2008 ‘Lehman Shock’ but Japan is still lingering in that terrible situation of ‘no economic growth, increasing its dept only.’ 

The Economist, as always, is pointing out the important issues clearly in its article of August 19th ‘Watching China whizz by’.　Views of Professor Ishikura, one of my friends, appear in the article, too.  As I say, larger corporations can not make decisions or is late when they do.  As the article points out, big companies are basically all the same in their conducts, our government does not dare to let incompetent companies down so it makes many ‘Zombie companies’ surviving.  This will discourage new enterprises to emerge.  Don’t they realize that the market and business of the world has changed drastically?   We are now in the age of ‘Demand-driven、Open and Disruptive Innovation.’

Anyway, as you see in the chart in The Economist the rate of growth of economy in China is extraordinary.

Not knowing your partners, not having multitudes of networks of friends of long time in growing developing nations can constitute big handicaps for our future growth.  Just to give you an idea, for example, the estimated growth rate of the whole Africa is 5.6%.  What are your business strategies?

Youths in Action - A New Project By Grameen and Japanese Youths

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As I have reported to you several times in this website, the very first project run by Japanese kicked off by the initiatives of Mr. Saisyo and other students of Waseda University (they are currently on the leave of absence of course) and Grameen Bank, Bangladesh.

The name of the project is "‘The Dragon Cherry Blossoms‘ of the poorest country in Asia" (in Japanese) e-education program.

As you see in the blog of Mr. Saisyo (in Japanese), the Asahi Shinbun newspaper published an article on this in Japan.  A series of coverage is also scheduled to appear on ‘Soto Koto’ magazine.  The first report （in Japanese） was already published.  Do you see how hard they are working?  I am very pleased.  Please support them in any way you can.

They have taken the students of the village on a bus to see the Dhaka University campus – a 7 hours travel.  I think this sort of ideas and actions will never occur  unless you actually live at the place and think locally.  According to the e-mail and photos from Mr. Saisho （in Japanese）;

“Yesterday, I took the village high school students to a study tour to Dhaka University.  This idea came because I saw the students having hard time trying to imagine themselves ‘entering Dhaka University’.  ‘We might as well take them to the place! ‘ that was the concept of this plan.”
“ ‘It was my lifetime experience!!!’ was their reaction.  The tour was a huge success.”

Was Saisyo-kun’s report.

What kind of experience was this to the village children, parents, or villagers?  Of course this will, I would say, eventually affect the way Dr. Yunus and the people at the Grameen Bank see Japanese young students and people.

This is a good example of the basic concept of Citizen Diplomacy.  Universities, not to speak of companies, have responsibilities to support and encourage such youths.  This sort of activities of private sector will be a good brand toward the future. Sucn activites of private sector are indeed ‘social enterprises’, the ‘strategic investments’.  We don’t necessarily have to depend on governments.  After all, how could we depend on grown up people who almost automatically respond by excuses saying ‘A good idea, but not possible to do because,,,’ , ‘we don’t have budgets….’, or rely to that never changing education policies? We should rather think and come up with ideas on how to support these activities by the youth.  The last thing we need to do is to discourage the ambitions of the youths (Ref.1).

 

‘Because This is the Time of Uncertain Future, Be More Courageous’

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I often hear people say that young people today are not interested in going abroad.  I sometimes feel that way, too.

However, did those older people who blame the young go abroad by their own will?  I suppose many of them did. But on the other hand I think many ‘had’ to go, or were ‘sent’, for business.  Such was the historical background of their time when Japan was growing in high speed.

In these 20 years, the world has changed dramatically.  I have been telling you about this over and over again.

In this column, please allow me to introduce you (since this is somewhat personal) a recent article about myself which appeared in the ‘Nikkei Business’ as part of the advertisement essay series ‘Clef de Temps’ titled ‘Because This is the Time of Uncertain Future, Be More Courageous’  (in Japanese).
 
The essence of this essay is basically the same as what I wrote in ‘How to Build a Global Career’, a book with Prof. Yoko Ishikura, or what I repeatedly write in this blod postings.  However I am impressed with the way this essay is written - a professional stylish writing.

The world trend difficult to forecast, sluggish situation of Japan economy, rapidly changing world.  ‘Secluded, insular minded’ Japan.

Well, we can begin with having some courage and ‘going outside, abroad’(Ref.1,2).  Especially while you are still young.

Will ‘Japanese common sense’ still work when you are ‘out’ abroad?  You will be able to see, know, feel yourself and Japan much better there.  You will find much, much broader possibilities, different values.  Nobody is sure about what will happen in the future.

Also, I recommend that you listen to the speech by Steve Jobs of Apple, the creator of iPad, at the commencement ceremony of Stanford University.

Activating Intellectual Property of BioScience and Tech in Universities; Can We Succeed?

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Although countless problems are still to be solved, attempts to make use of intellectual properties accumulated in university and research institutions will get started.  This is good.  This is an effort to build functional structures that are attractive to enterprises.  There are still, however, many problems and challenges along the way enough to cause you a headache…..

I joined the press conference (in Japanese) in August 6th with my colleagues.

