TOKYO FORUM 2021 Shaping the Future

Science has shown a remarkable development in recent years and has made our lives increasingly convenient and efficient, for example through the expansion of the internet or remote medical treatment using AI.
However, it is ironic that in some ways we feel more anxious as a result of scientific development. The digital divide has widened. More people and information cross national boundaries causing anxiety in local communities. People’s confidence in science was seriously undermined by the nuclear accident in Fukushima and many people now even deny the words of experts on climate change or COVID-19. Can human beings control AI, or are we going to be controlled by it? Anxiety fuels exclusive nationalism in people’s minds. Competition between major powers intensifies, forcing countries in between to make difficult choices. Science has once again become a tool for international contention rather than a common good shared by the human race.
How can we develop science and at the same time explain and cope with the new apprehension it causes in our minds? How can we promote science rather as a means for encouraging and uniting people on a global scale? Let us investigate this multifaceted question from interdisciplinary perspectives.

2021 Digital Flyer (PDF - 906KB)

NEWS

KEYNOTE

12.2.THU

Keynote Address ①: Marvin CHUN

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12.2.THU

Photo © J.C. Carbonne

Keynote Address ②: KUMA Kengo

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HIGH LEVEL TALK SESSION

12.2.THU 21:05 - 21:55

FUJIGAKI Yuko

Executive Vice President and Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo

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YOSHIKAWA Hiroyuki

Member, Japan Academy
President, International Professional University of Technology in Tokyo and Osaka

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Ulrike Felt

Head of the Department of Science Technology Studies
Head of the Research Platform Research and Innovation in Academic Practice
University of Vienna

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SCHEDULE

DAY1

Thursday 2, December

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20:00 - 23:00 (JST) / 11:00 - 14:00 (GMT)

Opening for First Day
Opening Remarks ①: 20:00 - 20:10(JST) / 11:00 - 11:10(GMT) / 06:00 - 06:10(EST)
Opening Remarks ②: 20:10 - 20:20(JST) / 11:10 - 11:20(GMT) / 06:10 - 06:20(EST)
Keynote Address ①: Marvin CHUN: 20:20 - 20:40(JST) / 11:20 - 11:40(GMT) / 06:20 - 06:40(EST)
Keynote Address ②: KUMA Kengo: 20:40 - 21:00(JST) / 11:40 - 12:00(GMT) / 06:40 - 07:00(EST)
High-level Talk Session Science and Humanities: 21:05 - 21:55(JST) / 12:05 - 12:55(GMT) / 07:05 - 07:55(EST)
Panel Discussion Global Commons Stewardship Based on Science and Empathy: 22:00 - 22:55(JST) / 13:00 - 13:55(GMT) / 08:00 - 08:55(EST)
Closing

DAY2

Friday 3, December

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20:00 - 23:40 (JST) / 11:00 - 14:40 (GMT)

Opening for Second Day: 20:00 - 20:05(JST) / 11:00 - 11:05(GMT) / 06:00 - 06:05(EST)
Cross-disciplinary Discussion Trust Building for Collective Actions: 20:05 - 20:50(JST) / 11:05 - 11:50(GMT) / 06:05 - 06:50(EST)

Panel Discussion1 20:55 - 21:45

Panel 1-A Toward Building Trustworthy AI and Society with Mutual Respect
Panel 1-B The Resilient Brain: Mental Health in Balance with Society and Planet

Panel Discussion2 21:50 - 22:40

Panel 2-A Technology and Human Nature
Panel 2-B Anxiety Among International Relations Caused by the Progress of Science and Technology
Wrap-up Session: 22:45 - 23:30(JST) / 13:45 - 14:30(GMT) / 08:45 - 09:30(EST)
Closing: 23:30 - 23:40(JST) / 14:30 - 14:40(GMT) / 09:30 - 09:40(EST)