March 22, 2006
2006 Annual Meeting
Keynote Speaker the Honorable Thomas S. Foley

Around 300 members and their guests heard the Honorable Thomas S. Foley, former Ambassador to Japan and the Speaker of the House at the 2006 Japan-America Society Annual Meeting in the Harbor Dining Room at the Bell Harbor International Conference Center at the Pier 66, Seattle.  A new slate of Officers and Directors was nominated.  Tsutomu (Tom) Sasaki, the Principal at BBS International, succeeded Andrew Read to the position of Chair of the Board of Directors. Dick Dudley of Weyerhaeuser is appointed to the Chair-Elect.  Sasaki and Dudley will serve as Co-Chair.

Also announced this year was the first Annual Thomas S. Foley Award. Four awardees were honored for their life-long contributions to help build a strong foundation of the U.S. Japan relationship; Gordon Clinton, former Mayor of Seattle who was instrumental in establishing the Seattle-Kobe Sister City relationship 49 years ago; Ed Tsutakawa, a civic visionary who bridged Washington state and Japan by providing academic support; Griffith Way, an attorney who was instrumental in resuming trade between Washington State and Japan after WWII by assisting Japan with trade shows in the U.S. in the 40's and 50's; and Eleanor Hadley, an economist who served with General MacAuthur's staff in Tokyo after WWII to bridge the two countries.

March 2, 2006
U.S. - Japan Speaker Caravan

<Presentation available for download>
Arthur Alexander, Georgetown University
Richard Davis, Washington Research Council

  
(L: Attendees listen to presenters.  R: Presenters; Mr. Davis, Mr. Ishii, Dr. Alexander and Dr. Anchordoguy)

Hiroaki Ishii, an Economic Minister at the Embassy of Japan; Arthur Alexander, a professor at Georgetown University; and Richard Davis, President of Washington Research Council, provided an overview of recent Japanese economy and its rebound as well as Washington state economy and trade relationships with Japan and Asia in this business program at the Diamond Club at the Safeco Field. Trends in the recent trade with China, Japan's national debt and implication with the climb of interest rate were also examined. Bob Aylward, Executive Vice President of Business Operations at the Seattle Mariners, made a welcome speech to everyone attended.  Discussion was moderated by Marie Anchordoguy, the Chair of Japan Studies Program at the Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies.  The program was followed by wine and cheese reception sponsored by
Keidanren U.S.A.. This program was made possible by a generous contribution from the Seattle Mariners Baseball Club.  This program was supported by the Embassy of Japan, the Consulate General of Japan in Seattle, Keidanren U.S.A., the National Association of the Japan-America Societies, and University of Washington Global Business Center.
(Picture above: Mr. Aylward of the Seattle Mariners welcomes everyone)

   
( L: JAS member asking a question at Q & A session  R: Members and presenters enjoyed wine, cheese and each other's company at the reception)

October 19, 2005
Steven Collins, University of Washington
Biotechnology in Japan

Back from his summer spent in Japan, Dr. Steven Collins of the University of Washington (Bothell Campus) returned to JAS to update attendees about biomedical innovation system in Seattle's sister city and the historical back ground of Japan's biotechnology innovation. This program was sponsored by Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, co-sponsored by the Kobe Trade Information Office, and the Washington State Dept. of Community, Trade and Economic Development.  Dr. Collins' presentation is available for download.

October 12, 2005
Robert Pekkanen, University of Washington
Review: Recent Japanese General Election

 

May 5, 2005

Saying "Yes" to Japan
How Outsiders Are Reviving a Trillion Dollar Services Market

Co-Sponsored by Perkins & Coie, Japan-America Society welcomed back Tim Clark, a Senior Fellow for Tokyo-based venture capital firm SunBridge and also a teacher at Portland State University. About 40 members listened to Clark's presentation about the Japanese service market, which is well known for its superior service and efficiency yet falls short on "mission-critical" sectors such as healthcare, finance and real estate services. After the presentation, everyone enjoyed networking reception with wine and cheese, courtesy of Perkins and Coie.