For International Students

Overview

FOR SEPTEMBER 2025 ENROLLMENT - APPLICATION DEADLINE APRIL 15, 2025 click here for information
FOR Japanese-speaking applicants April entrance is also available

Bachelor Degree in Anthropology, Philosophy, and Peace Studies (APP)

Overview of AKADEMIA APP

AKADEMIA is an acronym for Art, Knowledge, AnD English Major for the International Arena. As part of the Faculty of Letters, Department of Humanities, AKADEMIA offers an integrated and interdisciplinary undergraduate degree in Social Anthropology, Philosophy, and Peace Studies. The primary aim is to enable students to develop critical thinking and a global outlook, as well as skills in academic writing and public speaking. Moreover, over the course of four years of study, students develop research skills, a capacity for undertaking in-depth academic first-hand research in relation to contemporary social and global issues; we also strive to foster a consciousness of compassion, courage, and wisdom as something applied and embedded in social contexts.
 

From a pedagogical perspective, AKADEMIA pursues the objectives of Value-Creation Pedagogy, which aims to foster individuals who can create a sustainable world and a human rights culture that upholds human dignity and embraces diversity and difference through solidarity. Detailed features of teaching and assessment incorporate British/European educational models that train students from basic to advance to more specialised levels of study through our seminar system. In-class teaching adopts dialogue-based learning, enabling students to express their thoughts, facilitate mutual learning among themselves, and nurture an inclusive and cross-cultural mindset.

Having gained the ability for deeper thinking and understanding of the complexity of globalized as well as local interconnectivities, and having developed a research-based analytical mindset, students come to think creatively and in innovative ways and with capacities, aptitudes and knowledge vital for a rapidly changing world. This degree program is ideal for students who intend to enter competitive post-graduate programs or who intend to enter internationally-oriented work environments. After graduation, AKADEMIA students go on to graduate studies, get jobs in global-oriented Japanese or international companies, work for NGOs or non-profit organizations, and some become teachers, journalists, or content producers.  

Learning Components
Students accepted into AKADEMIA take part in a core study program centred on Social Anthropology, Philosophy, and Peace Studies (see the list of courses below). Students are taught in light of both historical contexts and the latest theory and research methodology that foster understanding of the complexity of contemporary global issues particularly related to constructions of gender, ‘race’, diversity, difference, community, and ecological sustainability. These core AKADEMIA courses can be combined with a range of elective courses in social sciences, law, and economics offered in other faculties.

In Year 3 and Year 4 students enter their Major, which are specialized seminar classes within the disciplines of Anthropology (Global Japan and Comparative Cultures), Philosophy (Applied Ethics in the Contemporary World) and Peace Studies (Conflict Resolution and Human Rights). Students can choose one Major (seminar stream) or they can combine any of the three Majors. In Year 4 students undertake an Independent Research Project where they specialize in a chosen subject upon which they write their graduation thesis. [some examples of works produced by students can be found on links below].

Eligibility
AKADEMIA is taught fully in English and native or near-native level of English is required. A range of international students and Japanese students enter this uniquely designed program. All international students also take Japanese language classes and have the option of taking classes in taught in Japanese that span Sociology, Anthropology, Philosophy, History, Social Linguistics, Peace Studies, International Relations, Literary Studies and more. They will also study a third language, and have the option for study abroad.

For any inquiries, please contact either Dr. SungYong Lee sungyong@soka.ac.jp (Peace Studies/Conflict Resolution); Dr. Ryo Chonabayashi cryo@soka.ac.jp (Philosophy/Ethics); or Dr. AnneMette Fisker-Nielsen fanne@soka.ac.jp (Social Anthropology/Global Japan Studies). More information about course content can be found on the links below, as well as recent interviews with AKADEMIA students.

Interview with Professor Anne Mette Fisker-Nielsen, a core faculty members in the AKADEMIA degree program teaching Social Anthropology and Anthropology of Japan.
 

Major/Seminar

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AKADEMIA Core Courses

Year 1 Introductory Level
Introduction to Humanities (2 credits)
Introduction to Soka AKADEMIA (4 credits)
Japanese language courses (2 credits each)

Year 1-2 Basic Level
Anthropological Approaches to Contemporary Japan (4 credits)
Comparative Cultures Anthropology (4 credits)
Philosophy I: Core Issues in Metaphysics, Epistemology and Ethics (4 credits)
Philosophy II: Contemporary Philosophy and Buddhism (4 credits)
Introduction to Peace Studies I (4 credits)
Introduction to Peace Studies II (4 credits)
Value-Creation Education (2 credits)
Academic Foundations for Humanities (2 credits)
Academic Writing A and/or B (2 credits each)
Japanese language courses (2 credits each)

