Tokyo insurance expert wins International Insurance Society award

Yasushi Morimiya, a professor emeritus who specialized in risk management and insurance at Tokyo’s Meiji University, has been named the 2016 recipient of the John S. Bickley Founder’s Award, the International Insurance Society announced Tuesday.

Mr. Morimiya received the award for “his important work in insurance education, in particular for the introduction of risk management science in Japan,” said the IIS in a statement announcing the award.

“Dr. Morimiya is considered the foremost academic insurance expert in Japan,” said Bernhard Fink, chairman of the IIS Honors Committee. “He established the only major undergraduate program in risk management and he has also taken a leading role in promoting the globalization of Japanese higher education. By fostering collaboration on insurance issues between academia, the insurance industry and regulatory authorities, he had an influential role in the development of insurance.”

Mr. Morimiya developed the risk management and insurance major at Meiji University, which remains the only institution offering the major in Japan, according to the New York-based IIS.

The John S. Bickley Founder’s Award Gold Medal for Excellence honors individuals who have made a significant, lasting and recognized contribution to insurance thought, product, practice or education, according to the IIS.

Mr. Morimiya will receive his award on June 13 in conjunction with the IIS Global Insurance Forum in Singapore.