Japan-Texas Economic Summit

May 7-9, 2018
Marriott Marquis Houston
1777 Walker Street
Houston, TX 77010

Overview

USJC hosted Japan-Texas Economic Summit in Houston, Texas from May 7 to 9, 2018. Following the highly successful Japan-Hawaii Economic Summit in 2017, the Japan-Texas Economic Summit brought together business leaders, investors, state and local officials, and economic development organizations from across the Lone Star State and Japan. 

Texas is a leading destination for foreign direct investment from Japan, and we welcomed government and business representatives from the Government of Japan and prefectures throughout the country to explore further opportunities to strengthen the relationship between Japan and the state of Texas. The Summit featured keynote addresses from prominent leaders from both countries, showcased Texas cities and their economic development opportunities, and focused on topics of importance to the Japan-Texas relationship such as industry innovation, workforce development, energy, medicine, manufacturing, transportation, finance, national security and more.

The Summit was a momentous step forward in the Japan-Texas economic partnership!

Summary

From May 7 to 9, more than 400 leaders from throughout the United States and Japan convened in Houston for the Japan-Texas Economic Summit (JTES). USJC hosted the Summit in collaboration with close to 50 cities and organizations. Issues discussed during the Summit included ongoing trade and investment; opportunities for further collaboration; sister city ties; and people-to-people exchanges.

The Summit featured keynote addresses from Bruce Culpepper (President, Shell Oil Company), Shigeru Hayakawa (Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors, Toyota Motor Corporation and Vice Chair, Keidanren), Shigeki Maeda (Executive Vice President, Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO)), Hideaki Ohmura (Governor, Aichi Prefecture, Japan) and Secretary Rolando Pablos (Texas Secretary of State). They shared how the approximately 400 Japanese companies in Texas are creating 50,000 jobs; how Texas is the top state whose market Japanese companies think will continue to expand; and how Japanese companies in Texas and vice versa leads to exchange programs between American and Japanese students and professionals.

Secretary Pablos said that he is “honored that Texas is home to one of the first U.S.-Japan Council regional summits, which underscores the importance of Japan’s partnership with the Lone Star State, as well as the enormous potential for growth we see today and in the years ahead.”

Other speakers included Mitsuru Claire Chino (President & CEO, ITOCHU International Inc.); Henry Cisneros (Founder & Chairman, CityView, Former HUD Secretary and Former Mayor of San Antonio, TX); U.S. Ambassador to Japan William Hagerty, who spoke in a video message; Ambassador Tom Schieffer (Former U.S. Ambassador to Japan, and President and CEO of Envoy International); and Japanese Ambassador Shinsuke J. Sugiyama, who traveled from Washington, DC.

Panel discussions explored the many aspects of Texas-Japan relations, including security and defense; energy; healthcare; workforce development; technological innovation; food and beverage; and people-to-people exchanges, including USJC’s Japanese American Leadership Delegation Program and TOMODACHI Initiative. Business professionals from diverse industries also gave short presentations about the latest developments in Texas and how they strengthen the bonds between the United States and Japan.

The summit also included a unique session of 15 speakers, each representing various regions across Texas, as well as sister cities in Japan. Mayors and other officials shared the strengths of their cities, which included metropolises like Dallas and Houston, cities with close Japanese ties like Plano (which recently welcomed Toyota Motor North America’s new headquarters), cities with distinct characteristics like El Paso (which borders Mexico and boasts a large bilingual, bicultural workforce), and Japanese locales Kumamoto City (sister city to San Antonio), Chiba City (sister city to Houston) and Oita City (sister city to Austin). Following the session, many of the regions further presented their charms with booths, regional delicacies and music.

Print Program

To see the print program of the Summit, which includes the bios of speakers, click here.

Further bios are also on the insert, available here.

Photos

Click here to see more photos from the Summit.

Presentations

To see select presentations from the Summit, please click on the links below. 

Keynote Speakers

• Hideaki Ohmura, Governor of Aichi Prefecture, Japan
  

Open for Business: Opportunities for Japanese Companies in Texas

• Mitsuru Claire Chino, Managing Executive Officer, ITOCHU Corporation; President and CEO, ITOCHU International Inc. 
• Takeshi Ebisu, President and CEO, Goodman Global Group, Inc. 
  

