Séminaire de recherche / Research Seminar, en anglais sans traduction

Intervenant : Andrew J. Sutter (Lawyer and journalist)

Profile

Andrew J. Sutter is a registered foreign lawyer (California, USA) and journalist based in Tokyo and Iwate-ken. As columnist for Nikkei Business Associé and Nikkei Business Management between 2005-2009, he published over 80 articles on law, business and economy between 2005-2009. Previously he was Vice President of Sony's corporate venture capital group, and spent more than 20 years practicing corporate, business and intellectual property law at companies and law firms in Silicon Valley, Hollywood and Wall Street. His book on the subject of this talk is forthcoming from Kōdansha Gendai Shinsho later this year (in Japanese).

Abstract

Japan's national mood and international reputation often seem to hang on the adventures of a number: its GDP growth rate. Is this sustainable, when Japan's population is aging and getting less numerous? Is GDP growth necessarily desirable? I'll propose that genseichou, a Japanese version of décroissance (or acroissance), building on ideas proposed by Aristotle, André Gorz and others, coupled with the notion of "public happiness" (felicità pubblica) from early modern Italy, may be a better way forward. They provide a new "narrative frame" for policy, and a more coherent approach than the current ones to a number of interrelated problems facing Japanese society. Some challenges to be overcome en route to this future will also be discussed.