Scientists, engineers tend to draw a big picture or expectations from their own findings or inventions, thinking and sensing somewhat in a linear, direct goals.  It is only natural that they do so and there is nothing wrong about it.

However, people who are not scientists or engineers would often think about these findings or outcomes in relations to other ‘idea/information’ and sometimes better ‘idea/information’ emerge from such thinking.  In Japanese, we express this phenomenon as; ‘Okame Hachimoku (Onlookers can read the game (far) better than the players themselves)’ (in Japanese).  Many examples of Okame Hachimoku are found in history.

After all, it is private sector and enterprizes which deliver new services and products from inventions and discoveries to customers, thus create new market. Scientists or engineers can not do this. Of course, there are always exceptional scientists and engineers who also succeed in business, but they are exceptions.　

The new combination - ‘Neues Kombinazion’ as Schumpeter put it　- is precisely what creates new values.  This is precisely the ‘innovation’ that Schumpeter talks about.

Clayton Christensen, as you know, is today’s guru of Innovation.  Especially, ‘Disruptive Innovation’ is the core of his outstanding research.  His analysis, insights, views…everything in his books are extraordinary.  More recently, he writes on education and health care, too.

I think many businessmen read ‘The Innovator’s Dillemma’, another well known book, a bit older, but a classics, published about 10 years ago.

Nuclear Plants in the Middle East; Japan has ‘Soft Power’ on Public Infrastructure

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I have posted in January a series of 6 reports (Jan.2nd, 3rd, 5th, 12th, 20th, and 23rd ) about the news of Korea having won the international competition in bidding for the nuclear power plants in Abu Dhabi.

In Japan, social infrastructure of cities such as energy, water, railway, electric power generation-distribution systems were constructed primarily by public service enterprises.  The cost (or a large franciton of) was covered mainly by our tax money.

Were you aware that this is precisely the ‘Soft Power’(Ref.1) that Japan can take pride in?

In the world today where many countries are rapidly developing, social infrastructure is huge business opportunities.  Loans, donations, i.e. public ODA, are good as they are but there is also an alternative for Japan to grow together by building ‘Win-Win’ relationships with those countries through investment in their social infrastructure systems.

In the August 2nd issue of ‘Globe’, the Asahi shinbun featured a special report on the nuclear plants in the Middle East.  Please take a look and think about their points.

Discussions on this seem to be accelerating in Japan recently and I feel that my reports on Abu Dhabi offer a lot of information and insights that you will find useful. There are in some places of these postings where my expressions are moderate than I really meant, though ….  Anyway, the point I wanted to make clear was the critical importance of developing human resource and building its networks for business in this global age.  Strategic thinking and actions are utterly needed to achieve this goal.

This is one of the major themes that I discuss in this website again and again.

NHK TV Broadcast: Global Health- Chatham House

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Recently I have posted a report on ‘From G8 to G20’ meeting on Global Health- Chatham House、London.

I also reported that NHK television crew joined us to cover this meeting.

The NHK made two sets of 30 minutes English programs ‘Asian Voices: Global Health’ based on interviews with the main participants of this meeting.

Dr. Shigeru Omi, former WHO member appears as a guest commentator in ‘Part 1’ and I appear in ‘Part 2’, both hosted by Ms Aiko Doden, who speaks very nice English.

This program will be broadcasted on Cable TV at overseas, but in Japan and elsewhere will appear On-line for several times.

Please check the Cable TV and On-line broadcast schedule （in Japanese） of ‘Part 1 and Part 2’.

‘Part 1’ comes in 6 series starting from 11:10 am, August 7th (Sat) through 7:10 am, August 8th (Sun).

‘Part 2’ consists of 5 series starting from 11:10 am, August 14th (Sat) through early morning; 5:10 am, August 15th (Sun).

I was actually a little nervous when the interview was done without any rehearsals so I imagine that there must be several places here and there that make me blush if I see the video clips (though I haven’t seen it, yet).  But after all, in the Global age, what matters in “English is ‘the content’, ‘to speak’ and not in the least ‘pronunciation’”.

I invite you all to see this program.

See-D Contest: Technologies Appropriate to Local Needs Will Save the World

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The ‘See-D’ which I introduced to you recently, was held at the Fukutake Hall of University of Tokyo on July 31st Saturday.  About 200 people participated, mainly young students, including those who by coincidence came across the event and decided to join.  Kopernick is one of the important supporters of this meeting..

This event is hosted by Ms. Riku and Mr. Tsuchiya (also members of MIT D-Lab, currently living in Boston), D-Lab Japan office, other organizations, and some students from Boston who are in Japan for their summer vacation.  These people are the main driving force for planning and carrying out this conference.

It is very important that such projects/actions are created, spread and encouraged for action, particularly by young people.

At the See-D conference room, twitter and Ustream（Ref.1) were displayed on the screen in real time.  Live program with East Timor through Skype enabled the audience to  communicate by writing some comment via Post-It to moderating staff.  The three people in East Timor responded in English and those comments were instantaneously summarized in Japanese and shown on the Screen; a kind and considerate service!  The report of this event is posted on the web site of See-D Japan  (in Japanese).

