Events

We are delighted to cordially invite you to the annual conference of the German Association for Social Science Research on Japan (VSJF), which will take place at the University of Vienna from November 7 to 9, 2025.

This year’s theme, “(Un)Democratic Futures: Japan and the Global Trajectories Towards an (Un)Equal World,” raises the central questions on the future of democracy and equality. Bringing together outstanding scholars of Japanese studies and political theory, the conference aims to explore how democratic futures are imagined and enacted in an age of planetary crisis, democratic backsliding, and growing inequality.

As the sense of an open future is increasingly overshadowed by nostalgia, defensiveness, and defeatism, we ask: What kinds of democratic imaginaries inspire and enable hope and collective action today? Drawing on the roots of democracy as a future-oriented emancipatory project, this three-day conference invites both rigorous critique and desirable imaginaries.

We especially welcome participants from diverse academic and professional backgrounds, and we hope for vibrant interdisciplinary exchanges. The conference further aims at fostering scientific community-building and career development for early-career researchers.

Keynote Speakers:

• Prof. Uno Shigeki (University of Tokyo)
• Prof. H. L. T. Quan (Arizona State University)

The full conference program (with remaining presentation titles to be added shortly) is available on the conference website:

👉 https://vsjf2025.univie.ac.at/

Conference fees*:

Supporting Fee (for professors & high-income individuals wishing to support VSJF and the event) €200

Regular Fee €150 (€120 Early Bird until August 1)

Regular Fee (VSJF Members) €100 (€80 Early Bird until August 1)

PhD Candidates with Funding €60

Students (BA, MA, and unfunded PhD) incl. Dinner €30

Students (BA, MA, and unfunded PhD) excl. Dinner €0

* All conference fees include:

– Access to all panels

– Post-conference dinner (November 7, unless otherwise noted)

– Lunch (November 8)

– Coffee breaks throughout

– Discounted print copy of the MINIKOMI VSJF 2025 Special Issue, featuring previously unpublished translations by invited speakers

Registration:

👉 Register here: https://univie.eventsair.com/vsjf2025/regregularen/Site/Register

Registration and payment deadline: November 6, 2025

VSJF Gender Workshop

The VSJF Gender Workshop will take place in conjunction with the main conference, on the afternoon of 6 November and the morning of 7 November, at the Marietta-Blau-Saal, University of Vienna.

Co-organized by Annette Schad-Seifert (Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf) and Kerstin Fooken (University of Hamburg), the workshop program will be distributed via J-Studien.

Participation is free of charge.

To register, please contact:

📧 schadsei[at]hhu.de and kerstin.fooken[at]uni-hamburg.de

VSJF Annual Conference 2025 is supported by:

• Department of East Asian Studies, Japanese Studies, University of Vienna
• Japan Foundation
• Toshiba Foundation
• German Association for Social Science Research on Japan (VSJF)
• Doctoral School of Philological and Cultural Studies (PhilKult), University of Vienna
• City of Vienna

We are truly excited to welcome you to Vienna for what promises to be a stimulating and inspiring conference. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or require support for your participation.