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2026.06.15
Comment from Professor Yoichiro Sato in the Asahi Shimbun
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2026.06.05
Professor VAFADARI M. Kazem‘s Co-Authored Paper Published in the International Journal of Tourism Research
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2026.06.05
Lecturer MITO Takahisa’s Article Published in the Journal of Japanese Language Education
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2026.05.27
Newsletter April-May Edition
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2026.05.07
Call for Participants: AP Conference 2026
Research
News & Events
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2026.06.15
Comment from Professor Yoichiro Sato in the Asahi Shimbun
A comment from Prof. Sato, "The Japan, US, Australia and India Foreign Minister's meeting confirms cooperation on energy, and other issues. Summit remains uncertain", was published in the May 27th Asashi Shimbun!
Click here (Japanese only)
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2026.06.05
Professor VAFADARI M. Kazem‘s Co-Authored Paper Published in the International Journal of Tourism Research
A co-authored paper by Professor VAFADARI M. Kazem of the College of Sustainability and Tourism, titled “Enhancing Travel Experiences for Tourists With Rheumatoid Arthritis: Insights From the Constraint-Effects-Mitigation Model,” has been published in the International Journal of Tourism Research. This study was conducted in collaboration with Associate Professor LAI Michael Tin Hang of Saint Francis University in Hong Kong and Dr. ORIBE Motohiro, a rheumatology specialist.
This research analyzed the relationships among health-related constraints, coping strategies (individual adaptations), and travel motivation among tourists with rheumatoid arthritis. The results revealed that travel motivation is influenced by both “involvement in travel” and “individual coping strategies,” with coping strategies playing a particularly significant role.
While previous tourism studies have primarily focused on infrastructure development and safety, the inconveniences and barriers faced by individuals with chronic conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis during travel have not been sufficiently examined. The findings of this study provide important insights for better understanding this emerging market of travelers with chronic illnesses and offer valuable implications for policy and practice in the tourism sector.
Read the article here
Read Professor VAFADARI’s faculty profile here
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2026.06.05
Lecturer MITO Takahisa’s Article Published in the Journal of Japanese Language Education
An article by Lecturer MITO Takahisa of the Center for Language Education, entitled “International Mobility of Myanmar Care Workers and Japanese Language Learning: Career ‘Salvation’ and ‘Expansion’,” was published in Issue 193 of the Journal of Japanese Language Education.
This study analyzes the role of Japanese language learning in shaping motivations for leaving Myanmar and career choices, based on semi-structured interviews with seven Myanmar care workers who came to Japan following the 2021 military coup.
The findings reveal that while political instability, economic downturn, and limitations in higher education have driven people to leave the country, labor shortages in Japan and its immigration policies have encouraged them to migrate there.
Furthermore, the study shows that under difficult circumstances, learning Japanese serves as a “lifeline” for many, while also expanding their future opportunities.
Read the article summary here
Read Lecturer Mito’s faculty profile here
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![Introducing Faculty Research [APU Outreach and Research Office Newsletter] April/May Issue](/home/research/content13/Research_Office_Newsletter_2026_4-5_E.jpg)
2026.05.27
Newsletter April-May Edition
This month’s newsletter is packed with updates on research activities since the start of spring, with the full-scale launch of the APU Integrated Research Organization (AIRO), opening applications for the new Research Hubs Formation Program, Rice Ball (Research) Seminars, and the research website renewal! With the Call for Presenters now also open for AP Conference 2026, we look forward to seeing various developments in research actitivities!
Please click here to read the newsletter.
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2026.05.07
Call for Participants: AP Conference 2026
We are pleased to announce that applications are now open for participation in the international academic conference “AP Conference 2026,” hosted by the APU Integrated Research Organization (AIRO).
■Conference Overview
Date: Saturday, November 14 – Sunday, November 15, 2026
Theme: Beyond Fragmentation: Charting Pathways for Shared Futures
Venue: APU Green Commons (Building J)■Registration Period
Presenters: Deadline – Tuesday, June 30, 2026
Audience: Registration expected to open in Fall 2026Further details and updates about the conference will be posted on the official website below:
https://en.apu.ac.jp/apconf/We look forward to your participation.
