Inter-Asia Cultural Studies

Summer School 2020

Inter-Asia Cultural Studies Summer School 2020

Date      28 June – 6 July 2020

Venue     Naha, Okinawa

Theme    Okinawa: Living with/in the Inter-Asia Crossroad

Course Design

Okinawa is the biggest island of the island arc (the Ryukyu Islands), located between Kyushu of Mainland Japan and Taiwan, at the center of the East Asian Pacific. Okinawa: Living with/in the Inter-Asia Crossroad is a 10-day Inter-Asia Cultural Studies Summer School, held in Naha, the capital city of Okinawa. Contemporary Okinawa has the contradictory faces. One is as domestically and internationally popular Asian ocean resort. Last year, more than 10 million tourists visited Okinawa, including 3 millions from the Asian countries and all over the world. Most of tourists come to Okinawa to seek “relaxation” and “uniqueness of culture”, nevertheless, the island has another face: the “Keystone” of the U.S. military strategy in Asia. 20% of the land in Okinawa has been occupied by the U.S. Forces military bases since the end of the Battle of Okinawa and the beginning of the Asian Cold War in 1945. Although East Asian and international politics, militarism, and Japanese capitalism have affected deeply society and culture of Okinawa, people in Okinawa have been exploring “self-reliance” in many ways. This course is composed of 2-day field trip and a series of lectures on historical and cultural configurations and its problematics in Okinawa, inviting the local writers, artists, curators, peace activists.

Lecture and Discussion

  • Keynote Lecture: Kawamitsu Shin’ichi on Culture and Imagination in Okinawa’s Perspectives
  • Memory of Resistance in Art History of Okinawa: Tomiyama Megumi (Curator/ Okinawa Prefectural Museum of Art)
  • Community, Art, and Democracy (Visiting Naha Local Community Center)
  • Gender and Society: Takazato Suzuyo (Peace Activist)
  • People in Solidarity: Connecting the Green Dots: Yoshikawa Hideki (Peace and Environment Activist)
  • Screening and Discussion on Contemporary Art in Okinawa: Yamashiro Chikako (Artist)

Field Trip

  • Field Trip (Southern Part): War Memory
  • Field Trip (Northern Part): History of Resistance against Militarism

Students will present their work on the last day and submit the final report in two weeks after the course.

Speakers

KAWAMITSU Shin’ichi / TOMIYAMA Megumi / TAKAZATO Suzuyo / YOSHIKAWA Hideki / YAMASHIRO Chikako / MORI Yoshitaka / UEHARA Kozue  / OYAKAWA Yuko / TAKAHASHI Shin’nosuke / MIYAGI Kimiko / and more from Okinawa and Inter-Asia Cultural Studies Society.

Coordinator

WAKABAYASHI Chiyo, Okinawa University

Course Fee

250 USD for International Participants (including from Japan’s Mainland):

This would include accommodation (dormitory) at Okinawa International Youth Hostel (28 June 2020 check-in / 7 July 2020 check-out), lunches (from 29 June to 6 July 2020), and transportation for field trip.

125 USD for Local Participants:

Local participants will not be offered accommodation.

Fee Waiver: Very limited “Fee Waiver” is available for those in need.

Note: IACS Society will not be able to support your travel to Okinawa.

Important Dates

Application Deadline:         15 February 2020

Acceptance Announcement:  2 March 2020

Deadline of Offer Confirmation by Students: 23 March 2020

Application Procedure

Click here for the application form

Please provide the following information in your application form and send it to the IACSS Society Office by email to iacssummerschool2020@gmail.com before 15 February 2020.

  • Name
  • Age
  • Sex
  • Affiliated institution / current program of study / teaching position
  • Areas of academic / research interests
  • Have you participated in previous IACSS Summer Schools?

If YES, where and when?

  • Reasons for joining this particular Summer School
  • Expectations from this Summer School
  • If you need fee waiver, please write to us about your needs.
  • Please attach PDF file of reference letter from your supervisor / an appropriate senior colleague with application form.