Dear friends and colleagues,
The Center for Southeast Asian Studies (CSEAS) Kyoto University is pleased to announce the launch of a monthly internal newsletter. This will be sent out on a monthly basis and include updates on activities, research meetings, events, new publications and podcasts.
May 2023 issue includes:
1. Announcements and Highlights
2. Upcoming Events
3. Publications: Hot off the CSEAS Press
4. Podcasts in Japanese: “Book Talk on Asia”
5. Past Events
Thank you and regards,
The Public Relations Committee, Center for Southeast Asian Studies (CSEAS)
1. Announcements and Highlights
【May Get Together】
・The monthly welcome and farewell party, Get Together, will be held on Thursday, May 25, from 12:30 pm at the Research Commons room (on the 1st floor of the East bldg). Please join us and have an opportunity to enjoy small talk.
We have updated the visiting scholars’ web page. Please check here.
【New Guest Research Associate】
・Yuhki Tajima (political science, Southeast Asian studies): CSEAS welcome Yuhki Tajima as Guest Scholar on May 23.
・Lawrence Chua (history of architecture, urban development): CSEAS welcome Lawrence Chua as Visiting Research Scholar on June 1.
【Visitor’s Voice】
New interview articles are available now. We asked them about their research, future ambitions, and more.
・Interview with Tong Chee Kiong, “The Chinese in Southeast Asia.”
【Website Renewal】The official website of the Consortium for Southeast Asian Studies in Asia (SEASIA) is now available at this link: https://seasia-consortium.org/
【New!】CSEAS have released a new video in our research introduction video series ‘TANKEN Video: Welcome to Area Studies.’
・“Lessons from Anthropology: Researching Japan’s Care Home Dilemma in Fukuoka”（Main Cast: Mario Ivan Lopez）
The aim of this video series is to widely publicize the field activities and research of the CSEAS members, and to introduce the latest area studies through the researchers who are engaged in it.
A number of videos are available to promote the appeal of area studies. Please take a look! They can also be used as teaching materials.
【Award】Dr. Thongchai Winichakul (History) has been awarded the Grand Prize of the 33rd Fukuoka Prize. Congratulations! Thongchai Winichakul stayed at CSEAS as Visiting Research Scholar in 2015. The award citation and the message upon announcement of laureates are available on the website.
CSEAS Beginner’s Guide to Southeast Asian Studies in Japanese, edited by Tatsuki Kataoka and Yoshihiro Nakanishi (2022), contains an introduction by Junko Koizumi to Siam Mapped: A History of the Geo-body of a Nation, by Thongchai Winichakul (translated to Japanese by Yoneo Ishii, Akashi Shoten, 2003). The full text can be read here.
2. Upcoming Events
・CSEAS Colloquium: Making Gods: A Case Study of the City God Worship in Anxi, China and Singapore
25 May 2023, 1:30 pm – 15:00 pm
Venue: Research Commons, Ground Floor, East Building, CSEAS, Kyoto University
Speaker: Tong Chee Kiong (CSEAS Visiting Research Scholar)
・Kyoto AEDS Seminar
25 May 2023, 3 pm – 6:15 pm
Venue: E217 Conference Room 1 on 2F, Faculty of Agriculture Main Bldg., North Campus, Kyoto University
Speaker: Takeshi Sakurai (Professor, The University of Tokyo)
Title: TBA
Speaker: John Gibson (Professor, University of Waikato; Visiting Faculty, Hitotsubashi University)
Title: “Measurement errors in popular DMSP night-time lights data lead to understated estimates of spatial inequality and attenuated treatment effects in empirical political economy”
・CSEAS-KASEAS Joint Conference 2023: Engaging Southeast Asian Studies in an Age of Uncertainties
26-27 May 2023
Venue: Middle-sized Meeting Room (No.332), 3rd Floor, Inamori Foundation Memorial Building, Kyoto University
・ CSEAS Reading Group: The Secret of Our Success: How Culture Is Driving Human Evolution, Domesticating Our Species, and Making Us Smarter by Joseph Henrich
26 May 2023, 4 pm –
Hybrid Venue: Seminar Room (No. 213), 2nd Floor, Inamori Foundation Memorial Building
Lecturer: Chika Yamada (CSEAS)
・Special Lecture: Documenting Endangered Heritage in Southeast Asia
31 May 2023, 14:00 (Bangkok Time)
Venue: Faculty of Architecture, Silpakorn University
Speaker: R. Michael Feener (CSEAS)
・AAS-in-Asia 2023 “Asia in Motion: Memory, Preservation, and Documentation”
24-27 June 2023
Venue: Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
Kisho Tsuchiya (CSEAS) will present his research paper, “Reconsidering the Mid-Twentieth Century in Portuguese Timor: A Comparison of Portuguese and Japanese Archives” and participate in the roundtable “Possible Futures for Southeast Asian Studies.”
