The Online Summer Programme in Japanese Cultural Studies 2021, delivered between 12and 23 July, builds upon the experiences and successes of the 2020 programme, which wasconceived as a temporary replacement for the two annual residential summer school
programmes, the Japan Orientation Summer School, sponsored by the Toshiba
International Foundation, and the Ishibashi Foundation Summer Fellowship in JapaneseArts and Heritage, sponsored by the Ishibashi Foundation. As successive waves and newvariants of the Covid-19 virus led to new lockdowns and renewed restrictions, it was once
again necessary to postpone these residential programmes.
The 2021 programme was organised around three core themes: science, sport, andsustainability. The programme approached these from an interdisciplinary arts andhumanities perspective and explored the interrelationships between science andhumanities. These themes are particularly appropriate in 2021, where we find ourselves in
the midst of a global crisis, the coronavirus pandemic. There were opportunities to engage
online with participants from around the world and to join a growing network ofprogramme alumni. Participants who engaged with all aspects of the programme received
a Certificate of Participation. This second iteration of the programme generated an equallevel of interest as 2020, attracting 343 unique applications from 51 countries. As in 2020,
the diverse range of applicants included undergraduates studying Japan-related
programmes, PhD candidates, senior academics, teachers, professionals and those with apersonal interest in Japan.
The programme has been generously supported by the Toshiba International Foundation(TIFO), the Ishibashi Foundation, the Japan Foundation, and received official endorsementfrom the Embassy of Japan in the UK as part of their Japan-UK Season of Culture.

•••••

Understand global interest in Japan and Japanese Studies
Assess the value of and possibilities for the participants network
Situate the programme within wider institutional activities
Investigate possibilities for future programmes
Provide report and feedback to funders•••

India accounted for the largest single applicant nationality (19%)
89% of applicants had no prior experience of formal Japanese Studies education
Applicants were diverse, spanning different age groups, levels of education, andcareers, from undergraduates to full professors
Feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with participants appreciating thediversity of topics, the introduction of networking sessions, and being able to takethis course at no cost
There is room for improvement, with participants suggesting more opportunities
for interaction, such as group-based projects/presentations and topic-baseddiscussions••2

Monday 12th July 2021: Introduction
13:00 Zoom session – Introduction by Prof Simon Kaner
14:00 Zoom session – Dr Ra Mason, University of East Anglia: Sport and International
Relations in Okinawa
Tuesday 13th July 2021: Crisis, sustainability and history
12:00 Networking Session #1
13:00 Zoom lecture – Panel discussion: Pluralising the sources of knowledge about theclimate crisis: Insight from Japan
Wednesday 14th July 2021: Digital Japan
13:00 Zoom lecture – Dr Ryoko Matsuba, SISJAC & Dr Capucine Korenberg, British Museum:
What science can tell us about Hokusai’s prints?
Thursday 15th July 2021: Robots, technology, and society in Japan
13:00 Networking Session #2
15:00 Zoom lecture – Prof Jennifer Robertson, University of Michigan: Robo-Sexism:
Gendering AI and robots in Japan and beyond
Friday 16th July 2021: Pop culture
13:00 Zoom lecture – Dr Rayna Denison, University of East Anglia: Ecocinema and PrincessMononoke
Monday 19th July 2021: Sport and business
13:00 Zoom lecture – Dr Isaac Gagné, German Institute for Japanese Studies: Money games:Dentsu, corporate sponsorship, and the Tokyo Olympics
Tuesday 20th July 2021: Gender and sport
13:00 Zoom lecture – Dr Tom Phillips, University of East Anglia and Prof Keiko Aiba, Meiji
Gakuin University: Transformed bodies and gender: Women’s pro wrestling in Japan and theUK
15:00 Networking Session #3
Wednesday 21st July 2021: Sport and disability
13:00 Zoom lecture – Panel discussion: Perspectives on the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics
Thursday 22nd July 2021: International knowledge flows
13:00 Zoom lecture – Dr Hansun Hsiung, Durham University: Civilisation and translation,
Berlin/Tokyo 1908
15:00 Networking Session #4
Friday 23rd July 2021
10:00 Zoom session – Wrap up & Pecha Kucha winners

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The Online Summer Programme in Japanese Cultural Studies 2021 attracted 343
applications from 51 countries. As in 2020, the programme received the most applications
from India, with 65 applications or 19% of all applications. In line with the priorities for ourwork with TIFO on the Japan Orientation programme, nationals from Central and Eastern
European countries were among the top 10, namely Poland, Romania, and Serbia.

Top 10 Applicant Nationalities
Nationality
India
United Kingdom
United States(USA)
PolandItaly
Romania
SerbiaJapanTurkey
CanadaApplicant GenderCount
653625141211111010875% of applicants were aged 34 or below, with the largest single age bracket being those
aged 18-24. Despite attracting predominantly young people, all age groups are present in
the applications. This diversity can also be seen in the qualifications of applicants, with abroad mix of education levels present. In line with our desire to reach those with in interestin Japan but not necessarily any previous experience studying the country, a large
percentage of applicants had either a high school diploma (25%) or a Bachelor’s degree(33%). Indeed, 59% of applicants classed themselves as students. 14% of applicants were inacademic careers. Perhaps most interestingly, 22% of applicants were in non-academic
careers and 3% of applicants were retirees, meaning that they had registered for thecourse for their own interest, rather than for their studies or careers.

