Dean's message
We are deeply saddened to receive the news of the passing of Professor Takatoshi Ito, Professor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo. On behalf of the faculty and staff of the Graduate School of Public Policy（GraSPP）, as well as the alumni who studied under his guidance, I would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to his family.
Professor Ito served as a Professor at the University of Tokyo from 2002 to 2014, during which time he was appointed professor at GraSPP in 2004. From 2012 to 2014, he further distinguished himself as the Dean of GraSPP. He was also instrumental in the establishment of GraSPP in 2004, making outstanding contributions to its internationalization by leveraging his global experience and networks. Today, GraSPP is a member of the Global Public Policy Network (GPPN) and maintains strong ties with leading public policy schools worldwide, enabling student exchange and double degree programs. These accomplishments would have been extremely difficult without Professor Ito’s contributions. It was also through his efforts that GraSPP, once struggling with limited space, secured its current location in the International Academic Research Building.
Professor Ito entered Hitotsubashi University in 1969, the year the University of Tokyo entrance examinations were suspended (As an aside, I once wrote a paper in labor economics on the suspension of the 1969 University of Tokyo entrance exams, and Professor Ito kindly gave me detailed comments based on his personal experience.). After advancing to graduate studies, he studied abroad at Harvard University, where he earned his Ph.D. He then took up an Assistant Professorship at the University of Minnesota, where he made internationally recognized contributions to the analysis of disequilibrium. Later, he shifted his research focus to international finance, again producing influential work at the highest international level. Returning to Japan, he became Professor at his alma mater, Hitotsubashi University, after serving as Associate Professor, while also working as Deputy Director of the IMF’s Research Department and as Deputy Vice Minister of Finance. He actively brought economic knowledge to policymaking. He also remained an influential voice in Japan’s monetary policy debates, advocating for the adoption of inflation targeting, which indeed shaped Japan’s policy framework. After the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, he mobilized fellow economists to publish policy proposals, exemplifying his commitment to applying economics to improve real-world policies and people’s lives.
Professor Ito also devoted himself to the administration of academic organizations, including the Tokyo Center for Economic Research and the Japanese Economic Association. He diligently raised funds, helped establish internal governance rules, and made enduring contributions to institutional foundations. We, his juniors, continue to benefit indirectly from the many funds, systems, and rules he left behind. His ability to handle everything with precision and dedication—from high-level intellectual work to routine administrative tasks—earned him deep trust and affection from those around him. At the same time, he continued to co-author scholarly articles with younger researchers, demonstrating his exceptional intellectual energy. In recent years, he used newly available customs data accessed through the Ministry of Finance to reveal the determinants of invoicing currency in trade with remarkable precision.
He often visited GraSPP, even joining Homecoming Day online from New York, to the great delight of former students who had studied under him. As part of the University of Tokyo’s 150th Anniversary project, we are currently editing a volume on the 20-year history of GraSPP, and Professor Ito gave us strong encouragement. It is a deep regret that he passed away before we could receive the manuscript on the internationalization of GraSPP he had kindly promised to contribute. My last opportunity to see him was in the summer of 2024, when I joined him for lunch at the Italian restaurant atop the Medical School Tower to celebrate his receipt of the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold and Silver Star. On that occasion, he offered wide-ranging advice—from quality management of teaching at GraSPP to the University’s international excellence initiative. Professor Ito saw a seamless continuum from the details of academic management to global economic issues through the lens of economics, and he was an economist who inspired intellectual stimulation no matter the level of discussion. It is with heartfelt sorrow that I realize I will no longer have the opportunity to meet him again.
On behalf of the faculty, staff and alumni of the Graduate School of Public Policy, we express our deepest condolences on the passing of Professor Takatoshi Ito. We are profoundly grateful for the intellectual legacy he left us and for the deep affection he consistently showed toward GraSPP. We offer our heartfelt prayers for the peaceful repose of his soul.
September 26, 2025
Daiji Kawaguchi, Dean
Graduate School of Public Policy
The University of Tokyo