・2023 Timor-Leste Studies Association Conference
12-14 July 2023
Venue: Universidade Nacional Timor Lorosa’e (UNTL), Dili, Timor-Leste
Kisho Tsuchiya (CSEAS) will organize the special stream for Decolonizing Timor-Leste Studies and present a research paper, “History, Oral Traditions, and Archaeology: Reconceptualizing Historical Research to understand East Timorese Longue Durée.”
3. Publications: Hot off the CSEAS Press
【Latest Issue】
・Vol. 12, No. 1 of Southeast Asian Studies on 27 April 2023.
In this issue, Atsushi Ota (Keio University) served as guest editor of the Special Focus “Environmental and Public Welfare in the Creation and Development of Economic Infrastructure in Southeast Asia, c. 1800-1930: Currency Supply, Forest Control, and Rail Transport.” In addition, three articles and five book reviews are included.
【Latest Issue】
・Special Issue (35) titled “The Intellectual History of Buddhism in the Republic of Vietnam” of Kyoto Review of Southeast Asia is out on March 1, 2023. In this issue, Wynn Gadkar-Wilcox (Western Connecticut State University) and Olga Dror (Texas A&M University) serve as guest editors.
【New Article】
・TRENDSETTERS column “The Unforgettable Periphery: Southeast Asian Nature of China’s Southwestern Frontier” by Duan Haosheng and Liu Yunkang, in Kyoto Review of Southeast Asia on May 1, 2023.
【New Article】
・The latest essay on CSEAS faculty’s ongoing research is now available: the May 2023 issue of “Notes from the Field” by R. Michael Feener.
【New Article】
・The latest essay CSEAS faculty recommends books recently read is now available: the May 2023 issue of “Letter from the Kamogawa River” by Tomohiro Machikita.
【New Book/Open Access】
・Kosuke Mizuno, Osamu Kozan, and Haris Gunawan (eds), Vulnerability and Transformation of Indonesian Peatlands, Springer Singapore, 2023.
【New Article】
・Tatsuno, M, Wada, T, Kato, E, Hirayama, K, Fujisawa, M, Kimura, Y, Ishimoto, Y, Hirosaki, M, Nose, M, Yamada, C, Kohori-Segawa, H, Kasahara, Y, Yamamoto, N, Okumiya, K, Matsubayashi, K, Sakamoto, R. (2023) “Association between glucose tolerance and mortality among Japanese community-dwelling older adults aged over 75 years: 12-year observation of the Tosa Longitudinal Aging Study.” Geriatr. Gerontol. Int. 23: 341–347. https://doi.org/10.1111/ggi.14572
【New Article/PDF Available】
・Kisho Tsuchiya (2022). “What was “Independence” for the East Timorense? A historian’s autobiographical reflections over perceptions of the past,” Revista Oriente 29.