Year 2-4 Advanced Level (General)
Philosophy Metaethics (4 credits)
Anthropology of Religion and Morality (4 credits)
Peace Studies Workshop (4 credits)
Translation Studies (2 credits)

Year 3 Major Classes Advanced Level (Seminars in Humanities)
Seminar Major 1 & 2: Anthropology of Japan/Global Japan (4 credits)
Seminar Major 1 & 2: Philosophy (4 credits)
Seminar Major 1 & 2: Peace Studies (4 credits)

Year 4 Seminar classes and research graduation thesis
Seminar Major 3 & 4: choose one of three Majors (4 credits)
Independent Research Project I (2 credits)
Independent Research Project II (4 credits)
Advanced Joint Seminar for AKADEMIA (4 credits)

*Seminars in Humanities are specialized Majors which span Year 3 and Year 4. In these classes, students develop more in-depth, specialized knowledge. In Year 3 students can choose to take one or all three seminar classes depending on interest. In Year 4, students choose one of the seminar classes under which to write their graduation thesis (either Philosophy, Anthropology of Japan, or Peace Studies). During Year 4 students undertake their own research and in-depth study in a chosen area of interest, learn to develop a research design, conduct empirical research such as interviews and fieldwork, and write up a graduation dissertation of 10,000 words based on their own research conducted.

*Other language classes are available in the Faculty of Letters as elective courses. These include Chinese, Spanish, Korean, Russian, French, German and some ancient languages. Students can also continue to study Japanese to an advanced level, and can choose to combine one of the majors under AKADEMIA with a major conducted in Japanese.

For details of AKADEMIA CORE COURSE CONTENT and STUDENT VIEWS

Course information 2023 curriculum

Introduction

Introduction to Soka Akademia

Philosophy-Social Anthropology-Peace Studies

Basic

Philosophy I Core Issues in Metaphysics, Epistemology, and Ethics	This is an introductory course to philosophy for those who do not have any background knowledge about the subject. Philosophy is an active subject in the sense that in learning philosophy we do not just remember what great thinkers in the past said but discuss some fundamental issues which have been the object of interest for centuries. Indeed, Socrates, who is thought of as the father of western philosophy, regards philosophy as a craft. Given this nature of philosophy, the course attempts to enhance students’ discussion skills by facilitating their active engagement with traditional philosophical issues, as well as their good understanding of the topics covered by the course. The course covers core areas of the subject, namely, epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics.
Philosophy II  Contemporary Philosophy and Buddhism	This is an introductory course to eastern philosophy for those who do not have any background knowledge about the subject. The course covers some basic information about Shakyamuni, Mahayana Buddhism (with special emphasis on the Lotus Sutra), and Nichiren. In this course, we give particular focus on the Japanese Buddhist priest Nichiren (1222-1282). In recent decades, there has been vibrant scholarship on Nichiren, and some interesting research has been done on this controversial Japanese figure, both in Japanese and other languages including English. Given this state of affairs, we choose Nichiren as a sample eastern philosophy from which we may gain some valuable insights for considering various contemporary issues utilizing the recent work available in English.
Comparative Culture Anthropology	This is a course in socio-cultural anthropology. The course starts with asking the seemingly simple question: “What does it mean to be human?” Over the weeks we explore this in light of anthropological approaches to the study of the body, personhood, communication, social relations, identity, gender, race, rituals, taboos, consumption, material culture, and processes of globalization amidst times of uncertainty and algorithms. An underlying query concerns the issue of universality and relativism: to what extent do all humans, societies, and cultures have something in common, and to what extent is each of them unique? A hallmark of anthropological comparative