(2) Public Symposium:
Is Japan an Equal Society? Policies against Poverty and Social Exclusion

 

Programme

What is Social Exclusion?
Lessons from the UK, Hopes for Japan

Venue: North Hall, Keio University, Tokyo
Time: January 7th, 2012 13:00～17:15

Click on each speaker's name to read a short biography and download their presentation.

13.00 — Opening Words
Dr Nishimura, Director, IPSS

13.15 — Keynote Speeches
David Gordon, University of Bristol:
Poverty and Social Exclusion Policies in the UK

Makoto Yuasa, Head, Social Exclusion Unit Japan:
The Success and Failures of Social Inclusion Policy in Japan →

15.00 — Break

15.15 — Panel Discussion
Moderator: Aya Abe, NIPSSR

David Gordon, Bristol University
Makoto Yuasa, Social Exclusion Unit Japan →
Jonathan Bradshaw, York University
Christina Pantazis, Bristol University
Kohei Komamura, Keio University
Masami Iwata, Japan Women's University
Toshiaki Tachibanaki, Doshisha University

Download Transcript PDF (Japanese)

17.15 — Close

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Makoto Yuasa

Makoto Yuasa is a social activist in Japan, the secretary-general of the non-profit Anti-Poverty Network and NPO "Moyai"—Independent Life Support Centre, the former advisor of the Cabinet Office (the secretary-general of the poverty and the poor support team of Emergency Employment Strategy Department, the head of Cabinet Secretariat's Disaster Volunteer Coordination Office and Cabinet Secretariat's Office for Social Inclusion). He graduated from the Faculty of Law, University of Tokyo in 1995, and completed the Doctorate Program at Graduate School for Law and Politics. Since the 1990s, he has helped to pioneer social movements for the homeless, casual workers and "net café refugees". Also he continues to address the poverty issues in contemporary Japan from the field, such as accusing the "Poverty Business" on exploiting the needy. He established the "Asia Worker's Network" in 2003 and worked on building the network for anti-poverty in 2007. At the end of 2008, he worked with a variety of social groups to establish the "New Year Temporary Workers' Village" (Toshikoshi Haken Mura) in Tokyo Hibiya Park, served as the head of village. He was awarded the 14th Peace & Cooperative Journalist Fund Award and the 8th Osaragi Jiro Tribune Prize in 2008 for his book Anti-Poverty: Escape from Society Slide (Iwanami Shisho, 2008).


Selected Recent Publications

Poverty Invasion (in Japanese), Yamabuki (2007)

Cannot Take it Any More! Spread Poverty: Seeking Reproduction of Human Life (in Japanese), with Utsunomiya, K. and Inomata, T., Akashi Shoten (2007)

Anti-Poverty: Escape from Society Slide (in Japanese), Iwanami Shisho (2008)

Anti-Poverty Schools (in Japanese), with Utsunomiya, K., Akashi Shoten (2008)

Anti-Poverty Schools 2 (in Japanese), with Utsunomiya, K., Akashi Shoten (2009)

Drill through the Rock: Work of "Activist" Makoto Yuasa (in Japanese), Bunshun (2009)

Do not Come, Poverty! (in Japanese), Rironsha, (2009)

Youth and Poverty: Now, the Hope from Here (in Japanese), with Togashi, M., Uema, Y. and Nihei, N. (eds.), Akashi Shoten (2009)

Find the Light in the Darkness: From the Scene of Poverty and Suicide (in Japanese), with Shimizu, Y., Iwanami (2010)


Downloads

Session 1

Presentation 1

Presentation 2