Peace, Human Security and Dignity Week
Rectification of labor market inequality
Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition
The programme, together with the General Sponsors, explores: 'What policies are needed to eliminate workplace inequity, achieve equal opportunities & healthy corporate growth?'
Discussion
- Others
| Transmission of simultaneous interpretation | Provided |
|---|---|
| Language of interpretation | Japanese and English |
Reservations are required for this programme.
Booking typically opens with the '2-month advance lottery.' Click below for details.
* Arrive early; latecomers may not be admitted.
For more information about making a reservation to watch a programme.
Please watch the Virtual Studio if you are outside the venue.
-
Agenda2025
Organised Programme
- * Programme times and content are subject to change. Any changes will be announced on this website and via the ticket booking system.
- * The schedule is subject to change depending on the organiser's circumstances.
- Time and
Date of
the event -
-
2025.08.12[Tue]
17:00 ～ 19:00
(Venue Open 16:30)
-
- Venue
- Theme Weeks Studio
Programme details
The session titled “Rectification of labor market inequality” is one of eight themes under the broader heading of “Peace, Human Security, and Dignity.” Labor issues should be addressed from both a growth and a human rights perspective. This session will explore labor-related challenges through various lenses, including corporate perspectives, business and human rights, poverty and well-being, and the experiences of young people. The COVID-19 pandemic made us aware of how interconnected the world is, while also deepening global divisions. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2015 with a target year of 2030, remain far from fully realized. However, two key points emphasized in the SDGs remain particularly relevant. First, the recognition that many challenges are shared by both developing and developed countries, regardless of economic status. Second, it emphasized in the SDGs is the importance of environmental issues, which transcend national borders and are directly connected to our shared future. Under the principle of “leaving no one behind,” 17 goals were established, among which inequality in the workplace remains a serious challenge across all countries. One particularly urgent issue is human rights within global supply chains. In Japan, the “Guidelines for Respecting Human Rights in Responsible Supply Chains” were adopted in 2022 (https://www.meti.go.jp/press/2022/09/20220913003/20220913003-a.pdf)【*Source: Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI)】. In 2024, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry led discussions on corporate responsibility and human rights due diligence. It is no longer realistic to justify corporate profit-seeking alone; human rights, labor rights, and the fight against inequality have become core concerns. These issues are rooted in the need to ensure humane working conditions and the broader protection of workers’ rights. In this context, how are companies specifically supporting and implementing policies that promote diversity and safeguard the human rights of a wide range of workers? What is the current state of well-being across different countries? And what role should young people, who often lack sufficient opportunities to participate in policy-making due to their life stage or early career status, be encouraged to play? These questions will be explored from four key perspectives—corporate practices, business and human rights, poverty and well-being, and the voices of youth. Scholars, practitioners, corporate executives, and policymakers from diverse backgrounds will actively engage in these discussions.
*Simultaneous interpretation is available in both English and Japanese. Please bring a smartphone, tablet or other internet-enabled device with earphones to listen.
Subtitles for this program are available at the URL below.
EXPO2025 Theme Weeks 「Rectification of labor market inequality」
<Subtitles URL> https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88415441699
Live streaming and subtitle may not be matched each other.
Please note that the accuracy of the translation results is not guaranteed.
Cast
Moderator
Sawako Shirahase
Senior Vice-Rector, United Nations University, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General
Project Professor at the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, the University of Tokyo. Dr Shirahase received her DPhil in Sociology from the University of Oxford in 1997 and joined the University of Tokyo in 2006, where she became a Professor at the Department of Sociology in 2010. She served as Executive Vice President for International Affairs at the University of Tokyo from 2019 to 2021. Her special area is on social stratification, particularly from the perspectives of gender and generation. Her most recent book is Social Stratification in an Aging Society with Low Fertility: The Case of Japan (ed.)、published by Springer in 2022.
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Speakers
Miwa Yamada
Chief Senior Researcher, New Area Research Center, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization (IDE‑JETRO)
Miwa Yamada plays a leading role in promoting the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights in Japan, having organized the Business and Human Rights Policy Proposal Research Project at IDE‑JETRO since 2014.
She served as Rapporteur at the first Asia Regional Forum on Business and Human Rights, held in Doha in 2016.
Her research focuses on the practical implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights; human rights risks and responsibilities in co-financed projects involving both government and private sectors; and policy measures on human rights due diligence in supply chains, with particular attention to migrant workers in Japan and other Asian countries.
She collaborated with the ILO and OECD on the Responsible Supply Chains Project in Asia from 2016 to 2018, and contributed to the publication of the Japanese version of the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct in 2019.
In 2022, she was a member of the Study Group on Guidelines on Respecting Human Rights in Responsible Supply Chains, organized by Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI).
Currently, she serves as a member of the Expert Committee for the Sustainable EXPO 2025 in Osaka, Kansai, Japan, and the Sustainable Procurement Working Group, and chairs the Human Rights Working Group.
Recent publications include:
Towards the 2025 Revision of Japan’s National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights (IDE‑JETRO Policy Brief No.244, April 2025)
Business and Human Rights—How Public Procurement Can Drive Corporate Change (IDE‑JETRO Policy Brief No.245, April 2025)
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Tomoko Kusuda
Vice President, Corporate Responsibiility Director, L'Oreal Japan
Tomoko Kusuda has been with L’Oréal Japan for more than 20 years. She held positions in marketing and general management in various divisions and brands of L'Oreal Group. She was appointed as a member of Nihon L’Oreal Executive Committee in 2017, then became Vice President in 2020. Since 2022, she leads CSR and sustainability actions in Japan. She also promotes and protects Group’s values of ethics, human rights and DE&I in Japan.
