6:30pm-8:30pm, September 23, 2016
Musashino City, Tokyo, Japan
The viewers of Worldwide Wan living in Japan are kindly invited to the following program of Ueno Seminar of WAN.
As the first attempt of this kind, the 30th seminar is going to be held in both Japanese and English with some help from bilingual members of W-WAN.
If you are interested in the following program, which will include the presentation, question and answer, and discussion, you are welcome to join us and express yourself in whichever language you feel comfortable with.
The presentation will be videotaped either for a live streaming or for an archive.

Title of presentation:
“Ikumen in Japan”
a report of a doctoral dissertation project by an anthropologist from University of Toronto

Presenter:
Nicholas Feinig B.A., M.A.
PhD Candidate
Department of Anthropology
University of Toronto
Currently on leave for fieldwork in Japan

Summary:
Japan’s declining birth rate has been a persistent concern for the government for nearly two decades. Dozens of strategies, including day care and maternity leave reform, have been developed to encourage women to have more children, but these plans have as of yet borne little success. In 2010, the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare implemented the “Ikumen Project” in an effort to engage fathers, challenging them to break free of corporate responsibilities and take on an active role in child care. The Ikumen Project built on the momentum of grass roots ikumen NPOs, which spread across Japan in the years leading up to the project’s announcement. Sharing parenting tips, emotional support, and maybe a drink, these groups help to cultivate a community of dedicated fathers. How do the fathers involved in these NPOs understand their responsibilities to their family, to their fathering organization, and to Japanese society? How has the ikumen movement evolved over the past decade, and what challenges does it face? Where do these activist fathers fit into the government’s larger vision for the “Ikumen Project”? What does it mean to be a father in Japan today?Using data gathered through interviews conducted as part of my doctoral dissertation project, this presentation attempts to answer these questions.

Venue:
Kataraino-Michi, Citizens Space 「かたらいの道・市民スペース」
1st floor of the Musashino Towers Skycross Tower
1-11-16 Nakacho, Musashino City, Tokyo
http://www.musashino-culture.or.jp/sisetu/katarai/access.html
Access:
From Shinjuku to Mitaka: 13 minutes by limited rapid train of JR Chuo line
18 minutes by rapid train of JR Chuo line
Get off at Mitaka, come out of the north exit of the station, and you will see ahead of you the two highrise condominiums called “Musashino Towers” located within a few minute walk.
The Skycross Tower is the one behind the Skygate Tower.
Walk until you find the Skycross Tower and Lawson, a convenience store located on its first floor, facing the street you walk down from Mitaka Station.
Kataraino-Michi is next to Lawson along the sidewalk.
Social Program:
A small party is planned to be held from 9:00pm near Mitaka Station.
Participants will be informed of the details after you are registered.

Request for application acceptable from September 1 to 22, 2016, at the following address:
uenoseminar@wan.or.jp