Sincerely,
AP Conference Secretariat
Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU)
E-mail: apconf@apu.ac.jp
Research Activities
& Social Impact
Research Seeds Collection
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Staying Ahead of the Curve with Cutting-Edge Marketing Research
Investigate cutting-edge consumer marketing through the collaboration of companies, students, and university researchers
- Management
- Marketing
LEE Geunhee
Professor, College of International Management
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Proposing Strategies in the Context of Asset Value Uncertainty
Applying experience as a financial markets professional to academic research, proposing corporate strategies and policies to address asset price volatility
- Theoretical
- economicsFinance
YAMAKAWA Tetsufumi
Professor, College of International Management
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Integrating All Kinds of Knowledge to Explore the Science of Management
Identifying new communication theories across academic disciplines, developing "better management," and tackling the issues facing modern society
- Management
- Information Science
FUKUYAMA Kimihiro
Associate Professor, College of International Management
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Employee Happiness Unlocks the Future of Hospitality
Focusing on the “inside” that supports the tourism and hospitality industry: research on employee well-being contributes to sustainable growth
- Hospitality management
- Management
- Tourism
SAITO Hiroaki
Associate Professor, College of International Management
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Transforming Japan's Public Administration by Improving the Problem-Solving Skills of Civil Servants
Creating an ecosystem to enhance the problem-solving skills of public institutions and realizing innovation in public administration through the development of human resources for the civil service
- Management Informatics
- Public Policy Studies
KANO Eiji
Associate Professor, College of Sustainability and Tourism
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Tackling Social Problems in Regional Japan through ICT and Wisdom
Using information and communication technology(ICT) and artificial intelligence(AI) to connect people with one another and with field expertise, and unlock new solutions to address problems surrounding regional agriculture
- Information Science
- Sociology
- Educational technology
NISHANTHA Giguruwa
Professor, College of Sustainability and Tourism
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Contributing to Future Cooperative Decision-Making by Residents and Governments
Analyzing consensus-building processes for a coastal embankment project following the Great East Japan Earthquake and establishing better cooperative decision-making models for residents and governments
- Environmental sociology
- Interdisciplinary research
YAMASHITA Hiromi
Professor, College of Asia Pacific Studies
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Tourism and the Happiness of Local Residents: Clarifying the Relationship
This study explores community-based tourism(CBT) through the lens of social psychology, placing local residents’ identity and psychological well-being at its core
- Tourism Studies
- Social Psychology
YOUN Seung Ho
Associate Professor, College of Sustainability and Tourism
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Connecting Non-Japanese Workers and the Japanese Language to Attain an Inclusive Society
Providing recommendations and assistance with the intention of building better relationships between non-Japanese workers and the Japanese language and between non-Japanese workers and Japanese society
- Japanese language education
NUNOO Katsuichiro
Center for Language Education Professor
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Changing the Future of Hotel Management with Research on Organizational Culture
Developing a concrete methodology for “Treating Employees as Customers”; Realizing the sustainable growth of hotel organization with three types of support
- Hotel Management
HASHIMOTO Shunsaku
Professor, College of Sustainability and Tourism
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Challenging Value Creation to Recover from Japan’s “Lost 30 Years”
Scientifically elucidating innovation ecosystems and challenging to create new value through diversity and new combinations
- Business Management
- Social Systems Engineering
FUJITA Masanori
Professor, College of International Management
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Opening New Doors for Japan by Sustaining Wartime Memories
Potential for new “memory studies” in Japan generated by perspectives from dark tourism and pop culture
- Media studies / cultural studies
- Tourism
- Asian studies
- Cultural sociology
YOSHIDA Kaori
Professor, College of Asia Pacific Studies
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Integrating All Kinds of Knowledge to Explore the Science of Management
Identifying new communication theories across academic disciplines, developing "better management," and tackling the issues facing modern society
- Management
- Information Science
FUKUYAMA Kimihiro
Associate Professor, College of International Management
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Transforming Japan's Public Administration by Improving the Problem-Solving Skills of Civil Servants
Creating an ecosystem to enhance the problem-solving skills of public institutions and realizing innovation in public administration through the development of human resources for the civil service
- Management Informatics
- Public Policy Studies
KANO Eiji
Associate Professor, College of Sustainability and Tourism
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Employee Happiness Unlocks the Future of Hospitality
Focusing on the “inside” that supports the tourism and hospitality industry: research on employee well-being contributes to sustainable growth
- Hospitality management
- Management
- Tourism
SAITO Hiroaki
Associate Professor, College of International Management
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Rethinking Sustainable Tourism
Exploring sustainable tourism from a multispecies perspective, where humans and nonhumans coexist
- Tourism Studies
- Human Geography
USUI Rie
Associate Professor, College of Sustainability and Tourism
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Creating a New Inclusive Wave in University Language Education
Use Universal Design for Learning(UDL) and challenge ourselves to create classes that considers the diversity of students in university education
- Foreign Language Education
- English Language Linguistics
BERGER Maiko
Associate Professor, Center for Language Education
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Using UDL to Realize Foreign Language Education that Leaves No One Behind
Applying Universal Design for Learning(UDL) to language education to maximize the potential of learners with diverse attributes
- Teaching Methodologies
- Educational Policy
- Foreign Language Education
JUNG Jonghee
Associate Professor, Center for Language Education
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Create a Universal Japanese that Promotes Diversity
Beyond “Simple Japanese”; Create a language environment for a society where diverse people live together
- Linguistics
- Teaching Japanese as a Foreign Language
- Japanese Linguistics
HONDA Akiko
Professor, Center for Language Education
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Aiming to Connect People through Language Education
Implementing language education centered on connections with society by complementing vertical learning with horizontal learning
- Language education
- Japanese language education
- Local disaster preparedness
ISHIMURA Fumie
Tenured Senior Lecturer, Center for Language Education
Research Output
Social Impact
Research at APU
Research Organization
Organizational diagram
- Greetings from the Director
- Enhancing Research at APU
APU Integrated
Research OrganizationFormerly:Ritsumeikan Center for Asia-Pacific Studies (RCAPS)
Under the Integrated Research Organization, APU hosts numerous research hubs and centers where groups of faculty members can autonomously define specific research objectives and collaborate on research projects.
Research Centers
Asia Pacific
Conference
Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University and its RCAPS annually host the Asia Pacific Conference. Since its inception in 2003, AP Conference has provided researchers from around the world with an opportunity to present their research. The conference aims to contribute to the realization of "Shape Your World" through academic discussions on issues facing the Asia-Pacific region and the world surrounding it.
Research Support
