National Diet of Japan

APPROXIMATE COMMITTEE SIZE: 100 single DELEGATIONS

The National Diet is Japan’s bicameral legislature, composed of the House of Representatives (lower house) and the House of Councillors (upper house). Members of both houses are elected by the public, with the House of Representatives holding greater legislative authority, including the ability to override decisions made by the upper house. The Diet is the highest organ of state power and the sole law-making body of the country, responsible for enacting laws, approving the national budget, ratifying treaties, and selecting the Prime Minister. In recent years, the Diet has faced growing pressure to respond to contentious global challenges—from security realignments in East Asia to economic shifts and technological governance—expanding its role beyond being a domestic lawmaking body to also acting as a key player on the international stage.

Chairs: Drew ZachArias & Katherine Brauer

TOPICS

Topic A: Use of Foreign Aid in Combating Endemic Disease

Topic B: Addressing Governmental Corruption

lEARNING OBJECTIVES

  • Understand the role of the National Diet in domestic and international affairs.

  • Examine policy solutions to address complex issues, taking into account a diverse range of political, social, and economic perspectives.

  • Foster critical thinking through the integration of key ethical considerations into the analysis of governance.

about the chairs

Drew Zacharias is a member of the class of 2027 in the School of Foreign Service, studying International Politics with a concentration in Foreign Policy and Processes and a minor in Chinese. He is from Tampa, Florida, arguably the best city in the best state. This will be his third time staffing NAIMUN, previously serving as a rapporteur and a chair in this organ. Beyond NAIMUN, Drew was the Director of Academic Programming for Georgetown’s International Relations Club, a resident assistant at Georgetown, a teaching assistant for Title I high schools, and a virtual intern with the State Department in Ecuador. He has also interned at the U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in Hawaii, and studied abroad in both Taiwan and China. When he’s not busy doing procrastinated homework, Drew enjoys watching TV, playing tennis, running, and cooking. Drew is excited to serve as a Co-Chair for the National Diet of Japan and can’t wait to see everyone at NAIMUN LXIII!

Katherine Brauer is a member of the class of 2027 in the Georgetown University School of Health. She is pursuing a major in Human Science and a minor in Justice and Peace Studies. She was a director for the Council of Europe committee at last year’s iteration of NAIMUN, so she is so excited to be back as one of the co-chairs for the National Diet of Japan! At Georgetown, she works with St. Elizabeth’s Outreach, leads the Pre-Dental Society, and does research work with the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.