The Global Climate Change Nexus:
The Impact of U.S. Initiatives and Japan-U.S. Cooperation

Podesta served as counselor to President Barack Obama, where he was responsible for coordinating the administration’s climate policy and initiatives. In 2008, he served as co-chair of President Obama’s transition team. He was a member of the U.N. Secretary General’s High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda. Podesta previously served as White House chief of staff to President William J. Clinton. He chaired Hillary Clinton’s campaign for president in 2016. Prior to taking the current role, Podesta served as the founder and chair of the Board of Directors for the Center for American Progress. Podesta also chaired the board of ClimateWorks Foundation and served on the Board of the Climate Jobs National Resource Center.

Shinjiro Koizumi was born in Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture in 1981. After graduating from the Faculty of Economics at Kanto Gakuin University, he obtained a master's degree from the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University in the United States in 2006. He worked as a researcher at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in the United States, then served as a secretary to Mr. Junichiro Koizumi, a former prime minister of Japan, during his tenure as a member of the House of Representatives. In August 2009, he was first elected as a member of the House of Representatives and is currently serving his fifth term. He held various significant roles within the Liberal Democratic Party, including the Director of Youth Division, the Director of Agriculture and Forestry Division and the Chief Deputy Secretary-General. Subsequently, he served as the Minister of the Environment and Minister of State for Nuclear Emergency Preparedness, as well as Minister in Charge of Climate Change. He currently serves as the Chair of the Standing Committee on National Security, House of Representatives.

Yojiro Hatakeyama is the Director General for the Industrial Science and Technology Policy and Environment Bureau of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Since entering the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (current Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) in 1992, he has served on various significant positions such as Counsellor for National Strategy at the Cabinet, Executive Secretary for the Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary, Director for Policy Planning and Coordination at the Commissioner’s Secretariat of the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy and the METI Secretariat, and Director-General for Commerce and Service Industry Policy before taking his current position.

Atsushi Sunami is president of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation. He is also Adjunct Professor and Special Advisor to the President at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS) and Guest Professor at the Research Organization for Nano & Life Innovation at Waseda University. In the Cabinet Office, he serves as a member of the Economic Security Legislation Council, the Basic Policy Group under the Committee on National Space Policy and chairs the Okinawa Development Council. He also serves as Chairman of the Committee for Examination and Evaluation of the Subsidy for Research and Study Projects on Diplomacy and Security in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He earned his BSFS from Georgetown University and MIA and PhD in Political Science from Columbia University.