IAFOR Newsletter - Dec 2013 / Jan 2014

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the newsletter of the international academic forum - asia’s think thank

December 2013/ January 2014

The City of Brighton will be host to 16 IAFOR conferences taking place in the UK in July 2014.

From iconic tourist attractions to beachfront cool, Brighton is a treasure trove of things to do and places to go. Vibrant, colourful, fun and free, Brighton offers the energy of the city and freedom of the sea. It really is unique.

From the stunning heritage of the Royal Pavilion, Regency architecture and Victorian aquariums to the seaside fun of Brighton Pier, the Brighton Wheel and the famous pebble beach, Brighton offers something for every walk of life.

Brighton is located on the south coast of England only a 30 minute train ride away from London Gatwick Airport and 1 hour away from central London by train. All of these events will be held at the Thistle Brighton - a four-star hotel situated quaintly on the seafront.

July 3-6

ECSS2014 - The Second European Conference on the Social Sciences ECSEE2014 - The Second European Conference on Sustainability, Energy & the Environment ECPEL2014 - The Inaugural European Conference on Politics, Economics and Law EBMC2014 - The Inaugural European Business and Management Conference July 9-13 ECE2014 - The Second European Conference on Education ECTC2014 - The Second European Conference on Technology in the Classroom ECLL2014 - The Second European Conference on Language Learning July 17-20 EuroFilm2014 - The Inaugural European Conference on Film and Documentary EuroMedia2014 - The Inaugural European Conference on Media and Mass Communication ECAH2014 - The Second European Conference on Arts & Humanities LibEuro2014 - The Inaugural European Conference on Literature and Librarianship July 24-27 ECCS2014 - The Inaugural European Conference on Cultural Studies ECAS2014 - The Inaugural European Conference on Asian Studies ECES2014 - The Inaugural European Conference on European Studies ECP2014 - The Inaugural European Conference on Psychology & the Behavioral Sciences ECERP2014 - The Inaugural European Conference on Ethics, Religion & Philosophy

Registrants to a conference are welcome to attend sessions of other conferences in the same grouping.

Abstracts will be accepted for all of these conferences from January 15, 2014.

For more information on our events, visit iafor.org/iafor/conferences/

目eye magazine IAFOR is now inviting submissions for the third edition of the “Eye” magazine!

Below are categories to which we would like to share your vision, perspective, insight, and ‘eye’ on things.

- Spotlight on Humanities - Spotlight on History - Spotlight on Economy - Insight - Political Economy - Energy - Corporate We also invite submissions in the following areas: - Culture - New Technologies - New Solutions - Reflections - Casual Editorials - Photo Essays

Please limit your submissions to 1000 words and send them to magazine@iafor.org.

You will be contacted if your article is selected for publication – Spring 2014.

We welcome photos/photo essays as well. Please attach high quality pictures of over 1 MB with your full name, country of origin, and a brief description of the photo. Photo essays are limited to 800 words.

We look forward to your submissions!

You can view the magazine on our website iafor.org or view it on issuu at issuu.com/iafor. We welcome you to take a look!

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The Asian Conference on Education and Asian Conference on Science, Education and Technology (ACE/ACSET 2013) held this past October in Osaka was a fantastic celebration of interdisciplinary study around the joint conference theme of “Learning and Teaching in Changing Times.” Once again the conferences were an opportunity to create further exciting research possibilities and synergies for those delegates attending. IAFOR was particularly fortunate to have at this year’s ACE/ACSET a number of leading international experts within the Education sector who came together to share in what was a truly global discussion that attracted over 530 delegates and invited speakers from more than 40 countries.

Professor Svetlana Ter-Minasova (pictured left), President of the Faculty of Foreign Languages and Area Studies at Moscow State University, Russia, captivated the delegates with her ACE keynote address “ELT in a Changing Russia: Traditions and Innovations” that examined the various historically and culturally determined traditions and changes that Language Education has emerged from, over the last 40 years within Russia.

Professor Keith W. Miller (pictured right), the Schewe Professor of Liberal Arts and Science at the University of Illinois Springfield, a world renowned leader in Educational Technology gave his ACSET Keynote speech on “Discerning Rights and Wrongs while Teaching and Learning in the Age of Robotics.”

Professor Miller noted that several critical socio-technical decisions are now fast approaching for MOOCs, mobile phone teaching aps, and robotic technologies with respect to their future use within the classroom environment. The joint conference had a number of excellent featured speakers and panelists who bought with them a diversity and range of educational experiences and contexts, that created much discussion and inspiration from the delegates.

looking back >>> The first featured speaker at the conference was by video-link as Professor Mary Stuart (pictured top left), the Vice Chancellor of the University of Lincoln (UK) addressed delegates on the implications of Social and Cultural Capital in the Learning Environment with respect to Access, Equality and Virtual Learning within the realm of education. Michiko Nakano (pictured top right), Professor in the School of Education at Waseda University, Tokyo lead a highly informative Panel Discussion on the Theories and Practices in English as an International Language (EIL), World Englishes (WE), English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) seen through data gained from student perceptions.