work is the ability to see universal human patterns (e.g. all societies have gender stratification, food taboos, marriage and systems of kinship relations, social sanctions, and morality) but simultaneously accounting for how these forms can vary significantly in different socio-cultural contexts and over time, which show us just how socially constructed ideas about who we are is. To avoid placing our values at the center of our analysis (ethnocentrism), students will learn anthropological approaches that aim to understand different societies and people’s behavior from the inside. Students will learn to take cultural relativism as a methodological principle. This module is a requisite for entering the Global Japan Studies seminar in AKADEMIA. Coursebook: Pountney, L. & Maric, T. (2021) “Introducing Anthropology: What Makes Us Human?”
Anthropological Approaches to Contemporary Japan	This module addresses a range of topics related to modern and contemporary Japan. Students will learn to analyze the significance of discourses (meaning systems), norms, and embodied everyday practices. We start by considering sources of Japanese identity that have both historical and mythical foundations and move on to study contemporary Japan where a social ethos often expressed as ‘harmony’ (wa) reveal the way social practice embodies social hierarchies where public conformity to social rules is typically regarded as virtuous behavior. Students study various contemporary social issues related to changing family relations, gender, media, minorities, AI robotics, diversifying Japan, popular culture, and Cool Japan, and thinking through how gender socialization and stratification go to the heart of social, cultural, and political life. Students also study the implications of a still strong ethnic-nationalist discourse that predominates in institutional life from school and workplaces to government agencies. Each week students read chapters from Yoshio Sugimoto's (2021) “An Introduction to Japanese Society”, and Brian McVeigh's (2014). “Interpreting Japan”. This module is a requisite for entering the Global Japan Studies seminar in AKADEMIA.
Introduction to Peace Studies I Violence, Conflict, and Peace in the Contemporary World	Introduction to Peace Studies targets the 1st and 2nd-year undergraduate students who don’t have any background knowledge of Peace and Conflict Studies. These courses aim to introduce and examine the key areas of conflict analysis, conflict resolution, and peacebuilding as well as a few topical issues relevant to Japan and East Asia. Wherever possible, moreover, the courses will introduce theoretical thoughts that may be useful for students’ conflict analysis. Introduction to Peace Studies I specifically pays attention to two main areas of learning: (1) sources of conflict and (2) contemporary issues of Peace and Conflict. The classes between Weeks 1 and 7 will review a range of factors that cause or exacerbate violent conflicts at international, state, and sub-state levels. The classes between Weeks 8 and 15 will overview selected topics that have emerged as the main agenda of the contemporary academic debates.
Introduction to Peace Studies II  Concepts, Actors, and Modalities of Peace Processes	Introduction to Peace Studies targets the 1st and 2nd-year undergraduate students who don’t have any background knowledge of Peace and Conflict Studies. These courses aim to introduce and examine the key areas of conflict analysis, conflict resolution, and peacebuilding as well as a few topical issues relevant to Japan and East Asia. Wherever possible, moreover, the courses will introduce theoretical thoughts that may be useful for students’ conflict analysis. Introduction to Peace Studies II specifically pays attention to two main areas of learning: (1) key concepts of Peace and Conflict and (2) actors and modalities of peace processes. The classes between Weeks 1 and 6 will critically review a range of concepts and theories of peace-supporting activities. Then, the classes from Week 7 will look into different forms and procedures of conflict resolution and peacebuilding. In addition to reviewing the topic areas, this module will focus on developing students’ skills to critically examine and review scholarly works.

