The Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, and Science and
Technology (MEXT) implemented the Top Global University Project
(TGU) in 2014 to prioritize support to the universities actively promoting
internationalization1. Waseda University was selected to be a part of this
project.
The Global Asia Research Center (GARC) is one of the centers responsible
for world-class education and research at Waseda University, under the
framework of the TGU2. The purpose of the GARC is to study historical
reconciliation and sustainable development from an interdisciplinary perspective,
and to disseminate the outcomes globally. The Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs), adopted at the United Nations Sustainable
Development Summit in September 2015, are global development goals. One
of the objectives of the TGU is to achieve the SDGs.
Reconciling history and promoting sustainable future development in East
Asia present significant challenges. In pursuing reconciliation in East Asia, a
critical re-examination of Japan's war responsibility and colonialism is
necessary. In Europe, war and colonial responsibilities have been discussed
separately. While advances have been made on the question of war
responsibility, the debate over the legacy of colonialism has only recently
begun. Promoting sustainable development and reaching a regional agreement
on a common goal appears to be more challenging for the nations of
East Asia, where there are greater differences in religion, culture, economic
development, political systems, and other aspects when compared to Europe.
Studies to overcome these challenges should be conducted from an
interdisciplinary perspective, incorporating multiple disciplines. The GARC
brings together researchers from various specialized fields such as history,
development studies, economics, sociology, international relations, international
law, regional studies, peace studies, conflict resolution, political science,
urban and rural planning, business administration, and management
engineering. At the GARC, a diverse group of researchers is pursuing
interdisciplinary research by building on their disciplines through innovative
approaches.