IAFOR also wishes to thank the following featured speakers: • Ted O’Neill (pictured bottom left), Associate Professor of English in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Japan, engaged the delegates with a view to the future with his address “Getting to the Point: The Least Educators Need to Know About Massively Open Online Courses Now.” • Canadian educationalist Terry Small (pictured bottom center), who spoke on “Engaging The Brain – Using Neuroscience to Improve Student Learning.”

• Professor Jerry Platt (pictured bottom right), Professor Emeritus at San Francisco State University, Professor at Akita International University, Japan, and Vice-Chair of the International Academic Forum’s IAB, spoke on the issues and inequities surrounding University rankings within the Japanese education sector with his address titled “In Omoikane We Trust, All Others Bring Data.”

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The conference was bought to a close by Dr Marjo Mitsutomi (pictured left), Executive Director of the Language Education Institute (LEI) at Osaka Gakuin University, Japan and current IAFOR Osaka Organising Committee Vice Chair who spoke on “From Bonsai to Banzai: A Mind Shift in the Approach to Teaching and Learning English in Japan� and by 2013 ACE Co-Conference Chair, Professor Sue Jackson (pictured right), who is currently Pro-Vice-Master of Learning and Teaching, Professor of Lifelong Learning and Gender at Birkbeck, University of London (UK), whose closing remarks drew upon her perspectives and experiences as major discourse shaper within British Education.These two excellent addresses bought to a close what was a highly engaging and informative 2013 joint conference. The contribution and leadership provided by our Conferences Chairs and the Osaka Organising committee is greatly appreciated by the IAFOR Advisory Board and the IAFOR management team.

We would like to personally thank the following 2013 Co-Conference Chairs: Professor Sue Jackson, Professor Michiko Nakano, Professor Barbara Lockee, Dr Robert Logie, and Professor Keith Miller. We also again thank Dr Marjo Mitsutomi and Professor Steve Cornwell of the Osaka Conference Organising Committee for their continuing support, guidance and expertise in making our IAFOR Asian Conferences a continuing success.

IAFOR Open Film Competition 2013 For the second year IAFOR invited filmmakers from around the world to submit an original short film for the annual IAFOR Open Film Competition. This year entries across five genre categories from 48 amateur and professional filmmakers were chosen as finalists. The five finalist films were screened at the FilmAsia 2013 Conference in Osaka, delighting the delegates with their technical craft and creativity. The event was chaired by head judge, Professor Gary Swanson, and was attended by a number of VIPs and delegates from the event.

IAFOR wishes to congratulate the following finalists and award winners (pictured below): Mario Garefo Fiction (far left), Tom Haywood - Documentary (top right), Sharleen Liu - Fiction (not pictured), Szymon Skrypoczko - Music Video (top left), and Satyanshu & Devanshu Singh - Fiction (bottom left & right). The overall grand prize went to Mario Garefo with his short fiction film “Man Who Fed His Shadow,” which was described by chief judge Professor Gary Swanson as “Beautifully directed and technically perfect. A wonderful film with an interesting story line.”

IAFOR wishes to thank Dr James Rowlins of Singapore University of Technology and Design, and Professor Scott Erlinder of DePaul University (USA) who assisted Professor Swanson in the judging of the 2013 film competition. All three judges remarked on the high level of film-making craft, narrative structure and superb quality from this year’s submissions. The judging team thank all entrants who took part in the 2013 IAFOR film competition and look forward with great interest to next year’s submissions.

IAFOR Journal News IAFOR is proud to present the first issue of the IAFOR Journal of the Social Sciences. The journal encourages critical application of ideas and theories about society and aim to constitute an open forum for new theoretical developments in this broad field of the Social Sciences by providing a space for international dialogue and critical approaches.

Stemming from the IAFOR Asian Conference for the Social Sciences, the Journal constitutes a venue for academic research in the complex and multifaceted field of Social Sciences. The Journal takes into consideration social, cultural, political, and economic phenomena through their historical developments and contemporary evolution. It explores the interplay between politics, economics, and society; the dynamics of globalization; and International Relations.

We would like to thank the contributors, reviewers and editorial board for their work on this issue. We look forward to seeing you at the 2014 IAFOR Asian & European conferences for the Social Sciences.

Read it on our website ...- http://iafor.org/iafor/publications/iafor-journals/ijss/ We hope you enjoy the issue!

