Events

Supported by the Osaka University Global Japanese Studies Education and
Research Incubator and the Consortium for Global Japanese Studies

International Symposia

Situating “Japan”:
Perspectives from the Social Sciences

Date:
Saturday, July 31, 2021, 9:30–12:00 and 13:00–16:10 JST (UTC+9)
Venue:
Osaka University of Foreign Studies Commemoration Hall, Research and Education Hub 1F, Osaka University Minoh Campus (and online via Zoom) https://www.osaka-u.ac.jp/ja/access/top
Registration:
The registration period for this event has ended.
Languages:
Japanese and English; the morning session will include simultaneous interpretation
Contact:
unoda at let.osaka-u.ac.jp (change "at" to @)

The Global Japanese Studies Education and Research Incubator (GJS-ERI), established by Osaka University in December 2020, is designed to combine the strengths of approaches from the humanities and those of the social sciences. GJS-ERI aims to develop into a platform that promotes interdisciplinary, international, and community-based research and education in Japanese studies. As its activities ramp up in earnest, GJS-ERI has become a member of the Consortium for Global Japanese Studies (CGJS), and together GJS-ERI and CGJS invite you to attend an international symposium on July 31, 2021.

This symposium will bring together scholars from different fields within the social sciences in order to explore the possibilities inherent in using “global Japanese studies” as a basis for advancing interdisciplinary and international research. By considering how perceptions of “Japan” in the social sciences can be used to cross disciplinary and national boundaries, we hope this will open new opportunities for future interdisciplinary dialogue.

This international event will take place in a hybrid format due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. We look forward to welcoming attendees from across Japan and around the world.

Situating “Japan”: Perspectives from the Social Sciences (PDF)

Program
9:30–10:00 JST	Opening Remarks: MITSUNARI Kenji (Director of GJS-ERI and Executive Vice President, Osaka University) Introduction to the Symposium: UNODA Shoya (Professor and Associate Director of GJS-ERI, Osaka University)
10:00–12:00 JST	Session 1: Keynote speech with simultaneous interpretation and discussion Moderator: Nicholas LAMBRECHT (Assistant Professor, Osaka University Graduate School of Letters) Laura HEIN (Professor, Northwestern University): “Japan, Doing History from the Outside, and the Academic Disciplines” Respondent: UNODA Shoya (Professor, Osaka University Graduate School of Letters)
12:00–13:00 JST	Break
13:00–16:00 JST	Session 2: “How ‘Japanese’ Is Japan’s Society? Comparative Social Science Perspectives” Moderator: BANZAWA Ayumu (Professor, Osaka University Graduate School of Economics) NIKI Tsuneo (Professor, Osaka University Graduate School of Law and Politics): “‘Arbitration’ as a Japanese Style of Dispute Resolution: A Forgotten Japanese System of Dispute Settlement” Pierre-Yves DONZE (Professor, Osaka University Graduate School of Economics): “Does a Japanese Business System Exist?” OKABE Mika (Professor, Osaka University Graduate School of Human Sciences): “Japanese Society in an Era of Globalization from the Standpoint of Minority Education” KUSUNOKI Ayako (Associate Professor, International Research Center for Japanese Studies): “The Postwar International Order and Japanese Foreign Relations” Discussants: HONG Jong-wook (Associate Professor, Seoul National University Institute of Humanities) and KARASHIMA Masato (Associate Professor, Kobe University Graduate School of Intercultural Studies) This session will be conducted primarily in Japanese.
16:00–16:10 JST	Closing Remarks: ARAKI Hiroshi (Professor, Nichibunken; Chair, Consortium for Global Japanese Studies)