Rei KUFUKIHARA
President, Aichi Prefectural University
Prefectural University Connecting Places and People in Aichi and the World
Radical changes have ensued in the wake of ever more rapid globalization. In response, the university actively advocates “Connect people and places in the world.” This means making frequent close face-to-face contact with people. We reach out to people within Aichi Prefecture and Japan, and we also seek close ties with people all over the world. We will contribute to the creation of a better society through face-to-face exchanges with people in various regions of the world, using a variety of methods.
1. We connect people with different cultures and extend active links to localities across the globe.
Rich cultural diversity exists both in Japan and in other parts of the world. In current times, marked by the rapid spread of nationalist sentiment, we urgently need to deepen mutual understanding through intercultural exchange. During the next three years, we will lay the groundwork for interactive exchanges with diverse cultures, including exchanges with foreign residents in the community.
2. We promote cooperation and collaborative research among the university’s five schools to stimulate education.
Cross-cultural exchange thrives in the ground of research and education. The university has connected different research fields that used to be compartmentalized and divided, and now, the five schools cooperate in collaborative research involving different disciplines. By integrating science and the humanities and combining knowledge from various fields, the faculty, staff, and students are working together to foster multi-disciplinary and multi-faceted studies, aiming at an “anthropological approach to learning.”
3. We take an “anthropological approach towards learning” with the aim of studying of and inquiring into “life.”
Through collaboration among the university’s five schools, we promote study of and inquiry into “life.” Life is the only absolute thing that is given equally to all people. However, it is now under threat everywhere in Japan and around the world. COVID-19, a raging pandemic disease, swept the world last year, and it also brought to light various social issues such as discrimination and economic disparity. There are complex factors involved, including science, politics, economics, culture, and the environment. The study of life, in other words, is the study of human beings and all that surrounds them. This is the kind of "anthropology" that our university aims to implement in its education and research.
President's Profile
| Name | Rei Kufukihara |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | July 1951 |
| Degree | Doctor of Philosophy (Literature) |
| Highest Education |
Doctoral course at Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology / Faculty of Letters, University of Tokyo Post-doctoral studies at The Association for the Study of Japanese Language and Literature (withdrew owing to time restraints) |
| Field of Specialty | Japanese ancient literature (Genji Monogatari), history of Japanese poetry |
| Main International Recognition (Overseas Lectures, Symposia, Etc.) |
- Invited lecture at INALCO International Symposium, Paris, France - Invited lecture at the Australian National University - Lectured at CEU San Pablo University, Madrid, Spain - Lectured at International Symposium, São Paulo University, Brazil - Invited lecture at international conference at Federal University of Amazonas, Brazil - Attended academic exchange seminar at Minho University, Portugal - Conducted regular classes, in 2016, at University of São Paulo Graduate School Brazil - Lectured at international conference at Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies, Uzbekistan |
| Main Publications |
- Sole author: 1997, Genji Monogatari – Uta to jusei [The Tale of Genji: songs and malign fate] Wakakusa Shobō - Sole author: 2008, Genji Monogatari no hembō [Transfiguration of the Tale of Genji], Ohfū - Sole author: 2017, Genji Monogatari to waka no ron itan e no manazashi [The Tale of Genji and with an eye towards heretical discourse about waka] (Seikan-sha) - Coeditor: 2012, Buke no bumbutsu to Genii Monogatari-e – Owari Tokugawa-ke Denrai-hin wo Kiten to shite [Samurai cultural stewardship and The Tale of Genji Picture scroll – starting with Owari branch Tokugawa heirlooms], Kanrin Shobō - Co-author: 1995, Iwanami kōza Nihon bungaku-shi [Iwanami history of Japanese literature course], Iwanami Shoten |
| Item of Note | 2016, Visiting Professor at University of São Paulo, Brazil |