Thirty young students and professionals from China, Japan and South Korea met in Tokyo on the occasion of the 3. Young Leaders Forum in East Asia, organised by KAS “Social and Economic Governance Programme Asia” (SOPAS)/Japan and KAS RECAP/Hong Kong. The topic of "Energy Security and Climate Change in East Asia - Jointly Getting on Track for a Common Future" addressed key development issues, which all the three major nations are currently facing: energy stability, geopolitical tensions, urgent need of transforming their growth models and, in particular, the role of global trade and value chains.

Renowned experts from North East Asia in the field of energy politics, climate change and global trade provided a comprehensive overview of the current situation in North East Asia and beyond. Based upon this framework, the participants deepened their understanding of the complex interaction between energy security, low-carbon transformation and the contribution of global trade and value chains.

Three working groups extensively discussed commonalities and differences between their home countries. They identified several fields of actions where substantial progress could be achieved in reducing energy and resource consumption while transforming the traditional modes of production and consumption, based on fossil fuels – and by this, creating deeper cooperation and trust among the three North-East Asian countries.