Takahiro Akita is an Emeritus Professor at the International University of Japan (IUJ). He taught at both the IUJ and Rikkyo University. Prior to joining the IUJ, he worked for the United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat). His research interests center around regional and urban economic development, Asian economic development, income inequality, poverty, interindustry analysis and international trade. His research has appeared in Social Indicators Research, Asian Economic Journal, Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy, Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies, Environment and Planning A, Annals of Regional Science, International Regional Science Review, among others. He holds Ph.D. in regional science from the University of Pennsylvania and Master of Engineering from Tokyo Institute of Technology.