【New Article】
・Walden Bello (2023) “From Partnership to Rivalry: China and the USA in the Early Twenty-First Century,” Journal of Contemporary Asia, DOI: 10.1080/00472336.2023.2199760
【Forthcoming】
・Kisho Tsuchiya, Emplacing East Timor: The Cycle of Regime Change and Knowledge Production, 1860-2010, University of Hawai‘i Press.
4. Podcasts in Japanese: “Book Talk on Asia”
In this program, the Editorial Office, CSEAS will introduce the latest books on Asia twice a month. The authors will be invited to talk about the contents and background of their books.
Soundcloud / YouTube
【New!】Book Talk on Asia No. 62 (24 May 2023) Koji Tsuda, Nihon gunseika Jyawa no Kakyo shakai: Kyoeiho ni miru tosei to doin (Chinese Society in Java under Japanese Military Rule: Control and Mobilization as Reflected in the Kung Yung Pao). Tokyo: Fukyosha, 2023 (in Japanese).
SoundCloud / YouTube / Book information
【New!】Book Talk on Asia No. 61 (10 May 2023) Junko Saito, Shin-Chugokujin: Gekihen suru shakai to nayameru wakamonotachi (The New Chinese), Chikumashobo, 2023 (in Japanese).
SoundCloud / YouTube / Book information
・Book Talk on Asia No. 60 (26 April 2023) Ryuju Satomi, Fuon na nettai: Ningen “izen” to “igo” no jinruigaku (The Unsettling Tropics: An Anthropology Before and After the Human). Kawadeshobo-shinsha, 2022 (in Japanese).
SoundCloud / YouTube / Book information
・Book Talk on Asia No. 59 (12 April 2023) Kim Yujin. Popyura ongaku to gendai seiji: Indoneshia jiritsu to izon no bunka jissen (Popular Music and Politics in Indonesia: the Paradox of Independent Cultural Practices). Kyoto University Press, 2023 (in Japanese).
SoundCloud / YouTube / Book information
・Book Talk on Asia No. 58 (22 March 2023) Naomi Nishi, Isuramu kaikakuha to shakai togo: Tai shinnanbu ni okeru Mare Nasyonarizumu no henyo (Islamic reformism and social integration: The transformation of Malay nationalism in the Deep South of Thailand), Keio University Press, 2022 (in Japanese).
SoundCloud / YouTube / Book information
5. Past Events
・Special Seminar: The End of Revival? The Crisis of Buddhist Monastic Ordination and Shifting Economic and Gender Regimes among the Tai Lue of Southwest China
20 May 2023, 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm
Venue: Tonantei (Room 201), 2nd Floor, Inamori Foundation Memorial Building, Kyoto University
Speaker: Roger Casas (Visiting Researcher, Chiang Mai University)
・Courtesy visit from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM)
18 May 2023
・Myanmar Film Festival 2023
13-14 May 2023
Venue: Theater Seven, Osaka
・Workshop to Commemorate 50 Years of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation: Shaping Future Vision of ASEAN-Japan Friendship through Science, Technology and Innovation Coodinators towards 2050
12 May 2023, 9 am – 12 pm
Hybrid Venue: Centara Grand at Central Ladprao, Bangkok, Thailand / Zoom
・CSEAS Seminar on Indonesia: Development of Regional Autonomy in Indonesia in the Reformation Era
8 May 2023, 3:30 pm – 5 pm
Hybrid Venue: Seminar Room (Room 213), 2nd Floor, Inamori Foundation Memorial Building, Kyoto University / Zoom
Speaker: Djohermansyah Djohan (Former Director General of the Directorate General of Regional Autonomy, the Ministry of Home Affairs, Indonesia)
Commentator: Kazuhisa Matsui (Matsui Glocal LLC)
Moderator: Masaaki Okamoto (CSEAS)
・Special Talk: “Urbanism as the Way of Thai Life”
8 May 2023, 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Venue: Seminar Room (Room 213), 2nd Floor, Inamori Foundation Memorial Building, Kyoto University
Speaker: Apiwat Ratanawaraha (Associate Professor, Chulalongkorn University, CSEAS Visiting Research Scholar）
Moderator: Pavin Chachavalpongpun (CSEAS)
・“Bring Your Fevorite Short Films” by Film Study Group on Culture and Society in Southeast Asia
28 April 2023, 6:30 pm –
