This is a course on visual culture in the 20th and 21st century, with a particular focus on the interplay between media technology, culture and society. This course will also be multidisciplinary in nature, as we reflect on our discursive assumptions in the historical, sociological, anthropological, philosophical disciplines among others. While the readings may primarily cover phenomenon in the United States, participants will be strongly encouraged to think of the specificity of the impact of globalization on media and society in various regions of the world including Japan. The course objectives are the following: -Gain a better understanding of the relationships between society, media, people, institutions and how they function as agents of maintaining the status quo or for fostering change -Learn about the transformative faculties and social implications of quotidian applications of technology -Gain deeper understanding of the academic disciplines Topics will include (but are not limited to): -representation of race, ethnicity and gender and other minorities -regional, transnational and international ecosystems of information technology -artificial intelligence and algorithmic bias -technological advancement and implementation in everyday life and the powers at play

This is a course on visual culture in the 20th and 21st century, with a particular focus on the interplay between media technology, culture and society. This course will also be multidisciplinary in nature, as we reflect on our discursive assumptions in the historical, sociological, anthropological, philosophical disciplines among others. While the readings may primarily cover phenomenon in the United States, participants will be strongly encouraged to think of the specificity of the impact of globalization on media and society in various regions of the world including Japan. The course objectives are the following: -Gain a better understanding of the relationships between society, media, people, institutions and how they function as agents of maintaining the status quo or for fostering change -Learn about the transformative faculties and social implications of quotidian applications of technology -Gain deeper understanding of the academic disciplines Topics will include (but are not limited to): -representation of race, ethnicity and gender and other minorities -regional, transnational and international ecosystems of information technology -artificial intelligence and algorithmic bias -technological advancement and implementation in everyday life and the powers at play

Students are welcome to this class where we will learn about and discuss issues surrounding global society and language. Sociolinguistics explores how language and society are connected. It looks at how language shapes, and is shaped by, factors like identity, gender, ethnicity, education, class, sexuality, power, and culture. These are topics that both students and teachers have real-life experience with. In this course, we will share our experiences, thoughts, and opinions on them. Different languages and the social and historical backgrounds of the people who speak them affect how policies are made, especially as we work toward the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Because of this, it is very important to understand the role language plays in society—and how this understanding can help us reach our global development targets. For example, recognizing language diversity is crucial at a time when many populations around the world are vulnerable. Understanding their varied linguistic needs allows us to create inclusive policies that respect multiple languages and benefit everyone. By the conclusion of this course, it is hoped that you will have obtained knowledge of sociolinguistics and the role language plays in sectors relevant to global society through readings and class discussions. You will have ample opportunity to share your thoughts and opinions on these issues as we gain a collective understanding of how language will enable us to work towards the SDGs and navigate obstacles along the way.

Students are welcome to this class where we will learn about and discuss issues surrounding global society and language. Sociolinguistics explores how language and society are connected. It looks at how language shapes, and is shaped by, factors like identity, gender, ethnicity, education, class, sexuality, power, and culture. These are topics that both students and teachers have real-life experience with. In this course, we will share our experiences, thoughts, and opinions on them. Different languages and the social and historical backgrounds of the people who speak them affect how policies are made, especially as we work toward the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Because of this, it is very important to understand the role language plays in society—and how this understanding can help us reach our global development targets. For example, recognizing language diversity is crucial at a time when many populations around the world are vulnerable. Understanding their varied linguistic needs allows us to create inclusive policies that respect multiple languages and benefit everyone. By the conclusion of this course, it is hoped that you will have obtained knowledge of sociolinguistics and the role language plays in sectors relevant to global society through readings and class discussions. You will have ample opportunity to share your thoughts and opinions on these issues as we gain a collective understanding of how language will enable us to work towards the SDGs and navigate obstacles along the way.

