The Japanese government is honoring two Kennedy School faculty members. Belfer Professor of Technology and Global Affairs Ash Carter is being decorated with the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun. John Holdren, the Teresa and John Heinz Professor of Environmental Policy, is being decorated with the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star.
Carter received the recognition, part of the 2019 Spring Imperial Decorations, for his contributions to strengthening the relationship between Japan and the United States in matters of defense. As U.S. secretary of defense from 2015 to 2017, Carter bolstered the military alliance between the two countries, developing new guidelines for defense cooperation and making important contributions through ministerial dialogues, including the meeting of the U.S.-Japan Security Consultative Committee.
Holdren was honored by the Japanese government for his contributions towards strengthening the relationship between Japan and the United States in the field of science and technology. While serving as President Barack Obama’s science advisor, Holdren facilitated cooperation between the two countries, engaging with Japanese scientists and technologists, including assisting Japanese experts monitoring the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant following the nuclear disaster triggered by the 2011 tsunami.
Carter is director of the Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, where he leads the Technology and Public Purpose project. Holdren is co-director of the Kennedy School’s Science, Technology, and Public Policy program, professor of environmental science and policy in Harvard’s Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, and a faculty affiliate in Harvard’s Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Science.