Event Details

Covid-19 pandemic has offered us a chance to explore alternative business processes that could be both economical and friendlier to the planet. Having to pay 5 yen for a plastic bag, an initiative started in July also reminded people in Japan that there are ample rooms for our behavior to change that could be more sustainable in the long run.


How should business leaders strike the right balance between the long term sustainability goals and short term business survival needs? Is the concept of Build Back Better flawed as the world struggle to recover? How could business leaders change the perception of the sustainability as strategic business choices that could lead to competitive advantage rather than traditional corporate social responsibility (CSR) focused?


Join us as we explore how businesses can square the long term sustainability goals in the new post-covid world.

Please note that this event is limited to senior-level executives and per invitation only. If you are not an existing member of The Economist Corporate Network, but would like to learn how you can attend our events, please contact us.

Speakers

  • Koichiro Oshima (Managing Executive Officer  Head of Financial Solutions Group at MUFG Bank, Ltd.)

    Koichiro Oshima

    Managing Executive Officer Head of Financial Solutions Group at MUFG Bank, Ltd.

    He is responsible for the oversight of the Bank’s Financial Solutions business globally, which includes sustainability business office, syndications, M&A Finance, project finance and other structured finance products.

    Mr. Oshima is also Managing Executive Officer of MUFG and Mitsubishi UFJ Securities Holdings Co., Ltd, where he takes a supervisory role in Capital Markets business outside Japan.

    Mr. Oshima began his career in corporate finance in Osaka Japan in 1989.

    Over his 30 years career with MUFG, he has attained extensive experience across the Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB) business with postings in New York, Singapore and Tokyo.

    Mr. Oshima holds a Master’s of Business Administration from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and a BS in Engineering from Osaka University.

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  • Kazunori Maruyama (President & Representative Director of DSM Japan K. K.)

    Kazunori Maruyama

    President & Representative Director of DSM Japan K. K.

    Kaz Maruyama is the President and Representative director of DSM Japan K.K., the Japanese representative of Royal DSM, a global purpose-led, science-based company in Nutrition, Health and Sustainable Living. Based at Japanese headquarters in Tokyo, he is responsible for DSM’s all business operations in Japan.

    Prior to joining DSM Japan KK, Kaz held various general management positions in OMRON Corporation. In his latest role, Kaz led a sizable corporate business development project in Agricultural Automation based in Wuxi, Jiangsu, China.
    In his past career, Kaz was a global industry director of LED lighting at Dow Corning Corporation, and research associate and manager of new business development at Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation.

    Kaz holds a bachelor’s and a master’s in Macromolecular Science from Osaka University, in Osaka, Japan. He also holds master’s degrees in Business Administration and Chemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in Cambridge, MA, where he was a Leaders for Manufacturing Fellow. Kaz also holds a Ph.D. in Materials Science from Mie University, in Mie, Japan.

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  • Pascale Meulemeester (President and Representative Director Japan of Barry Callebaut)

    Pascale Meulemeester

    President and Representative Director Japan of Barry Callebaut

    Pascale is the President and Representative Director for Barry Callebaut Japan. She is responsible for leading the Japan business which includes factory, sales and marketing teams into the future and develop high-caliber home grown talent. She is also a member of the BC APAC Leadership Team.

    In the past years she has been credited as the business leader who was responsible for bringing the Ruby wave and Sustainability initiatives to the Japanese market, bringing about an impressive growth in sales volume in a stagnant economy.

    Before moving to Japan, Pascale served as the Vice President Global Gourmet for over 7,5 years
    during which she and her Global Gourmet Leadership team delivered sustained profitable double digit growth, built new capabilities and transformed the gourmet business into the powerhouse it is today.

    Prior to that she held various marketing and business development roles in both global and regional management positions in diverse market environments at Mars Inc and Sara Lee where she started her career.

    Pascale holds a Master in Business Economics and in Marketing Management at Vlekho Business School in Brussels and took executive education from Harvard Business School & Insead.

    She currently lives in Tokyo and is deeply engaged and passionate about building the chocolate experiences and talent of tomorrow.

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  • Takuji Okubo (Director, Corporate Network, North Asia of The Economist Corporate Network)

    Takuji Okubo

    Director, Corporate Network, North Asia of The Economist Corporate Network

    Takuji Okubo is the North Asia Director of The Economist Corporate Network, managing the Networks in Japan and in South Korea.

    Prior to joining The Economist Group, Takuji was the Managing Director and Chief Economist at Japan Macro Advisors, serving global fortune 500 companies and financial institutions in Japan and abroad. In his past career, Takuji was a Chief Economist at Societe Generale, in charge of Japan and of South Korea, and a senior economist at Merrill Lynch and at Goldman Sachs. Outside his role at ECN, Takuji also serves as a non-executive director at Japan Risk Forum, an association of Chief Risk Officers among Japanese financial institutions.

    Takuji holds B.A in Economics from Tokyo University and while at the university he was a recipient of prestigious INOUE scholarship. He holds MBA from INSEAD and Msc. In Economics from UPF in Barcelona. Apart from work, he enjoys motor-cycling, scuba-diving, cooking as well as worrying about the future of the Japanese economy.

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