This is a course on the hegemonic power struggles that play out in leisure, with a particular emphasis on the role of media technology. This course will start with a brief introduction to leisure studies as a discipline followed by the bulk of the semester spent on reading specific studies on leisure and media in the 20th and 21st century. While the readings may primarily cover phenomenon in the United States, participants will be strongly encouraged to think of the specificity of the impact of globalization on leisure and media in various regions of the world including Japan. The course objectives are the following: - Gain insight into the significance of leisure as a central concept for academic inquiry - Gain a deeper understanding on how power is institutionalized in society through leisure, such as in the form of regulatory structures, normative mechanisms, and representation - Gain insight into the mechanisms of inculcation through everyday media - Gain insight into the impact that globalization has had on leisure and media Topics will include the following among others: racial, ethnic and other social minorities; gender; class; tourism; cinema; television; representation; serious leisure; volunteerism; regional, transnational and international ecosystems of leisure culture; leisure and technology.

This is a course on the hegemonic power struggles that play out in leisure, with a particular emphasis on the role of media technology. This course will start with a brief introduction to leisure studies as a discipline followed by the bulk of the semester spent on reading specific studies on leisure and media in the 20th and 21st century. While the readings may primarily cover phenomenon in the United States, participants will be strongly encouraged to think of the specificity of the impact of globalization on leisure and media in various regions of the world including Japan. The course objectives are the following: - Gain insight into the significance of leisure as a central concept for academic inquiry - Gain a deeper understanding on how power is institutionalized in society through leisure, such as in the form of regulatory structures, normative mechanisms, and representation - Gain insight into the mechanisms of inculcation through everyday media - Gain insight into the impact that globalization has had on leisure and media Topics will include the following among others: racial, ethnic and other social minorities; gender; class; tourism; cinema; television; representation; serious leisure; volunteerism; regional, transnational and international ecosystems of leisure culture; leisure and technology.

• Demonstrate a clear grasp of the core concepts, such as globalisation, Anthropocene, planetarity or earth, and contending definitions of them. • Distinguish between the economic, political, cultural, sociological, philosophical and ethical dimensions of these notions and articulate an analytic understanding of how they interact. • Analyse and identify the ways in which human and non-human actors attempt to reverse or modify ongoing global and planetary processes. • Appreciate the normative dimension of the state of the earth and what it takes to change it. • Critically engage different philosophical arguments about the ethical desirability of possible futures.

This course explores the role of law and governance in mediating the human-environment interface. It focuses on the Anthropocene as it confronts law and governance scholars with a unique challenge concerning the need to question, and ultimately re-imagine, international environmental law and governance interventions in the light of a new socio-ecological situation. Through interactive lectures, classroom discussions based upon pre-assigned readings, oral presentations, and the elaboration of a joint mini-project, students not only assess the (mostly unsuccessful and ineffective) regulatory interventions used thus far to mediate the human-environment interface; they also examine the possibility to develop counter-narratives and alternative institutional practices, by drawing on most recent critical legal approaches as well as sociocultural traditions that have been marginalised within international environmental law.

This course explores the role of law and governance in mediating the human-environment interface. It focuses on the Anthropocene as it confronts law and governance scholars with a unique challenge concerning the need to question, and ultimately re-imagine, international environmental law and governance interventions in the light of a new socio-ecological situation. Through interactive lectures, classroom discussions based upon pre-assigned readings, oral presentations, and the elaboration of a joint mini-project, students not only assess the (mostly unsuccessful and ineffective) regulatory interventions used thus far to mediate the human-environment interface; they also examine the possibility to develop counter-narratives and alternative institutional practices, by drawing on most recent critical legal approaches as well as sociocultural traditions that have been marginalised within international environmental law.

This seminar aims to discuss the social / historical bases on which a modern legal system might operate in various East Asian societies, and to provide an introduction to some of those problems involving the integration of different legal traditions into a pluralistic yet coherent legal regime. We will focus on the tensions experienced by these societies, involving the importation of what were presented as "universal" values and norms, and the near-universal resistance to these values and norms, such resistance being based on the notions of custom and tradition. While the initial focus will be mainly on the experiences concerning the formation of legal institutions in China and Japan, students will be encouraged to bring in perspectives from other societies as well. The problems discussed will include: the difficulties regarding what exactly can be identified as East Asian legal traditions; how legal regimes were structured through the actions of actors exploiting the plurality of legal traditions; and how the relationship between legal arrangements and the political power-structure played out. Particular attention will also be paid to the issues of colonialism, and the uneasy relationship between Modernisation, Westernisation and Colonisation in these societies. The ability to read source materials written in Chinese and/or Japanese would be of much help, but will not be essential.