I have presented my research in conferences, symposiums and public lectures. My talks aim to present my research to a broad audience of experts and non-specialists. In order to do so, I aim to deliver the content of my presentation in ways that are accessible and entertaining for people in and outside academia. My presentation approach combines lively anecdotes with appealing visuals to capture the public’s attention.
Here are some of my most recent talks:
“If We Give It Up, We Will Become Japanese”: Zainichi Korean Cultural Transmission in the Face of Hegemonic Assimilation
This presentation discusses the everyday forms of resistance Koreans in Japan adopt to resist their exclusion from Japanese society.
Diaspora, Exclusion and Appropriation: The Cuisine of the Korean Minority in Japan
This presentation demonstrates that the appropriation of Korean food culture in Japan is part of a larger system of exclusion that includes economic marginalization and minority erasure.
Kimchi and Yakiniku on the Menu: Making Korean Cuisine Part of Japanese Food Culture
This talk explores how kimchi as become one of the most popular pickles in Japan. How do the culinary practices of a marginalized group become mainstream while the group itself remains excluded from society?
A Living Tradition: Continuity and Change in Regional Cuisine in Rural Japan
In this talk, I examine how regional cuisine is subject to both transmission and innovation. Although some authors in the past have argued for the invention of tradition, traditional foodways are in fact neither old nor new.
Saving Local Taste: Culinary Tradition and the Local Food Movement in Japan
In Japan, the promotion of local food traditions is presented as a solution to fight rural decline and low food self-sufficiency. It argues that the local food movement must also take into account local food traditions if it is to remain successful.
Finding Umami: Science and the Social Construction of a Taste Category
This presentation examines the emergence of the taste of umami in Japan. Umami has recently gained popularity in Western gastronomy. My research aims to uncover if this fifth taste category is universal or if it is a taste that is uniquely Japanese.
The Taste of Community: Commensality and Regional Cuisine in Rural Japan
In this talk, I examine how communal eating practices are essential to the region’s cuisine. Food sharing is central to the self-definition of local residents hence the traditional cuisine of Kochi is meant to be shared.
Between Myth and History: How Stories Shape Regional Cuisine in Japan
Cuisine is intrinsically connected to the stories we hear, we imagine and we tell. In this presentation, I examine how stories shape the regional cuisine of Kochi Japan. These stories help understand, through the use of spatial and temporal storylines, why regional food is so beloved.
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: the Allure of Offal Cuisine in Japan
This presentation examines what makes organ meat dishes disgusting to some and so palatable to others. I argue that offal cuisine is sought after because Japanese conceptions of taste are anchored in a web of ascribed values.
