Report: Previous Summits

“Vision and Action for Rebuilding Japan”

March 11th 2011 – The Great East Japan Earthquake struck at magnitude 9.0, the strongest ever recorded in Japanese history and causing catastrophic damage throughout Japan, especially in coastal areas. The number of the dead and missing is estimated to be over 20,000, and many industries including agriculture, fisheries, tourism and manufacturing suffered a devastating blow.

During the post-disaster confusion, subsequent recovery and reconstruction periods, many G1 colleagues were compelled to act and do something in their own fields of competence, whether that involved transporting emergency supplies to the disaster-affected areas, taking leadership at the heart of the government, supporting the industries, or disseminating accurate and timely information within and beyond Japan. They demonstrated their resolve in tackling this unprecedented national crisis, helping people to regain hope with formidable strength.

The value of the G1 Summit lies in providing a common platform where such leading professionals can meet like-minded friends and work together across different sectors to achieve shared objectives.

The road to recovery in Japan is very long, with substantial issues yet to be addressed. There are, however, new signs of change, as some of the underlying cracks of post-war Japan become ever more visible.

What we need now is the strong will of leadership generated by the gathering of influential individuals who are eager to share expertise and collaborate across boundaries—even when that means taking risks.

Here I would like to cite again the three principles of the G1 Summit:

(1)Make proposals rather than mere criticism
(2)Take actions, do not just form ideas
(3)Foster awareness as (the next generation of) leaders

Beginning this year, we decided to drop the phrase “next generation”. It is time that each one of us embraces an awareness as leaders and starts taking initiatives.

We suffered a tremendous loss on 3/11. But as one of the tsunami survivors put it during a KIBOW gathering, those of us who are fortunate to be alive must live our lives in ways that honor the legacy of the Tsunami victims.
With these words in mind, I strongly believe that Japan can be rebuilt if everyone has faith in their own efforts.

This year’s unifying theme is “Vision and Action for Rebuilding Japan”. Let us together paint visions for the rebirth of this country and start working towards the realization of those visions.


Yoshito Hori
President, GLOBIS University
Managing Partner, GLOBIS Capital Partners

Hiroshi Ishikawa, Director, Kajima Corporation
Junichiro Ida, President, Sanyo Foods Co. Ltd.
Hideaki Inoue, CEO of Park Corporation
Hiroshige Seko, Member of the House of Councillors
Yoshitaka Taguchi, President and COO, Seino Holdings Company
Takuro Tatsumi, Actor
Yoshiharu Hoshino, President, Hoshino Resort Co. Ltd.
Seiji Maehara, Member of the House of Representatives
Hiroshi Mikitani, Chairman and CEO, Rakuten Inc.
Shinya Yamanaka, Professor, Kyoto University

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