Education & Workforce Development: Texas-Japan Partnerships Preparing the Workforce of the Future

• Ron Harman, Principal and Future of Work Leader, Deloitte Consulting LLP
• Barrett S. Caldwell, Ph.D, Professor, Purdue University; Jefferson Science Fellow, U.S. Department of State
• Romanita Matta-Barrera, Executive Director, San Antonio Economic Development Foundation (SAEDF) 
• Motoko Uchitomi (Mizuno), Manager, Aviation Industrial Collaboration and Coordination Division, Management and Integration Department, Aeronautical Technology Directorate, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)

Healthcare & Medical: Medical Innovation Hubs Solving U.S.-Japan Health Issues

• Bill Tracewell, CEO, The Delta Companies

Energy & Environment Outlook: Japan and Texas

• Lynne D. Taschner, Energy Advisor, Corporate Strategic Planning, Exxon Mobil Corporation 

In Collaboration with 

• Aichi Prefectural Government
• Asia Society Texas Center
• Asian Chamber of Commerce (Houston)
• Borderplex Alliance
• City of Austin
• City of Chiba
• City of Dallas
• City of El Paso
• City of Houston
• City of McAllen
• City of Plano
• City of San Antonio
• Consulate-General of Japan in Houston
• Dallas/Fort Worth Minority Supplier Development Council
• Dallas Japanese Association
• Embassy of Japan in the United States of America
• Free Trade Alliance San Antonio
• The Golden Triangle Minority Business Council
• Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce
• Greater Houston Partnership
• Hamada Smith
• Harvard University Club of Houston
• Houston East End Chamber of Commerce
• Houston First
• Houston Minority Supplier Development Council
• JACL Texas
• Japan-America Society of Dallas/Fort Worth
• Japan-America Society of Greater Austin
• Japan-America Society of Houston
• Japan-America Society of San Antonio
• Japan Business Association of Houston
• Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO)
• McAllen Economic Development Corporation
• Opera in the Heights
• Orange County Economic Development Corporation
• Pearland Economic Development Corporation
• Rockport-Fulton Chamber of Commerce
• San Antonio Economic Development Foundation
• San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
• Sister Cities Houston
• Southeast Texas Economic Development Foundation – REDI
• State of Texas
• Texas Association of Business
• Texas Forest Country Partnership
• Texas International Education Consortium 
• Texas Japan Office
• Women’s Business Enterprise Alliance
• World Affairs Council of Greater Houston

Speakers

Highlighted Speakers

MitsuruClaire Chino

President & CEO,
ITOCHU
International Inc.

Henry Cisneros

Founder &
Chairman,
CityView; Former
HUD Secretary &
Mayor of San
Antonio

Bruce Culpepper

President,
Shell Oil
Company

Takeshi Ebisu

President and CEO,
Goodman Global
Group, Inc.

Shigeru Hayakawa

Vice Chairman of the Board of
Directors, Toyota Motor Corporation; Vice Chair, Keidanren

Shigeki Maeda

Executive Vice
President,
Japan External
Trade Organization
(JETRO)

Hideaki Ohmura

Governor,
Aichi Prefecture,
Japan

Rolando B. Pablos

Texas Secretary
of State

Tom Schieffer

Former U.S.
Ambassador to
Japan

Shinsuke Sugiyama

Ambassador
Extraordinary and
Plenipotentiary of
Japan to the
United States of
America

Rona Tison

EVP – Corporate
Relations & PR, ITO
EN (North America)
INC.

