- Convenor:
-
Susanne Klien
(Hokkaido University)
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- Discussant:
-
Ben Grafstrom
(University of Oslo)
- Format:
- Panel
- Section:
- Urban and Regional Studies
Short Abstract
This panel aims to present new perspectives in qualitative research on rural Japan in the fields of Japanese Studies, urban studies, rural studies and human geography. All contributions dissect the entanglements and engagements between urban and rural stakeholders.
Long Abstract
This interdisciplinary panel will bring together some contributors of the forthcoming Handbook of Rural Japan. It aims to present new perspectives in qualitative research on rural Japan in the fields of Japanese Studies, urban studies, rural studies and human geography. Rather than understanding rural spaces as passive binaries of cities, we focus on the analysis of agency, resilience and temporality from different vantage points. We will discuss new narratives of regional revitalization in governmental action plans, the role of aging local residents in art festivals and teaching rural Japan in an urban setting. All contributions dissect the entanglements and engagements between urban and rural stakeholders. Could demographic change and aging be positive, what do shifting discourses tell us about ongoing transitions of Japanese society? What methodological challenges did we experience in conducting our research? What do our findings suggest with regard to future themes for the study of rural Japan?
| Abstract in Japanese (if needed) |
Accepted papers
Paper short abstract
This paper examines the pedagogical potential of rural Japan in higher education. What can courses about rural Japan teach both Japanese and non-Japanese students about contemporary Japanese society in general?
Paper long abstract
Rural studies on Japan have seen a boom across disciplines, yet pedagogical aspects remain largely unexplored. This paper examines the pedagogical potential of rural Japan in higher education. What can courses about rural Japan teach both Japanese and non-Japanese students about contemporary Japanese society in general? I will discuss several examples of courses on rural Japan that I have taught over twelve years both in the classroom as well as fieldwork workshops outside of campus that entailed diverse modes of engagement with local communities. Given the recent emergence of concepts such as kankei jinkō (relationship population) and cosmopolitan rurality (Traphagan 2020) that redefine rurality as open, fluid and hybrid, I explore what role “ruralities” (Manzenreiter et al. 2020) may play in expanding students’ learning experiences and understanding of contemporary Japanese society. I will introduce various teaching formats including experiential learning, walking while learning, and collaborative learning. In fact, I make an argument for emphasizing blended learning formats outside of the classroom more in future learning.
Paper short abstract
This paper focuses on participating artists in contemporary art festivals in rural Japan. Based on ethnographic research, it investigates how artists negotiate their artistic ideas and navigate their careers in the urban-rural dynamics of the Japanese art world.
Paper long abstract
Since 2000, contemporary art festivals are among the most visible measures of rural revitalization in Japan. Each edition of a large-scale art festival, such as Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale or Setouchi Triennale, would attract hundreds of thousands of domestic and international visitors to remote regions in Japan to see hundreds of contemporary artworks. While some artworks would be exhibited across years of time, approximately a hundred new artworks are also produced for a new festival edition, a majority of which by Japanese artists. This phenomenon has, on the one hand, transformed rural localities into art spaces. On the other hand, it has reconfigured Japan’s contemporary art world in its urban-rural dynamics, refashioning the art world that is conventionally characterized by art universities and museums in major cities and galleries in Ginza. What does this mean to participating artists in rural art festivals? Drawing on interviews and ethnographic observation, in this paper I examine artistic ideas and practices at Japanese rural art festivals, and investigates how artists of various calibers strategize their participation in these art festivals while navigating their career journeys in Japan’s art world of the twenty-first century.
Paper short abstract
This paper explores how Japan’s SDGs Future City Initiative reframes rural (re)vitalisation through sustainability narratives. Case studies indicate a shift toward post-growth imaginaries, although claims of innovation often overlap with conventional strategies.
Paper long abstract
How do shrinking rural communities in Japan mobilise global sustainability discourses to craft viable futures? This paper revisits three municipalities—Shimokawa, Suzu, and Kamikatsu—selected as SDGs Future Cities to explore new narratives of (re)vitalisation in rural Japan. The “SDGs Future City” (SDGs mirai toshi) Initiative was launched in 2018 to address local challenges and simultaneously implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Rather than reading these towns through a lens of inevitable decline, the paper explores how local actors deploy sustainability narratives of (re)vitalisation to negotiate demographic change and reconfigure rural identities. Drawing on qualitative content analysis of policy documents and revitalisation plans, the paper examines the tensions between pro-growth strategies and emerging post-growth imaginaries, and the urban-rural entanglements that shape these visions. Findings suggest that sustainability paradigms, as embodied in the projects supported by the SDGs Future City Initiative, might not only foster long-term sustainability but also offer innovative pathways for Japan to transition into a smaller population while maintaining social vitality. At the same time, these cases reveal an ambivalent terrain: while signalling a tacit departure from growth-oriented strategies, the emerging imaginaries often blur the line between innovation and the repackaging of conventional narratives. This ambiguity underscores the challenges of interpreting policy-driven narratives as indicators of agency and resilience, and invites a critical reflection of what constitutes transformative change in rural Japan.