Previous Events

Available from Monday, 22 November, 2021

Leading scholars from ANU and the University of Tokyo will discuss various aspects of post-pandemic society, including social issues highlighted by the pandemic and how we can better prepare for possible future crises.

Monday, 15 November 2021, Available from 5:00pm

What impact has the coronavirus crisis had on society and on universities, and where should we go from here? Researchers from Princeton University and the University of Tokyo, two important partners, discuss these issues.

Sunday, 14 November 2020 (available from 17:00 JST)

In this talk, Dr. Wesley ROBERTSON examines Japanese extreme metal bands’ exploration of Japan’s history and myth through lyrics. Analyzing how three lyricists respond to local and global discussions of "metalness", he shows that creating Japanese metal lyrics opens avenues for designing translocal identities, and reimagining the referents of local language forms.

Saturday, 13 November 2021 (available from 17:00 JST)

Media representations of queerqueen styles are configured as originating spontaneously from the authentically "queer male," and are then variously ventriloquised in production. In an analysis of published dialogues by twin brothers Osugi and Peeco, Dr. Claire MAREE illustrates the labour involved in (re)creating authenticity through which stereotypes of gender, sexuality, and desire are inscribed into contemporary media.

Friday, 12 November 2021 (available from 17:00 JST)

This presentation introduces a collaborative project to analyse the recently implemented MEXT policy reforms concerning English language education in Japanese schools. We will examine the stated aims of the reforms, their pedagogical soundness, implications for identity formation, as well as their likelihood of success.

Thursday, 11 November 2021 (available from 17:00 JST)

Much like our own lives, the lives of words reflect complex and dynamic trajectories. In this talk, Dr. Jieun KIAER draws on her book Translingual Words (2019) to reevaluate the lives of English words, where lexical innovation has become an increasingly dynamic and interactive process with ordinary people at the helm.

Wednesday, 10 November 2021 (available from 17:00 JST)

Featuring several distinct scripts, the Japanese writing system provides rich opportunities for the creation of meaning beyond the bare meaning of a text. In this talk, Prof. Sven OSTERKAMP evaluates how historically script choice once correlated with language choices, as well as with the intellectual context of both texts and authors.

Tuesday, 9 November 2021 (available from 17:00 JST)

This talk demonstrates how speakers linguistically enact innovative identities despite restrictions that may be imposed by linguistic form. Prof. NAKAMURA Momoko's analysis of Japanese gendered first-person pronouns shows that while they maintain can reinforce patriarchical and heteronormative standards, some Japanese girls also utilize masculine pronouns to perform novel identities.

Monday, 8 November 2021, Available from 3:00pm

What impact has the coronavirus crisis had on society and on universities, and where should we go from here? Researchers from Princeton University and the University of Tokyo, two important partners, discuss these issues.

Monday, 8 November 2021 (available from 17:00 JST)

This talk by Prof. SADANOBU Toshiyuki (Kyoto University) sheds light on a hidden connection between language and identity by focusing on “kyara,” an aspect of the self that changes according to the situation. He concludes that we should utilize “kyara” to go beyond the limitation of intention-based view of human social behaviors including language.

Monday, 1 November 2021, Available from 5:00pm

This panel discussion will examine the history of eugenics in modern Japan as well as its local and global legacies. The panel will feature presentations on topics such as reproductive rights, media discourse around violent acts, and forced sterilization, followed by a discussion about the future implications of eugenics in Japan’s past and present.

Monday, 25 October 2021, Available from 5:00pm

What impact has the coronavirus crisis had on society and on universities, and where should we go from here? Researchers from Princeton University and the University of Tokyo, two important partners, discuss these issues.

Available on October 20 2021 17:00

In this dialogue, two medical specialists from France and Japan will reflect on how the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the strengths and weaknesses of their respective medical systems and discuss how, from the institutional and personnel perspective, to be better prepared for the possible future health crisis.　

