Forum Report
On April 25, 2023, the Reexamining Japan in Global Context forum met in Tokyo for a lively discussion about the first three years of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel gave the first presentation. Dr. Emanuel is the Vice Provost for Global Initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania, a former advisor of the Biden-Harris Transition COVID Advisory Board, and a Special Advisor to the Director General of the World Health Organization. He described 13 lessons from the United States’ (U.S.) response to the pandemic, including the importance of social norms, ongoing preparation, and indoor air quality investments.
Mr. Yoshiyuki Sagara gave the second presentation. Mr. Sagara is a Senior Research Fellow at the Asia Pacific Initiative, with wide-ranging expertise in economic and health security, international conflicts, and Japan’s foreign policy. Analyzing pandemic policymaking by three Japanese Prime Ministers, Mr. Sagara described how Japanese leaders’ COVID responses can be understood according to a shifting “center of gravity” among life, prosperity and freedom."
