<Currently Active Committees> Economy Vitalization Committee Labor-Management Relations Committee Global Management Committee Transportation Policy Committee Energy and Environment Committee Information Economy & Society Promotion Committee Congressional Forum to Promote Better Management Vision and Ethics The Council for Promotion of Work-Life Balance Urban Policy Committee Management Innovation Committee <Past Committees> Employment Policy Committee Welfare Policy Committee 21st Century Health Committee Social Policy Committee Agricultural Policy Committee   21st Century Japan is full of complex issues that cannot be addressed by Japan’s conventional social systems. They include the increasing importance of the international community, expansion of the aging population and decline in the number of children being born, people’s heightened awareness of stability and prosperity, measures for environmental issues, and demands for advancements in scientific technology and information systems. In order to respond to these trends and to build a nation commensurate with its status as an advanced country, the government must clarify the future shape of social systems in the 21st century by reexamining the very foundation of traditional Japanese society and bringing about a change in national consciousness. The Social Policy Committee conducted examinations and presented proposals from this perspective, and worked to realize them by reforming national consciousness and formulating national consensus. Major proposals and surveys/research presented thus far Reforms in Educational Choices, Responsibility, and Solidarity —Aiming to Reinstate School Functions— (July 1999) Reforms in Educational Choices, Responsibility, and Solidarity —Aiming to Reinstate School Functions— (July 1998) Urgent Appeal Regarding the Recommendation Report of the Central Education Council —Abolishing University Entrance Examinations as the First Step in Educational Reforms— (December 1999)