Japan and the World Campaign

Just four short years ago Professor Mickey Adolphson launched the Japan and the World Campaign during his inaugural speech as Keidanren Chair of Japanese Studies. 

Since then the Japan and the World Campaign has seen Japanese Studies at Cambridge go from strength to strength. In the past four years we have: secured tens of thousands of pounds in funding for our excellent graduate students; established a raft of new and exciting internships in Japan and the UK for our undergraduate students; and forged strong links with Japanese businesses across a wide range of sectors.

Although we are pleased and encouraged with how far we have come, we are not content to rest on our laurels. We will continue striving to keep Cambridge as a world leader in Japanese Studies, in line with the aims of the Japan and the World Campaign:

  • To stimulate and support the inclusion of Japan-related research and creative activities in the full range of academic disciplines.
  • To enable scholars and students from Japan to engage with Cambridge colleagues in innovative research and dialogue.
  • To create a venue where research on Japan can be brought into broader discussions in all scholarly disciplines, academia in general and broader policy discussions.

Why Japan? The third largest economy in the world, Japan is also a leader in scientific innovation and creativity (i.e. robotics and green energy). Despite this, opportunities for collaboration and sharing of knowledge, approaches and methodologies with UK scholars and institutions are limited. We aim to rectify that with this centre.

Why Cambridge University? Cambridge University is one of the top universities in the world and excels in several fields where Japan too has a strong interest. It has produced the highest number of Nobel laureates in the world. In addition, scholarship on and teaching of Japan have a longer history at Cambridge than anywhere else in the UK.

Why now? The challenges facing the world have become increasingly complex, and insular approaches to solving them are no longer feasible. As leaders in many areas, Cambridge University and Japan would not only be ideal partners but also set a new model for the rest of the world.