On June 27, the EastWest Institute (EWI) hosted Dr. Kathryn Ibata-Arens, professor and director of Global Asian Studies at DePaul University, for a roundtable titled, “Asia’s New Developmentalism: How the Rise of the Networked Techno-National State Enhances Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Economic Growth.” The roundtable featured key leaders from diverse fields representing the biomedical sciences, government, academia, investment banking and non-profit sectors and was moderated by EWI’s Asia-Pacific Fellow David Janes.

Dr. Ibata-Arens discussed her new book, Beyond Technonationalism: Biomedical Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Asia, and explained how various state-led strategies in Asia contributed to the rapid and sustained growth of innovation and resources in the biomedical sciences. Using comparative analysis, she described how factors such as innovative capacity, targeted government policy and funding mechanisms affect biomedical development and entrepreneurship in China, India, Japan, South Korea and Singapore.

After Dr. Ibata-Arens’ presentation, participants engaged in a lively discussion on several topics including Japan’s regional approaches to innovation, diverse funding mechanisms, gender and science, and the pros and cons of technonationalism vs. technoglobalism.

This event is the first in a series of new EWI roundtables focusing on U.S.-Asia relations and regional dynamics, with a specific emphasis on Japan and U.S.-Japan relations. Initiatives such as these allow EWI to look beyond the headlines to help enhance EWI’s work to promote dialogue and seek ideas and solutions to challenging global issues.