 

Advanced
 

Philosophy Metaethics	Metaethics is a branch of philosophy that enquires some foundational issues underlying our normative and evaluative judgments such as “torturing a child is wrong”, “we should help others” and “education is important”. It is unclear whether these judgments represent some objective facts or they simply express our emotional reactions, and in metaethics, we ask these questions and consider the theoretical underpinning for those judgments. The course will cover the following topics: the overview of the current metaethical debates in philosophy, cognitivism vs non-cognitivism in metaethics, moral/evaluative realism and relevant epistemological issues, moral fictionalism, moral abolitionism, and moral explanations.
Anthropology of Religion and Morality	Students learn theories, debates, and case studies derived from the Durkheim/Mauss and Weberian traditions of the study of moral sentiments, judgments, and social-political practices; students will learn how moral questions are embedded in the substance of the social rather than pertaining to some discrete categories separated from other spheres of human activities (e.g. political, social, economic, cultural). Anthropological studies show how morality - honor, dignity, self-worth, and virtuous comportment - are historically contingent, but also critical to understanding human consciousness and actions. The anthropology of religion has given rise to some of the discipline’s most enduring questions pertaining to cultural difference, community, rationality and legitimization, symbolization and myths, meaning and motivation, relativism, time, emotions, hierarchy, and more. The study of moral life and symbolic meaning, whether classified as ‘religion’, or some other phenomena such as nationalism or Humanoid AI techno-fetishism, involves also the study of statecraft, the modern constructions of ‘race’ and ‘gender’, consumerism, and capitalist values, and the search for social status and dignity, harmony and conflict, processes of alienation, objectification, death, suffering, salvation, well-being and happiness. Readings for each week are taken from Michael Lambek's (2008) Anthropology of Religion, and Didier Fassin's (2015) A Companion to Moral Anthropology.
Workshop in Peace Studies  Peacebuilding and Development	This module aims to introduce the theoretical, normative, and practical underpinnings of the development and peacebuilding in conflict-affected societies. Some thematic areas that will be covered include the socio-cultural consequences of colonial/neo-colonial rule, the contemporary debates on the liberal peacebuilding models and their alternatives, the complex relations between poverty, economic growth, and conflict, and the roles of external actors in promoting post-conflict peacebuilding. Moreover, the course will offer students an opportunity to develop their critical views on a wide range of challenges facing contemporary practice of humanitarian aid, post-conflict reconstruction, and economic and social development.
Advanced Joined Seminar for Akademia	Philosophy-Social Anthropology-Peace Studies
Seminar Major in Peace and Conflict Studies	This seminar intends to develop students’ ability to review and analyse academic literature, which represents the academic debates as well as field practice relevant to Peace Studies. Based on their own analysis of texts, students will be encouraged to engage in group discussions to consider the questions set by both the instructor and student themselves. Another important element of my seminar is research training that aims to enable students to plan and conduct their own research projects.
Seminar Major in Global Japan Studies  Social Anthropology	Based on social anthropological approaches that assumes a global context for the study of contemporary Japan, students learn about the complexity of ‘cultures’ and the way everyday behaviour - the body, emotions and action - intertwines with social rituals, symbolism and relations of power in wider society. We consider issues of contemporary youth, gender, immigration, social identity, religion, politics, the role of media and popular culture including the issue of intimacy and AI, and the multifaceted ways state-business-media driven cultural nationalism intertwine with state-craft and contemporary gender politics. Throughout the two years of study, students will acquire sophisticated analytical skills and the ability to conduct in-depth empirical research; they will also complete a graduation thesis based on their own independent research project. Students will also have a 4-day field trip to Okinawa where they experience first-hand the entangled processes of colonial histories, local and global politics, as well as the diversity of contemporary Japan.
Seminar Major in Philosophy	In this seminar, each student chooses his/her own research topic issue related to some contemporary philosophical debates and conducts his/her research project. Through pursuing such a philosophical project via regular tutorials (discussion groups consist in a small number of students and the instructor), it is expected that the student gain both analytical and dialogue skills. The examples of the projects students may choose are as follows: The nature of moral judgements; The objectivity and subjectivity of morality; Causation; Personal Identity; Mereology; Death, suicide; Ethics in social work; Cosmopolitanism; The value of art; The meaning of life; Religion and morality; Rational proof of divine beings; Human nature; Dignity; Paradoxes (Zeno’s paradoxes, Theseus’s ship, etc.); Happiness, wellbeing. In addition to these regular activities, the seminar group pursues some joint activities between the university and Soka schools in Japan (mainly in Tokyo). In the past, we visited Tokyo Soka Elementary School and Soka Junior High School observing their morality classes. The seminar group seeks the possibility of having some valuable interactions between the philosophical activities at the university and the educational activities in Soka Schools.

Details of each course's content can be found on the SYLLABUS.

Graduation thesis

Yoshie Mori (from France)

I entered Soka University, and specifically the Faculty of Letters in order to learn about the meaning of “global citizen”, and to know how we can analyze society and its culture through a humanistic view. I took classes related to sociological studies in Japanese and some in English as well since I wanted to challenge myself at the linguistic level. I gradually started to have an interest in analyzing Japanese society and its culture. In order to deepen my understanding of socio-cultural studies from an anthropological perspective I decided to enter the seminar in AKADEMIA. Learning about Japanese society in English was a great challenge but with the great support of my professor, studying at AKADEMIA allowed me to develop and discover new potential that I never thought I could gain. I could develop my English skills as well as my ability to critically observe things that are happening around me and broaden my perspective on cultural differences while also keeping a humanistic view of things. Thinking back about my experience at Soka University, I feel grateful to have been able to study in AKADEMIA, and I encourage many people to challenge themselves in this course, to develop and discover new skills and potential. After graduating I will be working in translation, where I’ll be using my first language as well as Japanese and English, and other skills that I could develop during my university years.
Graduation thesis

Yuka Nakamura (from Japan)

 I enrolled in the Faculty of Letters at Soka University because I wanted to learn about the proposition of "what is human" from an academic perspective. I took courses in Global Japan Studies, Anthropology, and Sociology, and found it interesting to learn in-depth about Japanese culture and society, what kind of "normal" things exist in Japan, and why and how they became "normal". Therefore, I joined the AKADEMIA seminar, where I could learn about the various cultures of Japanese society from a cultural anthropological perspective. Since the language of instruction was English, I was worried about whether I would be able to convey my opinions to others, but thanks to the kind and warm support of the teachers, I was able to speak up in class with confidence and cultivate the language and communication skills to actively exchange opinions with others. The wonderful thing about AKADEMIA is that I can study with international students from all over the world and feel as if I am studying abroad, even though I am at Soka University in Japan. I would recommend AKADEMIA to anyone who is interested in discovering new interests while developing academic and practical language skills. After graduation, I will be working for a security service company as a career track employee, leading Japanese society in a more prosperous direction from the human perspective that I learned at Soka University!
Graduation thesis

