Asia Future Forum to Take Place from November 15 to 16th Politicians, Experts and Scholars A three-layer crisis is prowling about East Asia. The first layer is the energy crisis, which is also an environmental threat. Horrors of natural disasters and radiation leak from nuclear power plants have swooped down on East Asia. Securing the energy supply without nuclear power went into a heated dispute. The second one is the crisis of development. Global financial crises have driven American and European economies to a recession. Highly dependent on exports, East Asian economies also have been put on emergency alert. Korea in particular has a strong concern over its aging population, which may harm the potential for growth. The last layer is the distribution crisis. After the late 1990s, Korea faced a rapid economic polarization. Recent changes in the trade order such as US-Korea FTA may widen the gap. Economic polarization has become a big problem for China as well. As Chinese economy rapidly grew in the past decades, the gap between the urban and rural areas and that between exports and domestic demand have been widening. Even Japan whose economy used to feature fair income distribution turned into a polarized society. Standing at the cross-point of the three crises, how can the East Asian corporations overcome them? At Asia Future Forum 2011, Hankyoreh Economic Research Institute presents 8 questions the managers of East Asian corporations must bear in mind. Scholars, entrepreneurs and journalists with the most comprehensive understanding of Korea, Japan and China come together at Asia Future Forum 2011 to discuss and find answers to the questions on the table. The keywords are Responsibility and Symbiosis. In addition, East Asia 30, a list of the best CSR perfor-mers among East Asian corporations, will be announced. HERI will explain the CSR evaluation model in Asian context and reveal the distinctive features of the listed corporations. The Forum takes place from November 15th to 16th at the Lotte Hotel in So-gong-dong, Seoul. On the panel are scholars; Youngbok Shin, professor at Sungkonghoe University; politicians; Jaewan Park, the Minister at the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, Seung-jun Kwak, the chairperson at the Presidential Committee for Future&Vision and Masatoshi Muto, the Japanese Ambassador to Korea; and financiers; Kyungshik Sohn, the chairperson at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Jae-won Choi, the vice president at SK, Inc. They will attend lectures and discuss subject issues. 1. After the Great Earthquake, how is Japanese society changing? After the Great Earthquake in Tohoku region, the Japanese civilization has come into a question. For the first time in decades, hundreds and thousands of Japanese came out to the streets for demonstration. The Government is no longer justified. Corporate greed and political alliance have been revealed to the public. The economy does not show any sign of recovery. Where is Japanese society headed to? One of the keynote speakers, Terashima Jitsuro, the chairperson at the Japan Research Foundation, proposes an analysis and forecast on this topic. 2. How does the world look like under the rule of China? Without China, you could not talk Asia. Now, without China, you cannot talk about the world. In China, opposites co-exist: Capitalism and Socialism; intellectual ancient traditions and anti-human rights politi-cal atmosphere. How would the rapid economic growth of such country affect East Asian society and the global society? Martin Jacques, an exchange professor at Qinghua University and a renowned journalist, gives a clue in his talk. 3. Can an Asia evolve into a community like Europe? European Integration redefined Europe’s reputation of being the starting place of two World Wars, de-monstrating that countries with past conflicts can still peacefully coexist. However, the financial crisis has faltered the sense of solidarity somewhat in Europe. In East Asia, tensions always exist between South and North Korea and between Japan and China. In which direction should the East Asian Union be oriented? Erudite scholars from Korea, China and Japan put their wisdoms together. 4. How should CSR of Asian corporations be differentiated? CSR originated from the West. However, the value of community and the sense of solidarity have always been emphasized in East Asian traditional cultures. How should CSR be performed in modern Asia? Entrepreneurs and experts discuss, sharing their valuable experiences. 5. Will Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) become a ‘mega trend’? National pensions are actively engaged in SRI. Before making further investment, the European Pension Fund requires Korean corporations to increase their levels of CSR practices. Japan also has a long history of SRI. How far, in what form, will SRI develop in East Asia? The National Pension and domestic and foreign experts in SRI put their heads together. 6. What roles should the Asian media play? The media played a crucial role in the European integration. It acted as a communication hub for the countries with distinct history and culture. In creating East Asian Community, what roles should the me-dia play? Journalists from Korea, China and Japan come together and discuss. 7. Do co-operatives and social enterprises agree with Asian values? It is widely known that the large-scale export corporations do not create jobs anymore. Profits made from the increased productivity only go into the stockholders’ pockets. Our economy needs alternatives. Co-operatives and social enterprises have been rising as alternatives with a great potential for East Asia. Scholars and activists ; Tri Mumpuni, the winner of Magsaysay Award; Johnston Birchall, a professor and a world-renowned cooperative researcher – share their hope and vision. 8. Is going nuclear- free possible for Asia? Fukushima accident has imposed a serious question upon East Asia. Nuclear power is not safe. However, our dependence on nuclear power is extensive. How can we depend less on nuclear power? Experts from Korea, China and Japan discuss the development of renewable energy. Lee Won Jae, President of Hankyoreh Economic Research Institute timelast@hani.co.kr