LIST OF PANELS

One of the major objectives of this panel is to bring together scholars and practitioners from diverse public policy fields and countries to explore various policy and management issues in Asian countries from a comparative perspective. Given Asia's global share in terms of population, GDP, energy consumption, and CO2 emissions, it is clear that resolving Asia's policy challenges is crucial for building a sustainable future. Asian countries face a wide range of complex policy and management challenges, many of which require innovative solutions tailored to their specific contexts.

Furthermore, each country in Asia faces unique challenges. For example, more than 29.3% of Japan's population is aged 65 years and above, the highest proportion in the world. This places a heavy policy and financial burden on the Japanese government to cover rising costs related to healthcare, pensions, and long-term care, while its financial and administrative capacity is shrinking due to a declining working-age population.

China also confronts significant issues. Its economic growth has been heavily reliant on exports and investment, but a shrinking labor force, declining birthrate, and aging population pose major challenges to its industrial structure, consumer market, and social security systems. Environmental and resource concerns also loom large: rapid economic development has led to environmental degradation, inefficient resource use, and severe air and soil pollution, all of which threaten China's sustainable development.

Many experts and practitioners have studied Asian policy issues from a comparative perspective. Sharing these comparative policy studies is valuable not only for the academic community but also for the development of the Asian region and the world at large. In particular, focusing on sustainable development policy across different Asian contexts is critical for advancing solutions to global challenges. In addition, we aim to contribute to developing future research issues by deepening the discussion on the specificity or universality of sustainability concept, governance theory, and democracy that arise from the historical and socio-cultural background of the region.

The panel aims to offer a valuable opportunity to discuss various policy and management issues in Asian countries from a comparative perspective. We welcome conceptual, methodological, and empirical contributions that address policy and management issues in Asian countries at the managerial, organizational, institutional, and specific policy levels, with a special focus on comparative research into sustainable development policies. Case studies that adopt a comparative approach are also encouraged. This panel is hosted and organized by the Public Policy Studies Association Japan (PPSAJ).

The purpose of this panel is to explore various policy and management challenges related to sustainable development in Asian countries from a comparative perspective. The panel invites both theoretical and empirical papers that examine these challenges in diverse Asian contexts. The objective is to extract valuable academic insights and practical implications from Asia's experiences with sustainability-related policy and management issues, viewed through a comparative lens.

Questions the papers could address include, but are not limited to, the following: (i) What are the impacts of socio-economic conditions on governance, policy, and management challenges, particularly those related to sustainability? (ii) How do institutional arrangements enable or constrain the effectiveness of policies aimed at promoting sustainable development? (iii) How can governments enhance policy performance under uncertainty and resource constraints, while addressing sustainability concerns? (iv) How can governments manage policy and management issues that transcend national boundaries, especially in relation to environmental sustainability?

Overall, by sharing insights into these questions based on Asian experiences in addressing sustainability challenges across different policy and management contexts, this panel aims to extract practical lessons and academic implications for broader governance and policy issues. The panel will place special emphasis on understanding how sustainable development goals can be integrated into governance structures and policy frameworks in the Asian region.