Andrew Valenti (from Italy)

I decided to apply to the Faculty of Letters, and to be part of AKADEMIA as my fields of interest have always been related to the sphere of humanities sciences. When I chose my Major at the very beginning I was not 100% sure whether this was the best choice for me. However, I eventually got more and more passionate and interested as I followed the various courses that AKADEMIA offers, in my case regarding social anthropology and Global Japan studies. Not only did I acquire new knowledge, but most importantly I broadened my scale of values as I naturally started to be attracted by various social issues facing contemporary people and society. Especially, I got interested in gender equality upon which I decided to write my thesis. This made me so proud of myself because I did not just write something because I needed to do it as a final task for my graduation; rather I felt I was developing the basis for the person I wanted to be in my future, a person who stands up for injustice, fighting through dialoguing with people. Along with my studies, I could also improve my English skills as well as becoming pretty fluent in Japanese, language skills that I will use in my next step to becoming a teacher here in Japan, applying the special educational values I learned at Soka University.
Graduation thesis

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Other Elective Courses from the Faculty of International Liberal Arts

Basic Level

Principles of History (4 credits)
Principles of Philosophy (4 credits)
Principles of Sociology (4 credits)
Principles of International Relations (4 credits)
Principles of Politics and Globalization (4 credits)

Advanced Level

Global Ethics (4 credits)
Non-Profit Organizations and Public Sector (4 credits)
Sociology of Globalization (4 credits)
Comparative Politics (4 credits)

STUDENT VIEWS

Fernanda Hiromi Shimabukuro, 2nd Year AKADEMIA student

My name is Fernanda and I’m from Brazil. I’m 20 years old and I just completed my second year in the Faculty of Letters.

Why did you choose the Faculty of Letters? What is attractive about AKAKEMIA for you?

I chose the Faculty of Letters, specifically at Soka University, because I was interested in the broad umbrella of academic subjects within the Humanities that is offered by this

faculty. Usually in Brazil, the Letters Program tends to be more related to language and

literature courses only. However I saw that at Soka University the Faculty of Letters had subjects ranging from, of course, language and literature, but also sociology, anthropolo-gy, philosophy, and many more subjects. That sparked my interest, mainly because I believe that Humanities subjects have a lot of interlaps with one another, and this multidiscipli-nary structure allows students to have a wider range of approaches and perspectives to tackle ideas. In my eyes, that is also the main attractive feature of AKADEMIA, studying a    mix of Anthropology, Philosophy, and Peace Studies provides an opportunity to reflect on

issues and concepts with a lot of depth and humanity.

What has been your experience studying in AKADEMIA?

I have enjoyed studying in AKADEMIA. While it can be challenging that all academic subjects within AKADEMIA require a lot of reading, and it might also give off the impression that those subjects are theoretical with little practical application. However, I feel that AKADEMIA helps students to grow through building connections between what is studied and their own lives. Issues explored within classes do not have clear-cut answers and require you to engage with your worldviews, perspectives, dogmas, the way you were raised, the ideas   surrounding you, the media you consume, the people you know, the environment of the university, your own life experiences, and so on.

For example, in Anthropology we often use theories such as that of Michel Foucault’s concept of power and discourse to understand certain attitudes toward gender, race, etc. While no theory is of course, capable of giving a simple straightforward explanation as to why  

society is set the way it is, it engages with how our thinking is formed, why we give legitimacy to certain ideas, who benefits from those ideas, and so on. I feel like I have learned a lot and enjoyed the opportunity to engage more critically with how I think. In summary, it has been fun. 

What are your plans after graduating?

As of now, I do not have a set plan, however, I have always enjoyed reading and writing so in the future I would like to work in the publishing industry. I also considering pursuing a Masters degree. I will not go back to Brazil right after graduating as I want to gather some career experience working in Japan.  

What would you recommend to new students thinking of applying to AKADEMIA?

Liking to read and write is not a requirement, but it does make life a lot easier if they are planning to enter Letters and thinking of applying to AKADEMIA. Evaluation is often focused on written work rather than tests, so I think that style suits a profile who prefers open-ended questions, discussion, and connecting a wide range of issues in more complex ways rather than someone who is more black-and-white in their outlook. So my advice would be to think about whether or not that fits their interests and likes and apply accordingly.

