The assassination of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on 8 July 2022 stunned the world. As Japan’s longest serving prime minister (2006–07; 2012–20), Abe shaped the country’s politics like few of his predecessors. His political legacy is most visible in the arena of international politics. Abe introduced the idea of an Indo-Pacific region into geopolitical discourse and envisioned a foreign policy based on the rule of law, human rights, and democracy. Southeast Asia is the heart of this region. But the region’s countries also are diverse in terms of economic development, political regimes, and geopolitical positioning. This online workshop will explore the legacy of the Abe government from the perspective of Southeast Asian countries through case studies of their bilateral relations with Japan, including Indonesia (Bima Prawira Utama), the Philippines (Karl Ian Cheng Chua), Singapore (Kei Koga), Thailand (David M. Malitz), and Vietnam (Hoang Minh Hang). Details and registration here

Robotics is a growing field in the delivery of care. “Socially Assistive Robots” (SARs) have the potential to ‘care’ for humans through social interaction, physical assistance, and therapy delivery. However, the emergence of ‘caring machines’ raises ethical, social, and technological questions. Giulia De Togni’s research aims to understand in what ways our identities and care relationships may be affected by the use of SARs and how this may vary in different cultural contexts. Her study is based on interviews with those who are developing robots, health and social care practitioners, and those receiving care; observations in robotics laboratories and care facilities in the UK and Japan – two rapidly ageing, highly industrialized countries which are leading in AI and robotics innovation. Details and registration here

Private consumption accounts for a significant share of the environmental and social impact of human activities. Therefore, understanding consumer perceptions and behaviours is important for policy makers and companies but also for NGOs. In this presentation, Carsten Herbes will shed light on the similarities and differences in consumption behaviour between Japanese and German youth, focusing on the areas of food and clothing. Herbes will discuss influencing factors such as attitudes, norms, perceived opportunities, knowledge and trust as well as engagement in the Fridays for Future movement. His analysis draws on the Theory of Planned Behaviour and is based on consumer interviews with Generation Z members (age 16-24) in both countries and expert interviews. In addition, a representative online survey of around 500 GenZ consumers in both Japan and Germany was performed. Details and registration here

Takamine Hideko (1924-2010) is one of Japan’s major film stars of the 20th century. She is remembered for her appearance in seminal works in the Japanese film canon, but also as an essayist. Often celebrated for her collaboration with major film directors such as Kinoshita Keisuke or Naruse Mikio, Takamine’s own career makes an interesting case study for understanding what film stars in post-war Japan represented for their audiences. Takamine had appeared in propaganda films during the wartime period and later appeared in roles presenting and interrogating new ideas of gender and the role of women in post-war Japan. Following the Star Studies approach, this talk will examine seminal films and key events in Takamine’s biography in relation to post-war Japanese society. It will explore what Takamine represented to her contemporary audience and why she still continues to be a popular film star today. Details and registration here

Social inclusion represents one of the fundamental challenges faced by ageing societies like Japan and Germany. Social inclusion can improve the health conditions of the elderly and also offers seniors the opportunity to actively contribute to society through taking up work or through civic engagement. In many cases neighbourhoods and local communities offer opportunities for social interaction and civic engagement, and they often organize voluntary support schemes for elderly citizens in need of care. The Japanese-German conference Inclusion of elderly citizens in German and Japanese Communities: civic engagement and the COVID pandemic discusses how German and Japanese communities achieve the social inclusion of elderly citizens and the role of civic engagement by and for elderly citizens. It will also address the impact of the pandemic on the living conditions of elderly citizens in Germany and Japan. The conference takes place on Chuo University’s Korakuen Campus on November 10, 2022.