Sylvester Turner

Mayor of Houston, TX

Other Speakers Included

• Susan Kwok Annoura, Owner/ Real Estate Broker, Annoura Realty Group LLC
• Kei Ashizawa, Attorney at Law, Kei Law
• Marina Bhargava, President and CEO, Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce
• David F. Bonner, Vice President of Operations, Stematix, Inc.
• David M. Boone, President, APTIM Federal Services
• Barrett S. Caldwell, Professor, Purdue University & Jefferson Science Fellow, U.S. Department of State
• Phyllis Campbell, Chairman, Pacific Northwest Region, JPMorgan Chase & Co.
• William Cannon, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Infrastructure Group, Sumitomo Corporation of Americas
• Donna F. Cole, President & CEO, Cole Chemical & Distributing, Inc.
• Jim Darling, Mayor of McAllen, TX
• Steven J. Frank, Professor, Radiation Oncology, Deputy Division Head and Medical Director of Proton Therapy Center, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
• William F. “Bill” Hagerty IV, U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Japan (video message)
• Erik Halvorsen, Director, Texas Medical Center Innovation Institute
• Ron Harman, Principal and Future of Work Leader, Deloitte Consulting LLP
• Beverly L. Hatcher, President, Golden Triangle Minority Business Council (GTMBC), Inc.
• H. Peter Hofstee, Senior Researcher, IBM Austin Research Laboratory
• Andrew F. Icken, Chief Development Officer, Mayor’s Office of Economic Development, City of Houston, TX
• Akihiko Imanishi, Senior Vice President, Miller Milling Company LLC
• Irene Hirano Inouye, President, U.S.-Japan Council
• Ryuji Iwasaki, Acting Consul General of Japan in Houston
• Shunichi Kamiya, Deputy Mayor of Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan
• Tim B. Keith, President, Texas Central
• Lisa M. Kitagawa, Esq., KITAGAWA & EBERT BUSINESS LAWYERS
• Eiji Kobayashi, Partner, Corporate Department, Paul Hastings LLP (Tokyo)
• Natsumi Komatsu, Alumna, TOMODACHI Sumitomo Corporation Scholarship Program & TOMODACHI-STEM @ Rice University for Female Students Program
• Sachi Koto, Founder, Sachi Koto Communications
• Toshiro Kudama, Senior Executive Vice President, JERA Co., Inc. & Chief Executive Officer, JERA Americas Inc.
• Harry LaRosiliere, Mayor of Plano, TX
• Joel Malone, Senior Manager for Japan F-35 Business Development, Lockheed Martin
• Dee Margo, Mayor of El Paso, TX
• Kenichi Mishima, Director of Tourism and Exchange Department, Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan
• Arielle Montgomery, Senior Finance Advisor, Shell Oil Company
• Marc Mori, Director, NuanceBlue, LLC
• Ron Nirenberg, Mayor of San Antonio, TX
• Diane Probst, President/CEO, Rockport-Fulton Chamber of Commerce
• Varun Rai, Associate Dean for Research & Associate Professor, LBJ School of Public Affairs, The University of Texas at Austin
• Kevin Ready, General Manager, CoStar Group
• Jim Rich, Executive Director, Southeast Texas Economic Development Foundation – REDI
• Peter Sakai, Judge, 225th District Court, Bexar County
• Kiichiro Sato, Mayor of Oita City, Oita Prefecture, Japan
• Ed Shaw, Special Agent, FBI (retired)
• Dan Stanzione, Executive Director, Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC), The University of Texas at Austin
• Jennifer Staubach Gates, Council Member, City of Dallas, TX
• Bonnie Stephenson, Mayor of Rose City, TX
• William L. (Bill) Strang, President of Operations and eCommerce, TOTO USA
• Shinsuke J. Sugiyama, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to the United States of America
• David Sutton, President, Kubota Credit Corporation and Kubota Insurance
• Shinsuke Takahashi, Chairman of the Board & Head of Government Relations, NEC Corporation of America
• Lynne D. Taschner, Energy Advisor, Corporate Strategic Planning, Exxon Mobil Corporation
• Dennis Y. Teranishi, President & CEO, Pacific International Center for High Technology Research (PICHTR)
• Bill Tracewell, CEO, The Delta Companies
• Motoko Uchitomi (Mizuno), Manager, Aviation Industrial Collaboration and Coordination Division, Management and Integration Department, Aeronautical Technology Directorate, Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
• Kenshiro Uki, Vice President of Operations, Sun Noodle North America
• Nancy C. Windham, President & CEO, Texas Forest Country Partnership
• Gene Wu, State Representative, 137th District, Texas House of Representatives

Conference Schedule  

Sponsorship

For information about sponsorship opportunities and benefits, please click here.

For information about hosting a Hospitality Meeting Room, please click here. 

Media

The Summit was covered by the Houston Chronicle, Houston Public Radio, a press release from the Texas Secretary of State’s office and more. (Click here to see the pre-Summit media advisory.)