Forums and Events

The AKADEMIA Forum

A Student-Faculty Project for Implementing Humanistic Education

The AKADEMIA Forum is a faculty-student collaborative project in the Department of Humanities that seeks to ask the bigger philosophical questions, seeks to understand contemporary human realities through an anthropological lens while thinking together about ways to create cultures of peace, justice, and egalitarian relations for a common, sustainable future.
The AKADEMIA Forum events are open to students, faculty, staff, and their friends. Just come along and enjoy. The aim is to deepen awareness of social issues and together enrich our debates, thinking, and action. Our aim is to increase young people's involvement in shaping our society and we welcome students who want to get involved with organizing events. We also want to open up new avenues for using art and music in innovative ways to further cultures of peace and human rights.

The AKADEMIA Forum events will take place twice monthly on Fridays, at 18:30 and consist of two types of events:
CINEFORUM: Watch a short film about current social issues, followed by smaller group discussions and an open forum. We hope to engage participants in thinking through the bigger cultural, philosophical, and existential questions underpinning our contemporary world and explore together ways to address them (led by Anne Mette Fisker-Nielsen). The event will end with a musical performance.
· 21st April, Friday: How Your Attention is Stolen
· 26th May, Friday: Happy Animals, Happy Humans, Saving our Planet
· 23rd June, Friday: Cultures of Human Dignity and Equality

ARTIVISM: A workshop with visual/performative art. The workshops will engage participants and raise awareness through art and music on a social issue, led by students. Each workshop will be an opportunity for students to either present an artwork or performance or use the space to lead or follow up on ideas toward a better future.
· Link with issues raised in the short films
· Invite people to bring their talent + ideas
· Schedule for workshops:
o 12th May, Friday
o 9th June, Friday
o 7th July, Friday

The AKADEMIA SYMPOSIUM 2023: Rethinking Gender, Changing Our World
Selected participants are invited to present their ideas/papers at the AKADEMIA Symposium. Held on Saturday 8th July. Please submit proposals for papers by June 15 to Anne Mette Fisker-Nielsen, fanne@soka.ac.jp

Schedule Cineforum April 21st Artivisim May 12th

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Majors

Seminars

English-conducted seminars are currently available
Other seminars are conducted in Japanese, so those AKADEMIA students taking these seminars must be proficient in Japanese.

(Sociology/Anthropology focus) 
Global Japan Studies (Japanese Society in a Global and Local Context) 

Anne Mette Fisker-Nielsen

The Major in Global Japan Studies is also a Major in Sociology and Anthropology with reference to Japanese society and with a focus on the intersection of the local-global context. Few societies, including Japan, can be fully understood without considering how social phenomena intercept with their global contexts. In this study program, we take account of the historical, socio-political and economic changes but focus on contemporary social issues and people's actual social practices. To be able to do so students will learn from social anthropological research methodologies and studies, which are based on long-term and in-depth empirical research. Such studies provide insights into actual social practices. We consider for example the extent to which human emotions (at the core of our experience) are socially constructed, and how what may be thought of as `normal` and `natural` behavior link to particular socially constructed moralities and hierarchies of power. Understanding normalized behavior and implicit rules are key to understanding human societies including wider issues of conflict and peace.

While we take wider structural analyses into account, our focus is on analyzing how actual norms and attitudes are practiced by people in their everyday, embodied, symbolic and ritualized behavior, and how such behavior and `common sense` link to power hierarchies of gender and race, lived morality and implicit rules, norms, and values. In this way, we link the micro and the macro to understand the formation, change and continuous construction of identity within the modern Japanese nation-state while studying how this `national project` always mediates its own domestic concerns and politics while intercepting with global politics and narratives.

Japan is a diverse place, and issues of identity run through everything we study - gender, popular culture, consumption, schooling and class, migration, work and political cultures, public and moral sensibilities, politics and protest movements, religion and media and so on. We do so by asking questions that may at first appear simple such as - “what does it mean to be a morally good person in Japan”, and “how and why does that differ for women and men” and “with what consequences”; or “how may senses of moral being intertwine with consumer behavior, work ethics or political protest movements”. We consider Japanese religious movements and the complex concept of `religion` and its equally complex idea of the `secular` and the specific ways they become central to modern political ideas about identity and what becomes considered Japanese culture. We consider how mainstream, tabloid and social media play into constructing particular realities about and for people; and the extent to which such `realities` are confirmed or contested. We also look at Japan in a geopolitical context, in relation to the US, China, and South Korea, and consider the use of historical memory and discourses of Pacifism in relation to Japan's role in the world today (Seminar 2). Seminar 2 will end with a field trip to Okinawa in early February (for those who wish to attend).

