On April 27, Haidar from Deutsche Schule Tokyo Yokohama finished his internship at KAS Japan!
Here are some comments from him after spending one and a half weeks as one of our team members:
‘Hello, my name is Haidar.
In my 18 years of living, I have been interested in planes, cars, automotive and things as such. Engineering was the only area that I wanted to study in university, but during my internship with Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, my view has changed in the world of work. To that, I have discovered my interest in politics and such.
Doing an internship in KAS Japan has not only been enjoyable, but I have also learned a lot of things about their SOPAS programme as well as the Japan programme. The workers of KAS Japan have been nothing but nice to me.
Also, I would have hoped that my internship would last longer than two weeks so that I could experience more as an intern. But these two week was worth a while. Thank you!’
The team at KAS Japan would like to thank Haidar for all his contributions and wish him the very best in his future endeavours!
The KAS Japan team received some disaster prevention training at the Honjo Life Safety Learning Center on 14 October 2022. The team got to experience pushing open the door when it’s been blocked by flood waters, how to escape from a fire when there is smoke around, experience the actual earthquakes that happened in Japan, and how to extinguish a fire using the fire extinguisher. A big thank you to our instructor, Machida san, for letting us be more aware of what we can do to survive these situations.
Government officials and representatives of organisations (including KAS Japan) involved in defence-related issues from both Japan and Germany were invited to watch the Japanese and German air forces conduct their first joint exercise in the country on 28 September 2022. Berlin has already sent a navy frigate to Japan in November as the first German military vessel to make a port call in Japan in nearly 20 years, and at a time of rising tensions in the Indo-Pacific region, the leaders of the Japanese and German air forces pledged to further enhance their cooperation with each other.
More information about this exercise here.
KAS Japan Country Representative Rabea Brauer moderated a session during the Defense and Security Technology Forum 2.0 which took place this year.
KAS Japan organised a dialogue meeting for Members of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (PA) in Tokyo on 19 September 2022. The international group of senior lawmakers had the opportunity to exchange views and information with high-level Japanese policymakers and experts on important security and defence issues. Particular attention was given to discussing Russia’s war of aggression against the Ukraine and the necessary steps for an enhanced military cooperation of like-minded countries in the Indo-Pacific. Akihisa Nagashima, Member of House of Representatives and Secretary General of Diet Members Council for Comprehensive Security (DMCCS), moderated the meeting while Kevan Jones, MP from the United Kingdom, who was also Head of the Delegation of the NATO PA gave the thank you speech.
KAS Japan Country Representative Rabea Brauer paid a visit to Taro Kono, Member of the House of Representatives (Liberal Demoractic Party) on 5 August 2022. They discussed security issues, especially the current situation concerning Taiwan and the importance of the G7 members showing a united front towards both Russia and China.
With MP Taro Kono
Our Senior Programme Manager for Regional Economic Programme Asia (SOPAS), Cris Perez, was recently asked to present for the Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation (TAEF) Southeast Asia-South Asia-Taiwan (SEASAT) Youth Camp on 3 August 2022. The topic was on educational reforms for the future of work. She discussed the megatrends shaping the future of work, the potential skills that would be useful in increasing returns to income and employment in the future, and what must be done to encourage the cultivation of such skills and attitudes, among others.
TAEF is a policy think tank in Taiwan which focuses on Southeast Asian and South Asian affairs and has been a partner with KAS Japan on the Future of Work for the Asian Youth series. You can check out one of our publications with them here.
We have moved to Sanno Park Tower in Nagatacho as of 27 June 2022! The new office includes a large conference room where we can hold events, and is located within a short walking distance to the National Diet, the Parliamentary building, and even the Prime Minister’s Residence/Office!
Entrance of the office
Lounge Area
We will say goodbye to our current location at OAG Haus and move to Sanno Park Tower in late June. We will miss our colleagues at OAG Haus but we hope to continue providing educational and informative events that contribute to fostering better relations and understanding between Germany, Japan and the world!
Employees at KAS Japan folded origami (paper) cranes in the Ukranian flag colours over the past few weeks to show solidairity with Ukraine. For some, it was their very first time folding origami cranes, while for others, it was the first time in years or even decades to do so. In Japanese culture, origami cranes are see as symbols of peace and hope, and we sincerely hope for peace to return to Ukraine soon.