Monday, 18 October, 2021 14:00-15:30 (JST)

What new insights have been gained in Australian Indigenous research through the addition of female and Japanese perspectives? In this event three Japanese women researchers talk about their experiences in the field and discuss the influence of their positionality on their research and analysis.

Wednesday, 13 October 2021, 10:00-11:30am (CEST) / 5:00-6:30pm（JST）

The excellence of French mathematics has long been recognized. Based on a vast corpus of career and publication data, we will explain the reasons from a sociological perspective.

Tuesday, 12 October 2021, 4:00-6:00PM

What are the challenges facing the environment? One of the main research themes we pursue at Tokyo College is the “Earth and Society in 2050.” We invite everyone to join Tokyo College researchers to think through these questions and themes with SAITO Kohei, author of the best-selling book “Das Kapital" in Anthropocene (2020).

Wednesday, 1 September 2021, 6:00-7:30 pm (JST) / 10:00-11:30 am (BST) / 5:00-06:30 (EDT)

The history of taxation, full of bizarre episodes and flashes of brilliance, is deeply instructive for today’s tax problems. Drawing on their new book Rebellion, Rascals, and Revenue, Michael Keen and Joel Slemrod show how stories from the past can both entertain and convey principles of good (and bad) taxation.

Thursday, 29 July 2021, 17:00-19:00 pm

This panel invites international scholars who study knowledge systems in the past, present and future. Taking up themes from the first two panels, we will discuss perspectives on the future of the humanities and social sciences beyond the immediate pressures of institutional reform.

Monday, 19 July 2021, 10:00-12:00 am

In this panel, researchers from different backgrounds and specialties engage in a frank discussion on the shape of the humanities and social sciences to come. Their conversation touches on various topics, including the future and possibilities of these fields, as well as upcoming plans for education and research in these areas at the University of Tokyo.

Monday, 12 July 2021 (Available from 17:00 JST)

Following the Tokyo College lecture “Resilience and Innovation in Japan’s Economy” by Professor Jenny Corbett, Professor MATSUI Akihiko (School of Economics, game theory,  economics of disability), Project Assistant Professor Marcin Jarzebski (Tokyo College, sustainability, resilience, vulnerability, aging, and shrinking society), and Postdoctoral Fellow Mark Bookman (Tokyo College, history of disability policy and related social movements) have a discussion with Professor Corbett on the topics she presented.

Monday, 12 July 2021, 10:00-12:00 am

Thursday, 24 June 2021, 4:00-5:00 pm

Over 50 years, Japan changed from a rapidly-growing economic superstar to a sedate veteran, raising questions about what transitions are needed to succeed as a post-industrial, advanced economy. Japan is in the vanguard of the problems that face many other countries, and its experience raises questions about how to adapt to slow-moving and ubiquitous problems such as ageing population, inequality, changing work patterns, slow productivity growth and industrial hollowing out, but also about resilience, response to short-term crises and change. For all its specific characteristics there is a lot the world needs to learn from Japan.

Wednesday, 9 June 2021 8:30-10:00am (JST) / Tuesday, 8 June 2021 7:30-9:00pm (EST)

This Tokyo College Symposium welcomes Professor Benjamin Friedman to our campus (virtually) for a discussion on the relationship between economic and religious thinking in relation to his recently published book titled “Religion and the Rise of Capitalism.” The symposium begins with a brief presentation by Professor Friedman on the main ideas of the book with remarks by Professor Shinji Nohara and Dr. Rory Schacter to follow. A panel discussion moderated by Professor Takeo Hoshi further explores how political economic thinking is influenced by religious and other intellectual debates in the societies of not only Western countries but in Japan and East Asia as well.

Thursday, 27 May 2021, 9:00-10:30 am (JST) / Wednesday, 26 May 2021, 08:00-09:30 pm(EDT)

Recent studies and media accounts reporting Japan to be unusually vaccine hesitant require critical scrutiny. Our historical review shows that many vaccines have been accepted and that today recommended routine vaccines are universally accepted. That said, social mobilization of vaccine-injured victims has generated public and official hesitancy toward new vaccines and represents a significant challenge for Japan’s public policy.