Those gathered are eager and enthusiastic in search for what they could do. Three panelists with overseas experiences through JICA programs shared their work and thoughts with us.  One of them was Mr Ide who now works at Sumitomo Chemicals and its mosquito net or BetNet in Tanzania. I met him first time last March year in my flight to Dubai, sitting next to each other and we met a few time since then.

I had an opportunity to further encourage them in my ending remarks.  Here again my focus was on ‘the importance of first hand experience' (Ref.1, 2)　and ‘advice to take leave of absence from school and go abroad’.  I think the event was very hot.  I had the same impression by browsing through the many tweets. 

Anyway, everybody was so lively and high spirited.  The conference fully utilized high-technologies, too.  It was truly a motivating, good, happy conference.  By the way, Mr. Miyoshi (in Japanese)  whom I have introduced in this site many times, currently working in Bangladesh, also joined via twitter.

After this meeting, I moved to join ‘Global Health Summer Course'  which we co-host with the University of Tokyo.  It was almost 7 pm, but everybody was still working hard to make policy recommendations, presentations, having discussions. Thanks to all participants and staffs.  Tomorrow, they will present their policy recommendations in the presence of several legislators.

Sharing Time with Dr. Muhammad Yunus

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Dr. Muhammad Yunus is known for starting a program to support poor women in Bangladesh to earn living through a system called Microfinance (Grameen Bank). Today, the method of Microfinance is spread throughout the world.

Dr. Yunus was awarded the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize, and I have touched on it describing its effect/meaning to the world in my Opening Keynote at the Meeting of Ministers of Environment, 2008 G8+5 Summit.   Also, there are several postings in my website introducing him to you (Ref.1,2).  

As you may know, Dr. Yunus visited Japan just recently.  Media reported that President Yanai of UniQlo  will collaborate with him.  Many of you may also have seen the media coverage of other variety of activities Dr. Yunus was involved during his stay in Japan.  Kyusyu University and Rikkyo University (the links are in Japanese) (Ref.1) also have been working with Dr. Yunus.

I had an opportunity to join dinner with Dr. Yunus and talk about many things.  His words are always impressively passionate and clear.  I understand that now he is helping the issue of poverty in the United States; his activities are quickly expanding to such fields as poverty, education, health care, job creation.   We enjoyed listening to many of his thoughts including his very clear and persuasive view on ‘why women?’.

Dr. Yunus and I also talked about the project of the students of Waseda University which we helped get started.  Two of the students took leave of absence from the University to begin a new Japanese project with the local Grameen bank.  They also launched Grameen Change Maker Project (Ref.1) (the links are in Japanese) in Japan to encourage participation of more Japanese university students and youths.  What they are doing is absolutely wonderful and full of young energy.  I am very pleased to see this happening.

Visit their websites (Ref.1) (the links are in Japanese) and you will see how enthusiastic and passionate they are.  I believe youths must be ‘full of enthusiasm’.

Just as Dr. Yunus and I were talking about them, an e-mail from these students, Mr. Miyoshi and Mr. Saisyo, came in from Dhaka.  I quickly sent reply to them and said to Dr. Yunus that ‘I have copied my reply to you, too’.  Such things can happen because we live in a very inter-connected world.

World is getting smaller and smaller.  I recommend young people to go outside to see the world.  ‘Let Us Take Leave of Absence from School’(Ref.1) is the key.  This will provide you with a very good opportunity to broaden your view, look at your ‘self’, see Japan from outside and find your ‘self’.   I ask universities (and government) for their support and encouragement, too.  I say so because this is also the direction in the major universities of the world, which recognize such programs very important for nurturing the leaders of the global age.

‘See-D’ Contest; Looking for New Ideas for the Developing Countries

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See-D Contest will kick off soon by students with entrepreneurship in search for new ideas that utilize ‘appropriate technologies’ for the benefit of developing countries.  I have introduced some activities of these students as you see in my blog postings (Ref.1).  

The sub-title of this contest is ‘Open Symposium for Creating Innovative Ideas for the Developing Countries’.

The date of the contest is July 31st (Sat.).  Students, engineers, companies interested in supporting and joining such activities, are cordially invited to participate.  Please register through the web site of See-D Contest.

You are also welcome to join us in ‘FaceBook’.

Asian Innovation Forum 2010 in September

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Asian Innovation Forum (AIF) organized by Mr. Nobuyuki Idei, the former President and CEO of Sony who leads Quantum Leaps), will open on September 28th and 29th in Tokyo.  For a report on last year’s forum, please refer to my blog posting.  You can register through their website.

The Forum started 4 years ago, and ever since then I have had the pleasure of working with Mr. Idei for this important event by the wonderful leader in business sector of Japan.

I hope and expect this year’s ‘AIF2010’ to serve as a platform for even more provocative discussions than last year.  For we have seen no progress at all in the situation of Japan - rather it seems to be getting worse.  Don’t you agree?

The Forum also has a Twitter account for you to follow.

Please come and join with us.  I look forward to seeing you all at the Forum.