Jolyon Baraka Thomas is a renowned scholar, author, and educator, as well as an expert on Japanese culture and religion. He serves as Associate Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, where he teaches courses on topics including the intersection of Shinto and politics and the role of religion in popular anime.Read More
Ken Siegel is a world-renowned lawyer based in Japan. The Financial Times recently named him the “Most Innovative Legal Practitioner in the Asia-Pacific region,” and he has received similar accolades from publications including Chambers Global, The American Lawyer, and Asian Legal Business.Read More
David Sneider is an accomplished lawyer who has built an impactful career by negotiating transactions between Japan and the United States. Before retiring in 2021, Sneider specialized in corporate law at the international firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP; he served for a period as a member of the firm’s Executive Committee and was responsible for developing its Tokyo office into a leading force in cross-border corporate law.Read More
Trevor A. Dawes is an accomplished educator, consultant, writer, academic librarian and leadership expert. He holds the titles of May Morris University Librarian and Vice Provost for Libraries and Museums at the University of Delaware, and has served on both the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission (JUSFC) and U.S.-Japan Conference on Cultural and Educational Interchange (CULCON) since 2021. Read More
Dr. Leonard Schoppa has devoted his expansive career to the study of Japanese politics and foreign relations. He currently serves as Professor of Politics and Undergraduate Director for The Woodrow Wilson Department of Politics at the University of Virginia, where he has been a faculty member for over thirty years.
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Diana Newton is an accomplished educator, lawyer and public speaker, and an expert on America’s multi-faceted relationship with Japan. She currently leads the Tower Scholars Program at Southern Methodist University (SMU) and holds the title of Senior Fellow at the University’s John Goodwin Tower Center for Public Policy and International Affairs.
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Washington, D.C. January 19, 2022. The U.S.-Japan partnership has developed through a deep and broad array of people-to-people relationships and experiences, of students, professionals, academics, and government officials, forming the building blocks of meaningful engagement. In the third decade of the 21st century, our focus is on the next generation stewarding this unique and ever-important alliance forward. Today, the U.S.-Japan community has come together to express its concerns to the Government of Japan, regarding its ongoing closure of Japan’s borders to researchers, academics, government officials and others who are closely invested in this important bilateral relationship.
If you would like to support this effort you may sign on here.
Dr. William M. “Bill” Tsutsui is an acclaimed academic leader who writes, researches and teaches on a broad array of fascinating subjects. His areas of expertise include the economic and environmental histories of Japan, issues of Japanese-American identity, and the global significance of Godzilla. He currently serves as president and CEO of Ottawa University in Kansas.
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Dr. Edward Lincoln is an accomplished educator, author, and expert on Japanese economics. Until recently, he was teaching at Columbia University and George Washington University and has authored nine books and monographs that explore economic theory and practice in Japan and East Asia.
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Shay Youngblood is a renowned multi-disciplinary artist and educator whose works include plays, novels, essays, and multimedia performances. She has received widespread critical acclaim for her poetic and lyrical use of language, emotionally intense writing, and powerful storytelling.
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