The aim of the conference is to foster a discussion on the future of democracy and equality among outstanding scholars from Japan and the German-speaking world. In the face of numerous crises, the future has seemingly become predetermined for many. Building on the roots of democracy as a hopeful and emancipatory project, the three-day conference seeks to encourage both hopeful perspectives and critical reflections on the present. Special attention will be given to bringing together experts from Japanese studies, political science and political theory to leverage the potential of area studies organizations as transnational bridges for intellectual exchange and community building.

The following guiding questions frame the organization and conceptualization of the conference:

– What (in)equalities are characteristic of our current political moment, and what democratic futures are emerging, feasible, or necessary?
– What new boundaries or urgencies for democratic practices arise due to the escalating planetary crisis?

For the latest information about the annual conference, please visit: https://vsjf2025.univie.ac.at.
For questions, please contact Andreas Eder-Ramsauer (andreas.eder-ramsauer@univie.ac.at).

As usual, the VSJF Gender Workshop will begin the afternoon before the conference, on November 6, 2025.

The conference is supported by the Japan Foundation, the Toshiba Foundation, the Faculty of Philological and Cultural Studies, as well as the DocSchool of the faculty, and especially the section “Global Entanglements”. Lastly, we thank the City of Vienna for its support.

Program*

Friday
7.11.2025

9:00-11:30	Leisure time recommendation: “Daruma 達磨 Exhibition” at the Cultural Center of the Japanese Embassy in Vienna
11:30- 12:30	Registration, Room: C2 foyer, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna
12:30-13:00	Opening Remarks, Room: C2, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna
13:00-14:30	Keynote Speech I: Prof. Dr. Uno Shigeki, Tokyo University: “The Final Dismantling of Japanese Conservatism and the Future of Democracy” Chair: Dr. Karin Narita, Sheffield University Room: C2, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna
14:30-15:00	Coffee Break, Room: C2 foyer, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna
15:00- 15:15	“Vienna Research for Democratic Futures” – Project Presentation I: Prefiguring Democratic Futures (PREDEF): Cultural and Theoretical Responses to the Crisis of Political Imagination (ERC-funded Project of the Department for Political Theory, University of Vienna) – Prof. Dr. Oliver Marchart Room: C2, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna
15:15-16:45	Panel 1: (Un-)Democratic Futures X Democratic Theory Chair: Prof. Dr. Oliver Marchart, Universität Wien Room: C2, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna PD Dr. Veith Selk, TU Darmstadt, “The Crisis of Democratic Theory” Prof. Dr. Gabriele Vogt, LMU München: “Aging Democracies, Silent Youth: How Population Aging Impacts Political Participation in Japan and the Asia-Pacific” Prof. Dr. Yamamoto Kei, Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto: “Twisting Plebiscite Democracy into Radical Democratic Politics” Viktoria Huegel, Ph.D., Universität Wien: “An Appeal to Authority in Authoritarian Times”
16:45-17:15	Coffee Break, Room: Aula, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 1, 1090 Vienna
17:15-18:45	Panel 2: Futures X Gender Politics Chair: Anna-Maria Stabentheiner, MA, Universität Wien Room: C2, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna Prof. Dr. Takeda Hiroko, Nagoya University: “The Politics of Life and Death in Japan: Examining the Family-State Nexus” Prof. Suzuki Ayaka, University of Tsukuba: “Honorary Men and Neoliberal Femininity in Contemporary Japan” (online) Prof. Shimizu Akiko, Tokyo University: “The Return of the Anti-Gender Movement in Japan” Dr. Karsten Schubert, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin: “In Praise of Identity Politics”
19:30-22:00	Welcome Dinner (“Heuriger 10er Marie”,  Ottakringer Str. 222/224, 1160 Wien)

