The U.S. and Japan: Lessons from 3-11

On March 11, 2011, the most powerful earthquake ever to hit Japan struck off the coast of the Tohoku region. As the disaster unfolded, a massive tsunami with waves up to 40 meters high slammed into the coast, killing more than 15,000 people and complicating matters by contributing to the meltdown of nuclear reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station.

To commemorate the fifth anniversary of the “3-11” triple disaster, now known as the Great East Japan Earthquake, on March 8, 2016 Sasakawa USA in coordination with the U.S.-Japan Council hosted a discussion on the disaster and the joint response to it. The conference included panel discussions with American and Japanese experts and officials, with an emphasis on presenting analysis of the actual events on 3-11 and Operation Tomodachi.

Following the success of their initial event, Sasakawa USA and the U.S.-Japan Council continued discussion on this topic at the USJC seventh Annual Conference from November 14-15, 2016 in Silicon Valley. The conference included a panel on “Leadership Innovation in Crises: Lessons from 3.11.”

To commemorate the fifth anniversary of the “3-11” triple disaster, Sasakawa USA in coordination with the U.S.-Japan Council hosted a discussion on the disaster and the joint response to it. Panel topics included recollections of the disaster by those present, a look at the initial response, details on the Fukushima Daiichi meltdown, and lessons learned on disaster prevention and response.