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©OPHI
Sabina Alkire
Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, University of Oxford
Sabina Alkire is the Professor of Poverty and Human Development and directs the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) at the University of Oxford. Previously, she worked at the George Washington University, Harvard University, the Human Security Commission, and the World Bank. She has a DPhil in Economics from the University of Oxford.
Together with Professor James Foster, Sabina developed the Alkire-Foster (AF) method for measuring multidimensional poverty, a flexible technique that can incorporate different dimensions, or aspects of poverty, to create measures tailored to each context. With colleagues at OPHI this has been applied and implemented empirically to produce a Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI). The MPI offers a tool to identify who is poor by considering the range of deprivations they suffer. It is used to report a headline figure of poverty (the MPI), which can be unpacked to provide a detailed information platform for policy design showing how people are poor nationally, and how they are poor by areas, groups, and by each indicator.
Sabina was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in the UK 2021 and was voted one of the top 100 thinkers by Forbes magazine in 2010. She currently is the Vincentian Chair of Social Justice 2024-25 at St John's University, and an Ordinary Academician on the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences and she is a member of the Committee for Development Policy (CDP), a subsidiary body of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the UN. In 2025, Sabina and OPHI were awarded the Scaling & Sustaining Impact award for 'Addressing multidimensional poverty in developing nations through measurement and policy applications' by the University of Oxford at the Social Sciences Impact Awards.
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Narita Naziree
Executive Vice President, Group Human Capital, Maybank Group, Malaysia , Head, People Experience & Digital Advancement; and , Human Capital Director (Group Operations)
Narita Naziree joined the Maybank Group in 2011, and holds a dual role as Head, People Experience & Digital Advancement and Human Capital Director for Maybank’s Group Operations sector. She is also the Lead of the Maybank Women Mentor Women Council. The focus of her current role is on developing the workforce of the future for Maybank, elevating its workforce of 43,000 employees for next-generation roles, enabled with the right workplace tools & technology.
Over the last five years, Narita has undertaken a number of strategic roles in Group Human Capital, covering strategy & transformation, talent development, succession planning and business human capital. Having been with the Group for over 10 years, she has had several rotations, taking on roles in Group Finance and Global Banking prior to joining Group Human Capital.
Amongst her recent accomplishments in the area of human capital is the development of DEIB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging) initiatives under Maybank’s Sustainability Agenda, earning national and international recognition including the company’s inclusion in the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index and 2023’s Star Media Group’s Positive Impact Awards (Gold in DEI and Talent Management) in Malaysia. She also played a key role in the development of Maybank’s Group DEIB Policy, and it’s incorporation into Maybank’s Group Human Rights Policy. In supporting DEIB beyond Maybank, Narita is a member of the Women in Business Committee under CPA Australia in Malaysia and a member of the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (Malaysia) DEI Taskforce.
Before undertaking her current role in Group Human Capital, Narita was part of Maybank’s Financial Institutions Group team under Maybank Investment Bank Berhad where she led the client coverage team covering Malaysian banks and non-bank financial institutions, and was also the global relationship manager for EMEA, South Asia and Brunei bank relationships. Prior to this, she was Head, Group Performance Reporting & Investor Relations at Maybank, a key portfolio in the Group’s finance function.
As part of her extensive career in financial services, Narita was a management consultant serving commercial banking clients in South East Asia and the Middle East both with PwC and KPMG.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Wheaton College, United States with a double major in Economics & International Relations and a Master of Commerce & Economics from the University of New South Wales, Australia and is a Fellow of CPA Australia.
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Felipe Paullier
UN Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs
Dr. Felipe Paullier of Uruguay assumed his mandate as the first-ever UN Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs in December 2023 at the age of 32. He is the youngest senior appointment in the history of the United Nations, and the youngest serving member of the Secretary-General’s senior management group.
As head of the United Nations Youth Office, Mr. Paullier leads systemwide collaboration, coordination and accountability on youth affairs, overseeing the UN’s efforts to strengthen meaningful youth engagement in the areas of sustainable development, human rights, and peace and security.
Prior to taking up his post, Mr. Paullier was the Director General of the National Youth Institute of Uruguay beginning in 2020, where he led efforts to engage young people in policy-making processes at national level. He previously served in various political management positions at the national level. Throughout his career, he has been a foremost advocate for young people’s rights and the inclusion of young people in decision-making spaces.
Mr. Paullier is a Medical Doctor by training, specialized in pediatrics. He holds a Medical Doctor degree from the Universidad de la Republica Oriental de Uruguay and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from Universidad Católica de Uruguay.
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Peace, Human Security and Dignity Week
Rectification of labor market inequality
The programme, together with the General Sponsors, explores: 'What policies are needed to eliminate workplace inequity, achieve equal opportunities & healthy corporate growth?'
-
2025.08.12[Tue]
17:00～19:00
(Venue Open 16:30)
- Theme Weeks Studio
- * Programme times and content are subject to change. Any changes will be announced on this website and via the ticket booking system.
- * The schedule is subject to change depending on the organiser's circumstances.
Reservations are required for this programme.
Booking typically opens with the '2-month advance lottery.' Click below for details.
* Arrive early; latecomers may not be admitted.
For more information about making a reservation to watch a programme.
Please watch the Virtual Studio if you are outside the venue.
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Peace, Human Security and Dignity Week