Venue: Former Kyoto Prize Library Room, 1st Floor, Inamori Foundation Memorial Building, Kyoto University
・CSEAS Colloquium: From Partnership to Hegemonic Stalemate? The US-China Relationship in the Early 21st Century
27 April 2023, 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm
Venue: Middle-sized Meeting Room (No. 332), 3rd Floor, Inamori Foundation Memorial Building
Speaker: Walden Flores Bello (CSEAS Visiting Research Scholar)
・Kyoto University Asian Economic Development Seminar (AEDS)
26 April 2023, 4:45 pm – 6:15 pm
Venue: Seminar Room (Room 213), 2nd Floor, Inamori Foundation Memorial Building, Kyoto University
Speaker: Sultan Mehmood (New Economic School in Moscow)
Title: Contract Enforcement in a Stateless Economy (with Daniel L. Chen)
Chair and Contact: Tomohiro Machikita (CSEAS)
・Naresuan University Department of Sociology & Anthropology Seminar at CSEAS Kyoto University
26 April 2023, 10:00 am – 12:30 pm
Venue: Middle-sized Meeting Room, 3rd Floor, Inamori Foundation Memorial Building, Kyoto University
・34th Annual Conference of the European Cetacean Society (ECS)
18-20 April 2023
Venue: O Grove, Galicia, Spain
Satoko Kimura (CSEAS) presented a poster titled “Influence of vessel noise and light regime on finless porpoise (Neophocaena asiaeorientalis) echolocation characteristcs in Seto Inland Sea and Mikawa Bay, Japan” with Mayu Ogawa (KUSP).
■Endnotes
A month has already passed since I arrived at CSEAS. I deeply appreciate everyone for your warm welcome; once I enter the building, I find it refreshing to encounter new discoveries almost every day. I’d like to introduce one of the most impressive episodes, from when I was talking with researchers conducting field work. I usually study the norm-making behavior of states in the United Nations assembly hall. Rhetoric in such environments are full of “sugar-coated” language, but when I listen to researchers that conduct field research, I realize that keywords such as “human rights” imply the actual lives of thousands of people. Furthermore, for me whose interview subjects are international organization staff or diplomats, I find it so fascinating when everyone have serious discussions on how to capture the voice of each and every person; it makes me reflect on the meaning of my research. I am very much looking forward to learning more about the diversity of everyone’s experiences and backgrounds. I am a novice, but I’d like to try my best, and thank you for your guidance. (T.T.)
After three and a half years of hiatus, I embarked on my first journey home. Home is a peculiar space, forever occupied by familiar faces, permeated with the aroma of piping hot meals and the ever-present soundtrack of nagging – a place where languor is not just accepted but encouraged. The internet, had lured me into the illusion of a persistent connection with my family, blinding me to their subtle transformations over time. The grandmother who always ambled alongside me now must crane her neck to meet my gaze. At what point did my father’s hair begin to surrender to white? Has his former quick temper, somehow found a new home in my mother? Unbeknownst to me, they were stealthily aging in the time we were apart. It is an inevitable part of life, yet I have just started to learn to come to terms with it. (Y)
■To all affiliated researchers using CSEAS mail accounts: A Request from the Public Relations Committee
We are happy to share our monthly CSEAS Digital News with you through CSEAS and ASAFAS mailing lists (all_cseas [at] cseas.kyoto-u.ac.jp, all-tk [at] asafas.kyoto-u.ac.jp).
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*Back issues of CSEAS Digital News are listed here in the order of one month after publication.
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E-MAIL: tanken [at] cseas.kyoto-u.ac.jp / Google Form