Imagining the Possibilities of the University and Civil Society from East Asia
UTokyo-NCTU Summer Camp in 2016
Sep. 8 – Sep. 11, 2016
21KOMCEE West
the University of Tokyo, Komaba

We are now facing multiple challenges under the context of globalization: 1) social conflicts, like nationalism, racism, class differentiation, colonial unconsciousness, and so forth; 2) influence from the Cold War era that includes political-economic conditions, population migration, and class struggle as its after effects; 3) democratization movements and construction of a “co-existential” society. All of these issues are urging us to reflect on the history of civil society so that we can design a better future from it. In this regard, universities, especially their research and education in the field of the Humanities, appear to hold a critical responsibility.
In this summer program, we will examine how universities can contribute to the development of civil society, and how the Humanities should respond to the current challenges, particularly within East Asian society. At the previous academic forum in 2015 under our collaborative relationship between the University of Tokyo (UTokyo) and National Chiao Tung University (NCTU), we confirmed the importance of nurturing a trans-Asian academic network for the sake of fulfilling a shared purpose towards the future development of the Humanities. This year, we are going to go even further by pondering and designing the possibilities of the university and civil society in the East Asian context.

The program will consist of two parts: lectures by scholars from UTokyo and NCTU and a discursive session among graduate students from both institutions. In addition to Shinji Kajitani and Tsuyoshi Ishii, teachers in charge of the Project 2 "Praxis of Coexistence in Cultural Diversity", we will also invite Professor Shunya Yoshimi, vice president of UTokyo and the author of What Is University? (Daigaku towa nanika, 2011), and Yuji Nishiyama, associate professor at Tokyo Metropolitan University, who have published several works related to the university and Humanities, as special lecturers.

We wish that participation in this program will promote mutual understanding for students from both countries and that this experience will serve to strengthen our friendship under the name of academia, for deeper, long-lasting collaboration. Although our main focus will be placed on the Humanities, we welcome all students from different academic backgrounds from the arts and sciences. We await your application.

Program
September 7, Wednesday Arrival (NCTU attendees)

September 8, Thursday (Room 515, the 5th building)

Opening Remarks 9:45-9:55 AM Tsuyoshi Ishii

Lecture 1 10:00-11:30 AM Shunya Yoshimi
"Cultural Sustainability and the Redefinition of Humanities: The Role of University in the 21st century Globalized Society"

Lecture 2 1:00-2:30 PM Kuan-Hsing Chen
"Envisioning a grounded global intellectual movement"

Lecture 3 3:00-4:30 PM Tsuyoshi Ishii
"Imagining the Community of “Wen”–Humanities from East Asian Discourse"

Campus Tour 4:30-5:00 PM

Reception 5:00-8:00 PM at the Open Space in the 18th Building

September 9, Friday (Room 515, the 5th building)

Lecture 4 10:00-11:30 AM Joyce C. H. Liu
"Coloniality of Epistemology and the Possibility of Border Thinking: Contemporary Aporia in East Asia"

Lecture 5 1:00-2:30 PM Yuji Nishiyama
"What Remains from Philosophers’ Reflections on the University?"

Lecture 6 3:00-4:30 PM Yuan-Horng Chu
"The Coloniality of Power that Failed: with reference to current (2016) world events"

*Welcome dinner (scholars) TBD

September 10, Saturday (Room K303, the 21KOMCEE West)

Lecture 7 10:00-11:30 AM Shu-fen Lin
"East Asia as Paradox"

Lecture 8 1:30-3:00 PM Shinji Kajitani
"Working with Citizens－Transdisciplinarity and Responsibility of University"

September 11, Sunday (Room K303, the 21KOMCEE West)

Student Session 8:30 AM-1:00 PM Moderator: Satofumi Kawamura
*each presentation including Q&A will be 30 minutes
1 8:30-9:30
2 9:40-10:40
3 10:50-11:50
4 12:00-1:00

Contact Information:
E-mail: project2@ihs.c.u-tokyo.ac.jp

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