The Major is taught in English and we use English in class discussions, but Japanese can be used outside of class. Japanese resources can also be used but must be discussed in English.

In terms 3 and 4, we begin by looking at wider flows and processes of current nationalism and populist politics, gender, and race, while the student will in term 3 also develop their own research theme, and work on designing a research project to go on to undertake interviews or fieldwork as appropriate. This research will become the basis for their graduation thesis. Students in the past have researched themes such as Working Culture, Homelessness and Masculinity, School Lunch and Disciplining Morality, Youth Suicide and Media, Class, Migration and Inequality, Issues of Religion and Faith, Gender and Relationships.

Teacher Profile
Anne Mette Fisker-Nielsen, Ph.D. (Social Anthropology, SOAS, University of London). Anne Mette's research focuses on Japanese society, politics and religion, popular culture, gender, youth and young people engaging in politics. She has a long-standing interest in Japanese Society, Social Theory and Theory in Anthropology, and Comparative Cultures which she teaches at Soka University. Her long-term first-hand research focus on various topics in Japanese society including elections, youth engament and issues of 'peace', focusing specifically on the political party Komeito and the Buddhist organisation Soka Gakkai, and also has done long-term firsthand research in Okinawa. Her current research topics are on gender, youth and generational change, politics and emotions, debates within Critical Religion in the context of Japan, and on contemporary Soka Gakkai youth. https://researchmap.jp/7000026614

Peace and Conflict Studies

The Major in Peace Studies

SungYong Lee

The academic field of Peace and Conflict Studies is primarily concerned with an analysis of the origins and nature of violent conflict within and between societies, and with understanding the means to achieve a sustainable and just peace. The Peace Studies Major is designed to equip students with the ability to critically evaluate significant scholarly work in these fields and foster their ability to initiate and carry out their own research projects.

This major will specifically encompass the following learning areas:

• The main theories and approaches in the field of peace and conflict research.
• The key areas of debate on the causes and resolution of conflict, and contemporary peace-making and peacebuilding practice 

• A range of approaches to conflict resolution and peacebuilding 

• Making theoretically informed and empirically based arguments, and relating theoretical 
models to real world issues of peace and conflict. 

• Argumentation, analytical, writing, collaboration and presentation skills.
• Conducting independent research and awareness of difference research methods in the social sciences.

While the curriculum will incorporate a broad range of examples and case studies from across the globe, it will primarily focus on the Asia Pacific region.

The seminar modules are structured to progressively enhance students’ knowledge and skills. Seminars I and II will offer a critical review of selected works by prominent thinkers and scholars in the field of Peace Studies, on various peace-related topics. In-class sessions will incorporate the exchanges of students’ own understanding of the chosen texts and group discussions on related questions. Based on the in-class discussions, moreover, students will develop short statements that summarise their perspectives. The level of discussions will target 2^nd and 3^rd year undergraduate students.

Seminars III and IV aim to empower students to design and execute their own research projects. The content of these two seminars will prompt students to explore different academic research approaches and examine key components of research projects based on the research types. Subsequently, each student will learn how to devise a research plan for their individual project. These seminars primarily target 4^th year students who will need to develop their dissertations although it is open to other students. This major will adopt English as its operational language.

Teacher Profile

SungYong Lee (Ph.D. in International Relations, University of St. Andrews)

Dr Lee’s research primarily centres on conflict resolution, third-party mediation, post-conflict reconstruction, and post-liberal models of peacebuilding, with a geographical focus on Southeast Asia. A few keywords that he is currently working on include local ownership of peacebuilding, faith-based peacebuilding, community resilience, everyday peace, and social reconciliation in post-violent societies. He has been serving various academic or professional bodies including the International Studies Association (ISA, Peace Studies Section) and the Royal Society of New Zealand (Otago Regional Committee). Prior to involving the academic research, he had engaged with local peacebuilding programmes in India, Afghanistan and Cambodia as a field practitioner.

Philosophy

In this course, students will develop their ability to consider and discuss topics philosophically, and cultivate their ability to interact and create in order to think appropriately about the various problems we face. We believe that these skills are essential for practicing good value creation in any situation or field. In the exercises, we plan to consult with the students and refer to literature related to contemporary analytic philosophy, which is the specialty of the faculty member in charge (examples of topics: good and evil, justice and injustice, compassion and other virtues, philosophy and science/religion, existence, knowledge, faith, suicide/suicide, and etc.) In addition, numerous tutorials will be conducted by faculty and students, emphasizing the process of thorough conversation and discussion until students "get it" and "clearly get it".

Seminars in philosophy for AKADEMIA consist in two essential parts.

