• Jon Metzler Lecturer, the Haas School of Business, the University of California, Berkeley

• Tetsuji Okazaki Professor, Graduate School of Economics, the University of Tokyo

Clusters – or, more broadly, the economics of geography – has been topic of interest for decades, and indeed, Paul Krugman won his Nobel for his research on the subject! And in Japan, clusters have been viewed as essential for regional revitalization (地方創生). Remote work, and the Return to Work, adds a new wrinkle to the subject. Can cities that have not been able to replicate more successful clusters benefit from the pandemic and hybrid work?

Jon Metzler is Lecturer at the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, where he teaches on competitive strategy; strategy for the networked economy; international business; and clusters at the undergraduate and MBA levels.He is also founder of Blue Field Strategies, a consulting firm helping infrastructure clients accelerate service innovation and develop innovation ecosystems.He completed his MBA/MA-Asian Studies at the Haas School of Business. There he co founded the Berkeley Asia Business Conference (now the Bridge Conference), and authored a thesis comparing the innovation ecosystem in Silicon Valley and Japan. He is a member of the board of directors for the Japan Society of Northern California.