Realizing a Benefit, Not a Burden:

Base Politics, Local Coordination and

the Transformation of Iwakuni Air Base

YCAPS is excited to announce the next event in the Community Conversations seminar series in the Iwakuni Community! This event will feature Dr. Shawn D. Harding, Visiting Fellow at the Edwin O. Reischauer Center for East Asian Studies, who will guide us in a discussion on the transformation of Iwakuni Air Base.

Dr. Harding will present the research and findings from his doctoral dissertation, “Realizing a Benefit, Not a Burden: Base Politics, Local Coordination, and the Transformation of Iwakuni Air Base.” Using the history of the Defense Policy Review Initiative (DPRI) realignment program at Iwakuni Air Base as a case study, he will analyze and explain why the Iwakuni City and Yamaguchi Prefectural governments eventually accepted base expansion and the relocation of the carrier air wing from Atsugi Air Base after initially rejecting it. His core argument is that the decision to either contest or cooperate with base policies is a function of how local citizens perceive the base as either a net benefit or net burden on their community over time. The perceived balance between benefits and burdens was, therefore, the decisive factor in local acceptance of the DPRI realignment plan.

This event is free and open to all in the Iwakuni and surrounding communities. refreshments will be provided.

Registration (optional) at this Google form.

Schedule:

• 18:15-19:00 - Refreshments & Networking (food & drinks)
• 19:00-20:15 - Presentation and Q&A
• 20:15-20:30 - Optional light networking/wrap up

Location:

Atago Sports Complex - Culture Center: 2nd Floor Multi-Purpose Room

2 Chome Atagomachi, Iwakuni, Yamaguchi 740-0037

https://www.city.iwakuni.lg.jp/soshiki/19/28779.html

Google Maps

Speaker:

Dr. Shawn D. Harding is currently a Visiting Fellow at the Edwin O. Reischauer Center for East Asian Studies and a Non-Resident Scholar for the U.S.-Japan NEXT Alliance Initiative at Sasakawa Peace Foundation USA. His research focuses on U.S.-Japan security cooperation, international negotiation, political-military relations, and base politics. He is a former security cooperation program manager at the F-35 Joint Program Office and Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) where he managed Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programs. Dr. Harding was also a program manager for the Defense Policy Review Initiative (DPRI) at Iwakuni, Japan. He holds a Doctor of International Affairs (DIA) and Master of International Public Policy (MIPP) from Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), and an MS in Technology Management (MSTM) and BA in History from the University of Maryland, University College.

Format: This event will be off-the-record

Registration: Optional at this link
Moderators: Jeff Mazziotta/Daniel Stone
Seminar Cost: Free of charge