Events and Activities
Join the DIJ team as librarian (application deadline: 20 February)
We are recruiting one librarian (full-time staff) for our DIJ library. Tasks include general library duties, liaison with Japanese and German cooperation partners, organization of library events, support of digitization and Digital Humanities projects. We welcome applications from qualified candidates with a university degree, librarian qualification, and at least three years of experience in library service. The successful candidate should be able and willing to run the library as a solo librarian. Applicants must be fluent in English and in Japanese, and preferably German. They must either have Japanese nationality or otherwise be in possession of a Japanese working visa. The employment would be first on a two-year basis starting April 2023 with the option of a permanent position thereafter, if certain conditions are met. Individuals interested in this position are invited to send their cover letter and CV in English via email no later than February 20, 2023. Please see the full job advertisement in English and in Japanese.
Unser Forschungsteam sucht Verstärkung
Das DIJ sucht eine wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin / einen wissenschaftlichen Mitarbeiter (w/m/d) mit einem abgeschlossenen Hochschulstudium mit Promotion, sehr guten Kenntnissen der japanischen Sprache und Forschungserfahrung in Japan. Erwartet wird die selbständige wissenschaftliche Arbeit zu einem der aktuellen Forschungsfelder „Digitale Transformation“, „Japan in transregionaler Perspektive“ bzw. „Nachhaltigkeit und Resilienz“. Fachliche Einstellungskriterien sind die wissenschaftliche Qualifikation der Bewerberin bzw. des Bewerbers und die Qualität des Forschungsvorhabens, insbesondere Fragestellung, Relevanz, Methodik und Design sowie (potenzielle) Kooperationen in Japan und international. Die Stelle ist auf drei Jahre befristet, mit einer Verlängerungsmöglichkeit um weitere zwei Jahre. Sie ist ab April 2023 zu besetzen. Bewerbungsfrist ist der 31. Januar 2023. Die Ausschreibung und Details finden Sie hier.
New edited volume studies German and Japanese approaches to ageing and elderly care in communities
The contributions to the open-access anthology Alterung und Pflege als kommunale Aufgabe: Deutsche und japanische Ansätze und Erfahrungen (in German) describe and analyse the challenges and strategies of ageing and elderly care in Japanese and German communities from a multidisciplinary perspective. Themes include legal frameworks, civil society engagement, caregiver shortages, technology concepts for caregiving, and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the situation of elderly citizens and those in need of care. The comparison of the approaches and experiences of both countries broadens the options for actions and can provide impulses for a reorientation of existing strategies. The book is co-edited by DIJ director Franz Waldenberger, Hiroko Kudo (Chuo University), Tomoo Matsuda (Mitsubishi Research Institute), and Gerhard Naegele (TU Dortmund). It is an outcome of the project Ageing and Elderly Care in German and Japanese Communities whose results were recently presented at an international conference in Tokyo (Details). A Japanese version of the book is currently being prepared.
New open access article studies effects of pandemic on singles’ relationships
Singles (unmarried individuals) are a growing part of the Japanese population that has not received much attention in the context of the COVID pandemic. A new article by DIJ social scientist Nora Kottmann and Laura Dales (University of Western Australia) addresses the ways in which the pandemic and its associated interventions affect singles’ personal relationships and practices of intimacy as well as perceptions of singlehood and ‘solo activities’. Based on exploratory analyses of data from an online survey conducted in early 2021 , “Doing Intimacy in Pandemic Times: Findings of a Large-Scale Survey Among Singles in Japan” (Social Science Japan Journal, online first) shows that changes of practices of intimacy throughout the pandemic are less dramatic than anticipated. Nevertheless, changes are highly gendered and seem to support media and public discourse on how individuals are coping with the pandemic: an increase in social isolation, distress, acceptance of being single, and ‘solo activities’.
Hybrid DIJ Study Group session on Digital Hermeneutics
Perspectives from the history and philosophy of science have helped conceptualizing knowledge production in the digital humanities (DH). In the laboratory setting, the concept of the trading zone has proved to be fruitful. Arguing that DH tools can be considered as experimental systems in the sense of Hans-Jörg Rheinberger, this lecture aims at proceeding beyond the laboratory setting and embrace the heterogeneity of DH scholarship as an interdisciplinary field of research. Based on the results of a two-day workshop at the German Institute for Japanese Studies, the lecture will try to integrate perspectives on epistemic virtues from the Global South, most notably those reflecting the decolonization of our current knowledge infrastructure and economy. Details and registration here
Andreas Fickers, Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History/DIJ Tokyo
Barbara Holthus to give online talk on Pets in Pandemic Japan
For almost three years, anti-Covid measures in Japan have told people to engage in physical distancing and “self-restraint”. During this time pets as “substitute” family members have gained added interest in order to fill the void in human-human interaction. In this presentation, DIJ deputy director Barbara Holthus will focus on the accelerated interest in pets and accompanying normative changes regarding pet ownership within Japanese society. Through interviews with pet owners and shelter organizations, as well as participant observation in pet shops, pet cafes, and at adoption fairs this presentation will highlight the changing role of pets in Japanese society and the particular role of the pandemic. Barbara’s talk “Pets in Pandemic Japan” is hosted by the University of Tokyo’s Center for Contemporary Japanese Studies and takes place online on Thursday, January 19, 9-10 am JST. Registration here
Martin Hemmert discusses non-internationalization of East Asian start-ups at DIJ online talk
Western-based research on international new ventures suggests that start-ups are able to internationalize more easily than other types of firms, particularly in globally connected technology-intensive industries. This study of 40 IT start-ups in China, Korea, and Japan reveals that most of these firms do not internationalize successfully. It identifies a variety of factors that deter East Asian start-ups from internationalizing, including large domestic markets, general resource and capability shortages, insufficient international market knowledge, international adaptation costs, and non-supportive home and host country policies. Findings suggest that start-ups in East Asia may not necessarily face lower internationalization barriers than established firms. Details and registration here
Martin Hemmert, Korea University/DIJ Tokyo
Japan-Stipendien für Promovierende
Für das Jahr 2023 vergibt das DIJ wieder attraktive Stipendien zur Förderung von Forschungsaufenthalten in Japan im Rahmen von Promotionsvorhaben. Die Stipendien sind mit zurzeit 2400 Euro/Monat dotiert und werden für die Dauer von drei bis maximal zwölf Monaten vergeben. Gefördert werden Forschungsaufenthalte, deren Beginn in den Zeitraum zwischen 1. Februar und 1. Dezember 2023 fällt. Über die Voraussetzungen sowie das Bewerbungsverfahren informiert unsere Stipendienordnung. Bewerbungsschluss für diese Ausschreibung ist der 11. Dezember 2022.
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Call for Submissions
Contemporary Japan
current issue Vol. 38, No. 1
Contemporary Japan is open year-round for rolling submissions, with accepted publications published immediately online. Please see the instructions for submission here.
DIJ Monograph Series
Our monograph series is 
Open Access after a one-year embargo period. Downloads are available on our
→ monographs pages.
Access
DIJ Tokyo
Jochi Kioizaka Bldg. 2F
7-1 Kioicho Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
102-0094 Japan
Where to find us
+81 (0)3 3222-5077
+81 (0)3 3222-5420
dijtokyo@dijtokyo.org
DIJ-ARI Asian Infrastructures Research Partnership
