Friday, April 14, 2017, 10:30 - 11:30
Towards the 2025 Japan World Expo in Osaka
Language: The speech and Q & A will be in Japanese with English interpretation
Is it the wave of the future for Japan or an economic boondoggle? The central government is reportedly moving ahead with plans to nominate Osaka later this spring to host the 2025 World Expo, despite concerns about funding and public opposition to separate plans for a casino resort on the site that Osaka hopes to open around, if not before, 2025. With Paris also bidding for the Expo, there are also worries about the competition.
Under the theme of "Designing Future Society for Our Lives," the Osaka Expo would feature artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and other leading-edge technologies. Backers say it would provide an additional economic lift after the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, just as the hugely successful 1970 Osaka Expo followed the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
Gov. Matsui, who is also leader of the political party Nippon Ishin no Kai, is at the forefront of the 2025 Expo push. An Osaka native, he graduated from the Fukuoka Institute of Technology in 1986 and worked in private business before winning election to the Osaka Prefectural Assembly in 2003. He was elected governor in 2011, and re-elected in 2015.
Come hear Gov. Matsui speak about Osaka's World Expo bid and his vision for the future of Japan's leading western metropolis.
Please reserve in advance, 3211-3161 or on the website (still & TV cameras inclusive). Reservations and cancellations are not complete without confirmation.
Professional Activities Committee
