It is indisputable that innovations are needed to achieve the ambitious net-zero greenhouse gas emission goals by 2050. Japan’s green transformation (GX) growth strategy explicitly counts on breakthrough innovations as exemplified by the roadmaps for carbon-intensive industries. Subsidies and sovereign green bonds are used to incentivize respective private R&D efforts. Europe and Germany also acknowledge the vital importance of innovation in these fields. Their policies are, however, less explicit about the content of new technological solutions. Instead, they rely on the incentives created by rising emission prices set by compulsory emission trading schemes. Bringing together five Japanese and German experts on carbon recycling technologies and sustainable aviation fuels, this conference will discuss the state of green innovation. This joint DIJ-RIEEM event takes places online and on site at the DIJ on December 4. Details and registration here

At first glance, the island of Yakushima presents an appearance of peaceful stability, that of a nature preserved from human influence, embodied by millennial cedars. Yet, beneath this layer other realities emerge – different ways of inhabiting and transforming this territory by various stakeholders at different times. These complex layers raise questions about their potential interactions and the risks of disruption. In other words, how can the different stakeholders living on the island continue to coexist in a sustainable way? Referring to locals and their activities (tourism, industry, forestry, etc.), tourists, non-human animals, plants, all other forms of living entities, kami and other beings of the supernatural world, as well as symbols, this presentation aims to better understand how these relationships form a cohesive collective, which could be described as an eco-semiosphere. Details and registration here

Making human activity on Earth sustainable is currently the greatest challenge of mankind. Ever since the United Nations adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, the topic has gained world-wide popularity, but what sustainability means, how it can be achieved, how it is politically negotiated, and which actors are involved differs widely across the world. Focusing on economic, societal, and political perspectives, the purpose of this conference is to gain a better understanding of how issues of sustainability are understood, framed and pursued by different actors in Japan. Speakers include DIJ researchers Franz Waldenberger, Barbara Holthus, Isaac Gagné, Sebastian Polak-Rottmann, and Nicole M. Mueller. The conference is co-organised by Barbara Holthus and DIJ alumni Harald Conrad (Düsseldorf) and Axel Klein (Duisburg). It takes places at the JDZB in Berlin from November 15-17, 2024. Details and registration here

Following the American conquest of Okinawa in June 1945, the Japanese military anticipated that the Allies planned to invade the four main islands of Japan. But to everyone’s surprise, no such invasion came. Instead, the war abruptly ended on August 15, 1945, without a single Allied soldier setting foot on mainland Japan. Between August 15 and late September 1945, morale and discipline within military units across Japan underwent a wholesale collapse. This talk explores how soldiers and sailors within Japan reacted to defeat during the critical weeks after Japan’s surrender. Using data from Japanese military police (Kenpeitai) reports, the talk argues that looting by demobilized servicemen and their officers profoundly tarnished the Japanese military’s reputation in the eyes of the public and severed what few bonds remained between the Imperial Japanese military and Japan’s people. Details and registration here