Saturday
8.11.2025

09:00-11:00	VSJF Section Meetings, Room: Japanese Studies Department
11:00-11:30	Coffee Break, Room: C2 foyer, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna
11:30- 11:45	“Vienna Research for Democratic Futures” – Project Presentation II: Interversity: Movements in Uncertainty (Department Project, Japanese Studies Department, University of Vienna) – Prof. Dr. Ina Hein, Prof. Dr. Wolfram Manzenreiter & Prof. Dr. Hanno Jentzsch
11:45-13:15	Panel 3: Futures X Economic Disparity Chair: Prof. Dr. David Chiavacchi, Universität Zürich Room: C2, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna Dr. Gabriele Michalitsch, Universität Wien: “From Competitive Entrepreneur to Violent Warrior: Neoliberalism, Authoritarianism, and Militarisation” Prof. Dr. Simon Avenell, Australian National University: “Generationalism in Japan: Leave Them Kids (and Retirees) Alone!” Dr. Shibata Saori, University of Sheffield: “Hampered Digitalisation: Institutional Failure and New Instability in Japan”  Prof. Dr. Hanno Jentzsch, Universität Wien: “Civic Self-Governance and the Erosion of Local Democracy in Japan’s Aging Rural Peripheries“
13:15-14:45	Lunch, Room: C2 foyer, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna 13:30 – 14:30 | Peer-Support Panel (DocSchool Section “Global Entanglements”) – Brownbag Lunch: “Career Paths between Area Studies and Disciplines: Writing for a Truly Global Audience”, Room: Department of Japanese Studies, Jap 1 – Dr. Chris Perkins, Edinburgh University (chief editor, Japan Forum): Publishing for a “Global” Audience (Powerpoint presentation: here) – Anna-Maria Stabentheiner, University of Vienna: Anthropology and Area Studies – Andreas Eder-Ramsauer, University of Vienna: Political Studies and Area Studies – Prof. Dr. Ina Hein, University of Vienna: Literary Studies and Area Studies
14:45-16:15	Keynote Speech II: Prof. Dr. H. L. T. Quan, Arizona State University: “Become Ungovernable: Democratic Living in the Time of Conversion” Chair: Prof. Dr. Fabian Schäfer, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Nürnberg-Erlangen Room: C2, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna
16:15-16:45	Coffee Break, Room: C2 foyer, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna
16:45-18:45	General Members’ Meeting of the VSJF, Room: C2, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna Film Screening: “Queer, broke, & amazing! Exploring economic justice for Queer & Trans people” (in the presence of directors C.A. Griffith and H.L.T. Quan, 89 MINS. © QUAD PRODUCTIONS 2024). Room: JAP 1, Japanese Studies, door 2.4., Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna

Sunday
9.11.2025

9:30-11:00	Panel 4: Futures X Environmental Politics Chair: Lenard Görögh, MA, Freie Universität Berlin Room: C2, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna Prof. Dr. Asuka Jusen, Tohoku University: “Unchanged Melody of the Undemocratic Energy/Climate Policy in Japan” Dr. Florentine Koppenborg, Hochschule für Politik München: “Japan’s Climate Politics 10 years after Paris” Dr. Jan Groos, University Kiel: “Envisioning Alternative Governmentality” Prof. Dr. Nakano Yoshihiro, Rikkyo University: “Politics of Suiten: Prolegomena to Cartographic Strategies for Relational Degrowth“
11:00-11:30	Coffee Break, Room: C2 foyer, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna
11:30-13:00	Panel 5: Futures X Global Contestation Chair: Erik Isaksson, MA, Freie Universität Berlin Room: C2, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna Prof. Dr. Ulrich Brand, Universität Wien: “Eco-imperial Tensions: Decarbonization Strategies in Times of Geopolitical Upheaval” Dr. Misato Matsuoka, Teikyo University: “Conservative Knowledge Production and the U.S.-Japan Alliance in the Era of Trump” Prof. Dr. Michal Kolmaš, Metropolitan University Prague: “Ontologies of Region Formation: Towards a Typology of Region Building in Asia” Dr. Karin Narita, Sheffield University: “An Outline of a Theory of Civilizationisms: Japanese Conservatism and Civilizational Geopolitics”
13:00-13:30	Concluding Remarks, Room: C2 foyer, Hörsaalzentrum, Campus University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2, 1090 Vienna

* The program might undergo minor changes as the conference date nears; please be aware.