Saturday, May 21

Moderator:

Roderick Wilson (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)

Rod Wilson – professor of history. Book – “Turbulent Seasons”

Roderick Wilson is an Assistant Professor in the Department of History and the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Illinois. His research focuses on the intersection of people and their local habitats in Tokugawa and modern Japan. His first book entitled Turbulent Stream: Environmental History of Japan’s Rivers, 1600-1930 will be published by Brill in spring 2021. He has also begun research for a second book about the social and environmental history of Tokyo. At the University of Illinois, he offers a variety of courses on the history of Japan, East Asia, and the environment.

Panelists:

Matthew Alt (Vice President of AltJapan)

Matt Alt is a Tokyo-based localizer, translator, and writer. His essays have appeared in the The New York Times, The Economist 1843, BBC, CNN, and the New Yorker. He is the author of “Pure Invention: How Japan Made the Modern World” (Crown, 2021).

Daphne Iskos (Diplomatic Assistant at the Embassy of Japan, D.C.)

Daphne Iskos received her BA from Macalester College in May of 2021, having double-majored in Linguistics and Japanese Studies. Currently working as a Diplomatic Assistant at the Japanese Embassy in Washington DC, she aspires to move to Japan in 2023.

Jason Jones (Monash University, Australia)

Jason Jones is Lecturer in and Coordinator of Japanese Studies at Monash University. His research centers on cultural adaptation as represented in Japanese film, television, animation, manga, and other texts. He teaches a range of courses, including Japanese language, Japanese popular culture and screen translation. He is also an active subtitler and scripter for a number of international streaming services.