L1 employs philosophical and practical possibilities to explore a variety of problems in a diversified and multi-polarized world through dialogues of Eastern and Western philosophy, establishing many international academic relations. This collaboration will include the training of young researchers, promoting cross-cultural dialogue between different generations, and developing new thinking around co-existence. L1 focuses on the intersections and gaps between modernization and tradition between East and West. Today, when crisis is expressed, contemporary is often criticized, while tradition stands in opposition. In the East (non-Western regions) including Japan, since modernization is historically a westernized concept, there is a composition of binary oppositions between West and East (Japanese); in the process of overcoming crisis and collision, it appears that in Japan and the East tradition is typically the adopted norm. However, the conflict between modernization and tradition also exists in the West, and the concept of modernization has different aspects in the East and the West. Traditional Japanese and Eastern values are revealed for the first time in this conflict of processes. In some cases, new binaries are created. So, what is the traditional Japanese and Eastern process anyway? How do we consider the meaning and the propriety of overcoming current crises and problems? In L1, we will develop an international collaborative research arena, questioning the entanglement between modernization and tradition, the West and the East (Japan), from philosophical perspectives.

Coordinators:
NAKAJIMA Takahiro (The University of Tokyo)
ISHII Tsuyoshi (The University of Tokyo)