2023 Asian Association for Public Administration (AAPA) Tokyo Conference Successfully Held
On December 16 and 17, the 2023 Tokyo Conference of the Asian Association for Public Administration (AAPA) at Meiji University in Tokyo, Japan, was successfully held. It was the first time in four years that the conference was held face-to-face. The 2023 Tokyo conference was organized by the Local Organizing Committee headed by Professor Masao Kikuchi of Meiji University, in cooperation with the Japan Society for Public Administration and the Sakuradakai Foundation.
On the evening of December 15, the Asian Association for Public Administration held a hybrid board meeting. Professor Jiannan Wu presided over the meeting and made the president report. The members of the Board of Directors highly affirmed Professor Wu's outstanding leadership and contributions to AAPA in the past four years, especially overcoming the impact of the pandemic, further expanding the circle of friends of the AAPA, cultivating young Asian scholars, strengthening cooperation with practitioners, and greatly improving the academic publication level of Asian scholars, and expressed their gratitude to the China Institute for Urban Governance and the School of International and Public Affairs of Shanghai Jiao Tong University for completing the two annual conferences with high quality and completing the work of the AAPA Secretariat with high standards. The BoD meeting also elected Dr. Agus Pramusinto, Professor of Gadjah Mada University, currently a Chair of the Indonesian Civil Service Commission, was elected as the President.
More than 120 participants from Japan and abroad attended the conference in two-days conference. Participants are not only from Asia, but also from the United Kingdom, Canada,and Slovenia took part in the conference. More than 70 research presentations were made under the main conference theme of "Future Role and Shape of Government and Public Governance in the Era of Anthropocene: Call for a New Research Agenda.” At the opening ceremony, a video welcome message from the President of Meiji University, Professor Dairokuno Kosaku, was shown to the participants.
Following the opening ceremony, the AAPA Presidents Roundtable titled as “Achievements and Future Dynamics of Public Administration Research and Education in Asia in the Era of Anthropocene” was held as a Plenary Session. Speakers were; Professor Akira Nakamura (The 1st President of AAPA), Professor Pan Suk Kim (The 3rd and 4th President of AAPA), Professor Alex B. Brillantes, Jr (The 5th President of AAPA, Current Secretary General of EROPA), Professor Eko Prasojo (President, AGPA), and Professor Xufeng Zhu (Dean of the School of Public Policy and Management, Tsinghua University). Professor Jiannan Wu (The 7th President of AAPA) moderated the session.
In the afternoon of December 16, and in the morning of 17, 19 concurrent sessions were made. Participants fully enjoyed this in-person conference sessions after a four-year recess, fostering valuable face-to-face interactions. Session precipitants exchanged insights, and engaged in fruitful discussions, reinvigorating the collaborative spirit. The return to physical gatherings underscored the irreplaceable essence of direct dialogue, leaving an indelible mark on the conference's success.
In the closing ceremony, a video message from the newly elected President of AAPA, Dr. Agus Pramusinto, Professor of Gadjah Mada University, was shown to the participants. The award ceremony of "Akira Nakamura Best Paper Award" was held in the ceremony. Professor Masao Kikuchi, Chairman of the AAPA 2023 Tokyo Conference Local Organizing Committee, introduced this year's awarding process, and Professor Akira Nakamura, the first President of AAPA, Meiji University, presented the Akira Nakamura Best Paper Award. Three papers received this award:
l Ebinezer R. Florano, University of the Philippines Diliman
"Science-Policy Nexus or Gap?: Science-Based Policies Vs. The Covid-19 Pandemic in The Philippines"
l Yuanyuan Guo, Qingguo Meng, Tsinghua University
"Exploring Public Satisfaction with Government Chatbots on Digital Government Interaction Platforms: A Perspective of "Supply and Demand"
l Yosuke Sunahara, Kobe University
"Motivating Public Employees with a Goal-Oriented Leadership: Evidence from a Conjoint Experiment in Local Governments in Japan"
Finally, the AAPA 2023 Tokyo Conference, marking the first in-person conference in four years, ended with a round of applause from participants, expressing gratitude to the student staffs. Their heartfelt thanks added a special touch, emphasizing the significance of being together. The event's success was a testament to the power of face-to-face connections in our Asian public administration scholarly community.