First, students and the instructor study together some key topics in various areas of philosophy, such as epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, philosophy of language, philosophy of science, political philosophy, and aesthetics. The purpose of this part is to expand participants’ academic interests and make them aware of the various interconnections between sub-fields of philosophy, as well as the connections between philosophy and other relevant subjects.

The topics this seminar group may deal with includes the following:

- The objectivity of morality and value judgements

- The meaning of moral/evaluative terms

- Causation

- Self-identity

- Knowledge and evidence

- Reasons for belief

- The value of art (including visit to Tokyo Fuji Art Museum)

- Philosophy for children (including visit to Tokyo Soka Elementary School)

- Death and suicide

Second, students choose some philosophical topics and undertake their own research while the instructor support their study and research. The ultimate goal of this part of the activity is to write final theses which are the requirement for graduation. This part of the seminar activity is conducted through tutorials. A tutorial is a meeting by very small number of people, in some cases just only one student and one instructor, in other cases a few students (two or three) and one instructor.

Here is a list of the topics past students in philosophy seminar wrote for their final theses.

- Morality and luck

- The value of tragedy

- The knowledge of the existence of God (primary through Thomas Aquinas’s work)

- Mereology

- Happiness/wellbeing

- Human nature

- The possibility of perceiving the emotions

- Cosmopolitanism

- Ethics for autonomous driving/cars

- AI and the emotions

- Friendship and its duty

- John Dewey’s ethics

The instructor’s expertise is philosophy and students who are interested in any parts of the subject (including the history of philosophy/ideas/thoughts, and also some topics from eastern traditions such as Buddhism) are welcome. The instructor is also interested in the philosophical aspects of the key founding figures of the university, especially Tsunesaburo Makiguchi and Daisaku Ikeda, and anyone who is interested in those figures from the philosophical perspective is also welcome.

Teacher’s profile

Ryo Chonabayashi (Ph.D. in Philosophy, Cardiff University)

Ryo Chonabayashi’s main research area is metaethics, a theoretical part of ethics/moral philosophy in which various foundational questions about morality and value are asked, such as whether morality and evaluative judgements have any objectivity or not. He has been working on how moral values causally connect with various empirical phenomena, such as some general patterns of people’s moral judgements and social stability/instability. He is also interested in how some Buddhist ideas and thoughts can be relevant to contemporary philosophical issues. About his research, please see his Researchmap page (https://researchmap.jp/r.chonabayashi?lang=en).

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The student will undertake research and write their graduation thesis according to the respective requirements for each Seminar.
For queries about the AKADEMIA program please contact Dr. Anne Mette Fisker-Nielsen fanne@soka.ac.jp

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Teacher Profiles

Anne Mette Fisker-Nielsen, Ph.D. (Social Anthropology, SOAS, University of London). Anne Mette's research focuses on Japanese society, politics and religion, popular culture, gender, youth and young people engaging in politics. She has a long-standing interest in Japanese Society, Social Theory and Theory in Anthropology, and Comparative Cultures which she teaches at Soka University. Her long-term first-hand research focus on various topics in Japanese society including elections, youth engament and issues of 'peace', focusing specifically on the political party Komeito and the Buddhist organisation Soka Gakkai, and also has done long-term firsthand research in Okinawa. Her current research topics are on gender, youth and generational change, politics and emotions, debates within Critical Religion in the context of Japan, and on contemporary Soka Gakkai youth. https://researchmap.jp/7000026614


Ryo Chonabayashi(Ph.D. in Philosophy, Cardiff University). Ryo Chonabayashi’s main research area is metaethics, a theoretical part of ethics/moral philosophy in which various foundational questions about morality and value are asked, such as whether morality and evaluative judgements have any objectivity or not. He has been working on how moral values causally connect with various empirical phenomena, such as some general patterns of people’s moral judgements and social stability/instability. He is also interested in how some Buddhist ideas and thoughts can be relevant to contemporary philosophical issues. About his research, please see his Researchmap page (https://researchmap.jp/r.chonabayashi?lang=en). 

SungYong Lee (Ph.D. in International Relations, University of St. Andrews).Dr Lee’s research primarily centres on conflict resolution, third-party mediation, post-conflict reconstruction, and post-liberal models of peacebuilding, with a geographical focus on Southeast Asia. A few keywords that he is currently working on include local ownership of peacebuilding, faith-based peacebuilding, community resilience, everyday peace, and social reconciliation in post-violent societies. He has been serving various academic or professional bodies including the International Studies Association (ISA, Peace Studies Section) and the Royal Society of New Zealand (Otago Regional Committee). Prior to involving the academic research, he had engaged with local peacebuilding programmes in India, Afghanistan and Cambodia as a field practitioner.