Rethinking Japanese Peruvian Immigration Memories through the Notion of the Anthropocene

Research Project

Project/Area Number	23K00468
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
Allocation Type	Multi-year Fund
Section	一般
Review Section	Basic Section 02050:Literature in general-related
Research Institution	Waseda University
Principal Investigator	間藤茂子早稲田大学, 国際学術院, 教授 (90579468)
Project Period (FY)	2023-04-01 – 2027-03-31
Project Status	Granted (Fiscal Year 2023)
Budget Amount *help	¥4,680,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,600,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,080,000) Fiscal Year 2026: ¥910,000 (Direct Cost: ¥700,000、Indirect Cost: ¥210,000) Fiscal Year 2025: ¥1,300,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,000,000、Indirect Cost: ¥300,000) Fiscal Year 2024: ¥1,040,000 (Direct Cost: ¥800,000、Indirect Cost: ¥240,000) Fiscal Year 2023: ¥1,430,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,100,000、Indirect Cost: ¥330,000)
Keywords	Library research / Anthropocene / Memory studies / Settler colonialism / Japanese immigration / US West / Latin America / Japanese Peruvian Memory / Immigration / Plantationocene
Outline of Research at the Start	This project explores four memory texts of Japanese immigration through the notion of the Anthropocene and examines how the specific cultural and geopolitical background of the Japanese immigration to Peru, their memories, the memories of lands are interconnected and how the elucidation of such interconnectedness enables us to recognize the latent effects of climate change even within the memory texts of Japanese immigration, which are not explicitly about climate change. This study shows how the Japanese immigrants affected the lands where they arrived and how they were affected by the lands.
Outline of Annual Research Achievements	During the year, I focused on gathering materials about the concept of the Anthropocene, Plantationocene, and Capitalocene and memory studies at libraries in Japan and the U.S. While researching, I came across articles and books examining the connections between Japanese immigration to the US West and to Latin America. This finding prompted me to explore how the Japanese imperial government promoted the concept of settler colonialism and attempted to apply the system in the US West and later in Latin America. Based on my research, I completed the first rough draft of an article and am currently in the process of revising. One of the goals I was unable to accomplish this year was to find an appropriate scholar to provide a seminar on the Anthropocene. However, I engaged in discussing the topic with several scholars in Japan and in the U.S. and visited exhibitions related to the Anthropocene at museums. One such occasion took place with a Colombian writer, Pilar Quintana, who came to Waseda to give a talk about her personal and professional engagement in creative writing. While this event was not directly related to the Karen project, I had the opportunity to discuss the intersectionality of gender, race and climate change in the coastal area of Colombia.
Current Status of Research Progress	Current Status of Research Progress 3: Progress in research has been slightly delayed. Reason In terms of gathering materials, studying, and writing, I have been making progress. I have finished the first rough draft of an article and am now in the process of revising it. However, it has been difficult to organize a seminar with a scholar specializing in memory studies through the lens of the Anthropocene, partly due to the budgetary constraints stemming from the ongoing low value of the yen. I was unable to cover traveling expenses. Similarly, due to the budgetary issues, I couldn't afford to attend an international conference in Mexico where I planned to present a paper and discuss the possibility of organizing a conference. Instead, I decided to save the remaining funds for the following year, with the hop of attending an international conference or inviting a guest scholar.
Strategy for Future Research Activity	I will continue to seek an appropriate scholar who can give a talk or workshop on the exploration of memory studies through the lens of the Anthropocene, possibly by exploring other budgetary sources. While I had planned to conduct an interview with a Japanese Peruvian poet in Peru during this year, but I was unable to achieve this goal. However, I am planning to visit Peru for research purposes during the summer of 2024. This will give me an opportunity to interview the poet. Additionally, I will adhere to my initial research plans, which include: 1. Continuing to gather materials at libraries in Japan, the US, and Peru. 2. Visiting Chancay in Peru and the Little World in Aichi, where a replication of a Japanese immigrant's plantation house can be found. 3. Continuing to write articles.