On the 1st to 2nd of September the Åland Islands Peace Institute, together with the Japan Local Government Centre (London), is organising a seminar on the theme “Transforming the relationship with Central Government”, in Mariehamn, Åland. The purpose is to compare the two island regions since they show interesting similarities and differences. The invited speakers from Okinawa, Japan, and Åland, Finland, will discuss issues concerning economy, peace and politics.

The comparison focuses on the self-governing, demilitarized Åland region and the Ryukyu islands southwest of the Japanese mainland in the Pacific Ocean. The islands with 1,4 million inhabitants are a popular tourist resort and have a language and culture distinct from the mainland. The U.S. military presence in Okinawa after World War 2 has had great impact on Okinawa’s social, economic, and cultural development.  For the self-sustaining development of Okinawa, Okinawa is setting up a centre for IT industry accumulation and an institute of science and technology. Okinawa has a special free trade zone since 1999 to promote industry and trade.

The seminar is open to the ublic, but will be kept small, why interested participants are required to apply to petra(at)peace.ax.