4Of the 343 applicants, 149 completed the programme. Due to time zone differences,
recordings of live sessions were made available (subject to the guest lecturer’s consent)for participants to watch at a convenient time. As a result, some participants did notcomplete elements of the programme until after it had ended. As of 31st August 2021, thewebsite remains live, which means that registered participants could still complete thecourse. Completion of the programme was acknowledged through a digital certificate,
automatically issued, bearing the logos of the UEA, SISJAC, CJS, and our supporters. The
certificate acted as an incentive for engagement, particularly among Indian participants.
Participants have since gone on to list their certificate on their LinkedIn profiles, which
registers them as “alumni” of SISJAC, thus allowing us to continue to engage with thembeyond the programme.
After the first edition of the programme in 2020, a private Facebook group was created toenable participants to stay in touch with each other as well as receive updates from CJSand SISJAC. Following completion of the 2021 programme, participants were invited to join
the group if they had not done so already. The group membership increased by 52.72% from184 (2020 participants) to 281. The group has become a self-sustaining community, withparticipants sharing their activities as well as links to events and resources that others
may find useful. CJS and SISJAC colleagues also use the group to promote events andopportunities as well as to market the MA Interdisciplinary Japanese Studies.

A Participant shares a link to the private group5

Following the end of the programme, a feedback form was sent to the 149 participants whocompleted the programme. 44 Responses were received. Below, a selection of anonymisedcomments from opinion-based questions have been included to give a sense of how theprogramme was received by participants, its value to those participants, and how
participants feel the programme could look in the future.

“I didn't really know what to expect, but I sure did not expect it to be so well structured andaccessible”“The Online Summer Programme has helped me widen my field of interest in Japaneseculture. What I learned here not only would help me in my future studies, knowledge andresearch, the certificate of the programme is something I would love to brag about in myresume”“It has definitely given me motivation and shown me interesting areas in which i can pursue
research (and will in one point in time; I must say listening to impassioned people speak
about their research has that effect) and for that I'm very grateful”“The Programme has definitely opened up new vistas about Japanese arts and culture which
I'm sure would help me in teaching (19th and 20th century) Japanese history to myundergraduate students, given that these aspects were quite unknown to me”“It was a great experience even for me, who is just simply interested in Japan. It's a superbchance to develop your knowledge”“A great experience, I made friends interested in Japanese studies from all over the world,hope I can join again in the future”“I enjoyed the program. It was enriching and touched upon a variety of interesting topics. The
lectures were engaging and interesting. The networking sessions were excellent and allowed
for a fruitful exchange of ideas. It is well paced and I hope you will keep holding it”

Participants describe the programme as “fun” and “inspiring”. It is important to note thatmany participants were impressed by the scale of the programme and the effort that went
in to running it, with many coming to the programme expecting less content, fewer
speakers, and a much simpler programme overall. The Online Summer Programme inJapanese Cultural Studies therefore stands out from other online offerings and isparticularly unique in that this programme has been run at no cost to the participants.
The programme has had significant impact on those that provided feedback, with many
being inspired to learn more about Japan, to study Japan, and many wishing to move toJapan. Some academics participating in the programme have even written that they hope toincorporate some of what they have learnt into their own teaching, meaning that theimpacts of this programme will continue to have an effect as that knowledge is diffused.

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The Online Summer Programme draws on the expertise of colleagues in both CJS andSISJAC, as well as engaging with our institutional partners, research collaborators andfriends across the world. The programme was also developed to explicitly promote thesecentres of Japanese Studies, the public events that they run, and the undergraduate andpostgraduate programmes in Japanese offered at the UEA. Further analysis will need to bedone to see whether the programme has any impact on course applications, particularly forour new MA, but it has proven very effective as a tool for promoting the programme andgenerating word of mouth promotion.
Although the Online Summer Programme was conceived and implemented as a temporary
replacement for the Japan Orientation and Ishibashi Foundation Summer Fellowship
programmes, the Programme has developed a distinctive, separate identity and recognitionin the online Japanese Studies community.
In line with the university’s aims to increase engagement with those in the key regions ofChina, India, South East Asia and North America, the continuation of an online course may
facilitate continued engagement with these regions and grow the international recognitionof the university, the Centre for Japanese Studies, and the Sainsbury Institute for the Studyof Japanese Arts and Cultures. In both 2020 and 2021, high numbers of registrations havebeen recorded from India, but also from Central and Eastern Europe, aligning with the aimsof the Toshiba International Foundation in promoting Japanese Studies to theseunderrepresented regions.
Given the relatively low financial costs associated with the Online Summer Programme, it
might be feasible to continue running the programme post-Covid, separate to theresidential programmes. Each edition of the programme could be themed around a single
or set of specific topics, taken either from contemporary issues or events (such as thepresent Olympics and Paralympics which inspired the 2021 programme) or from theexpertise of the Centre for Japanese Studies and Sainsbury Institute for the Study ofJapanese Arts and Cultures. Robert and Lisa Sainsbury Fellows could be engaged as guest
speakers, which would ensure that the programme is cutting edge, based on current,innovative research.
The Online Summer Programmes have allowed SISJAC and CJS to reach a far greaternumber of students than residential programmes could, due to the costs associated withfunding residential places, such as travel, accommodation, and subsistence. Nonetheless,the residential programmes are still of value and indeed serve slightly different purposes.
The Online Summer Programmes have enabled SISJAC and CJS to reach large numbers ofpeople interested in Japan with an open registration policy. The residential programmes
are necessarily selective. It is still desirable for us to engage with outstanding scholars in
the early stages of their careers, forming networks that could lead to enrolment as MA orPhD students, applications for our postdoctoral fellowships, or future researchcollaboration.

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