[S2E9] 🧭 Capitals of Fate with Prof Ellen Van Goethem

This week we are joined by Ellen Van Goethem, Professor in Japanese Humanities at Kyushu University, to discuss Capitals of Fate. Ellen’s research focusses on the history and archaeology of Japan’s early and frequently changing capitals from the Asuka to the early Heian period.

[S2E8] 🌲 Landscapes of Empire with Prof David Fedman

This week we are joined by David Fedman, Associate Professor of History at the University of California, Irvine, to discuss Landscapes of Empire. David will share his research on the legacy of the Japanese Empire’s foresting initiative on the Korean peninsula, taking a look at collaboration and resistance between colonised Koreans and Japanese imperial authorities, how afforestation was rich with oppressive discourse designed to raise Japanese ecology and lower Koreans, and how the initiative continued to shape the landscape of Korea after the empire fell.