Our 4 Main Activities:
1. Politics
2. Genron Diplomacy
3. Civil Society
4. Japan's Future Vision
In our view, a "strong democracy" is a democracy in which voters are principal players by deliberating on policy matters as "stakeholders" and choosing the desired form of politics, without delegating politics entirely to professional politicians. In order to keep voters and politicians on their toes, The Genron NPO has been regularly and professionally conducting evaluations of each major political party's manifesto policies or election pledges and an evaluation of the incumbent administration's performances since 2004. We are also organizing diverse forums for public debate on policy matters by inviting leaders from Japan's political parties as speakers.
"Genron" means opinions and debates with a strong sense of being responsible stakeholder in Japanese. In order for Japan to contribute to the solution of various agendas in the rest of Asia and the world, we consider it necessary to facilitate truck 2 dialogue through various channels, which could complement government-to-government relations and sometimes overleap them. In our initial initiative on this matter, The Genron NPO build up a channel of high level, private-sector dialogue with China in 2005, when Japan-China relations were at their lowest ebb. So far, we have conducted an annual "Tokyo-Beijing Forum" for serious debate for 12th consecutive years and publicized the outcomes to the entire world.
3. Civil Society
In our view, a "strong civil society" is a society in which citizens voluntarily participate in activities to address social issues and such efforts are duly honored. In this area of activities, The Genron NPO is organizing various forums for debate on matters related to the Great East Japan Earthquake and reconstruction efforts, which should be addressed by citizens. At the same time, we are facilitating debates and activities to generate a "positive cycle" in which non-profit organizations function as absorbers of socially conscious citizens, develop by learning from others for the solution of social agendas and win due respect from citizens.
In order to project the vision of Japan's future, we must create a forum for proactive discussions that could generate competition toward the future. Originally, elections are intended to be an occasion in which voters are asked to make a choice about the future course of their country. Using its teams of professionals and experts, and with the participation of many voters, The Genron NPO has been conducting debates to draw the future image of Japan and its strategies.
