On 18 October 2024, International Research Fellow Prof. Fujihara Tatsushi (Kyoto University) held a seminar (in Japanese) on “Food and Agriculture in the Past, Present and Future” for our advanced MA students at Ruhr University Bochum. The first part of the seminar consisted of Prof. Fujihara introducing the broad strokes of his research and advising the participants on their ongoing research projects. In the latter half, Prof. Fujihara and the participants took a closer look at some of Prof. Fujihara’s research interests and discussed in detail “the connections of Satsumaimo and Tsukemono with War”, among other topics.
Participant Lara Seeger (RUB) commented on the seminar as follows: “While following a seminar conducted completely in Japanese for several hours was challenging, at the same time partaking in it was a great opportunity to practise Japanese skills in an academic context. Prof. Fujihara took care to convey even difficult concepts in a concise manner and made sure that all participants were able to follow the seminar’s course. Receiving personalised feedback and suggestions on how to further progress my reasearch interests from a specialist in the field was very helpful.”
A few days later, Fujihara had to return to Japan. However, we look back at six week of stimultating academic and personal exchange!