2018 Young Leaders Program Held in Sendai, Japan

The 13th Young Leaders Program organized by Northeast Asia Economic Forum (NEAEF) and University of Hawai‘i, College of Social Sciences was held during July 24 – August 10, 2018. The Program was hosted by Tohoku University with the support from the Freeman Foundation (which started 13 years ago at its inception), and contributions from China Asia Pacific Institute, Korea Asia Pacific Institute, and other cooperating institutions in Northeast Asia.

Because of the importance of the internationally recognized Sendai Framework for disaster due to the 2011 Fukushima tsunami, the 2018 Young Leaders Program was preceded this year by joining the activities of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities - Multi-Hazards (APRU-MH) Summer School, for two days. 

There were 31 participants from countries of Northeast Asia: China (8), Japan (2), Korea (4), Mongolia (3), Russia (5), USA (8), and a Kenyan PhD student from Tohoku University. Forty-two percent of them are female. The participants were young professionals, junior faculty members, postdoctoral researchers, and graduate students pursuing advanced degrees in economics, business, law, sociology, political science, environmental sciences, or related disciplines. In the recent past, most of the participants were either PhD students matriculating or who had completed their graduate degrees at major prominent universities. For example, a couple of Rhodes Scholars from Oxford University in the UK  were participants.