The Happiness of the Sea: Lessons Old and New from Japan's Atsumi Peninsula

This talk by Associate Professor of East Asian Studies and History Emer O'Dwyer will introduce the Atsumi peninsula with an emphasis on how the 20^th century history of this 74 square kilometer spit of land south of Nagoya (and surrounded by two adjacent bays and the Pacific Ocean) reveals how local residents have had regularly to adapt to political upheaval and environmental catastrophe, often simultaneously. Today, the sunny and windy peninsula is thriving as a leader nationwide in the cultivation of fruits and vegetables, the harvesting of marine products—a poetic name for which is “the happiness of the sea,” or umisachi—and the harnessing of wind and solar power. Yet, multiple threats remain whether typhoon, heavy rain, or earthquake. How contemporary residents respond proactively to this threat environment is an additional theme of the talk. 

The talk will start at 12:15 pm, with time for questions at the end. Lunch will be provided at 12 pm.