Callum Farquhar, Consul General Nozomu Takaoka, Founding and Honorary Life Member Jim Roy, Professor Ian Gow, Vice-Chair Dr Helen Parker, Membership Secretary David Russell
The Japan Society of Scotland was formed by a group of academics and business people in 1986 to enhance friendship, goodwill, and cooperation between Scotland and Japan. Our aims now include dissemination of information about Japan in Scotland, the promotion and enrichment of commercial and cultural relations, and working together with groups having similar interests.
The Society in its programme through the calendar year tries to offer a mixture of business, cultural, and social events. While the Council has endeavoured to keep a balance of geography, gender, age, and nationality in order to be representative of as many relevant interests as possible, it has tended to base its activities in Edinburgh. Future events are planned in Glasgow, Aberdeen, or indeed wherever there is sufficient interest. The Society also tries to maintain contact with the Scottish Executive and to make MSPs aware of Japan’s enormous strategic value to Scotland as well as of the large and developed markets that exist in Japan. The Society has a wide range of contacts that could be of assistance to any businesses venturing into Japan and beyond.