IAFOR Journal of the Social Sciences Editor: Dr Andrea Molle ISSN: 2187-0640 (online)

IAFOR Journal News (continued)

IAFOR would like to announce the introduction of the IAFOR Journal of Politics, Economics & Law. The publication is an editorially independent and internationally reviewed interdisciplinary journal associated with ACPEL: the Asian Conference on Politics, Economics & Law, and ECPEL: the European Conference on Politics, Economics & Law. It is is an open access, peer-reviewed, international journal.The Journal encourages interdisciplinary research, with the primary focus being on language learning and its relation to the other academic disciplines such as applied linguistics, educational technology, sociology, and psychology.

IAFOR Journal of Politics, Economics & Law Editor: Dr Craig Mark ISSN: 2187-0640

You can view all journals on our website iafor.org or view them on at http://issuu.com/iafor. We welcome you to take a look!

For further information about our journals see the IAFOR website - http://iafor.org/iafor/publications/iafor-journals/

Abstract Deadlines Have Been Extended for IAFOR Spring 2014 Conferences in Osaka, Japan

ACP/ACERP 2014

The Fourth Asian Conference on Psychology & the Behavioral Sciences The Fourth Asian Conference on Ethics, Religion & Philosophy Thursday March 27 - Sunday March 30, 2014 Extended abstract deadline: February 1, 2014 Early Bird Registration: Before January 1, 2014 Advanced Registration: Before February 1, 2014 Regular Registration: From February 1, 2014 Visit acp.iafor.org & acerp.iafor.org for further information

ACAH/LibrAsia 2014

The Fifth Asian Conference on Arts & Humanities The Fourth Asian Conference on Literature and Librarianship Thursday April 3 - Sunday, April 6, 2014 Extended abstract deadline: February 1, 2014 Early Bird Registration: Before January 1, 2014 Advanced Registration: Before February 1, 2014 Regular Registration: From February 1, 2014 Visit acah.iafor.org & librasia.iafor.org for further information

ACLL/ACTC 2014

The Fourth Asian Conference on Language Learning The Fourth Asian Conference on Technology in the Classroom Thursday April 17 - Sunday April 20, 2014 Extended abstract deadline: March 1, 2014 Early Bird Registration: Before February 1, 2014 Advanced Registration: Before March 1, 2014 Regular Registration: From March 1, 2014 Visit acll.iafor.org & actc.iafor.org for further information

looking back >>>

Themes: Social Media and Responsibility; Globalization and Internationalization; Connectedness, Identity and Alienation The Fourth Annual Asian Conference on Media & Mass Communication (MediAsia2013) and the Second Asian Conference on Film and Documentary (FilmAsia 2013) was held November 8-10 at the Ramada Hotel in Osaka. This joint conference hosted 150 international delegates from over 30 countries. The intimate size of MediAsia/FilmAsia allowed delegates the opportunity to develop close collaborative links, renew or make professional connections, as well as partake in a genuine opportunity of intellectual discovery.

The MediAsia 2013 themes continued the thematic explorations that we began last year: Social Media and Responsibility; Globalization and Internationalization; Connectedness, Identity and Alienation. With the focus on the social nature of media, communication ethics, and media during a time of globalization, these themes emphasized conceptual areas that are becoming more important for media makers and media educators in the decade ahead.

The FilmAsia2013 Conference focused the same broad themes as the MediAsia Conference, however with their dialogue centered on the film and documentary form, delegates and presenters considered the themes through the perspective of producers, film-makers, critics, film educators, and fans.

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IAFOR was very pleased to have Professors’ Gary E. Swanson and Bradley J. Hamm as the joint conference keynote speakers. Professor Swanson is the Mildred S. Hansen Endowed Chair in Journalism at the University of Northern Colorado, USA and is an internationally recognized and highly acclaimed documentary producer, director, editor, photojournalist, consultant and educator. Professor Swanson’s Keynote speech titled “Cheating and the Breakdown of Fundamental Values Within Education and Society,” examined the modern demise of integrity amongst tertiary students in 21st Century Universities and how we as academics and educators are confronted and challenged by the dilemma of how to teach our next generation of media specialists the essential values of ethics including honesty, citizenship and hard work in a world perpetrated by dishonesty and deceit.

The second conference Keynote address was made by Professor Bradley Hamm.

Professor Hamm who is currently Dean of the Medill School of Journalism, Media, and Integrated Marketing Communications, at Northwestern University, USA. Professor Hamm has taught in Japan, China and Great Britain and started his career as a newspaper reporter. His teaching and research interests are in journalism history and media theory, particularly agenda setting theory. Professor Hamm gave a very well received keynote address titled “The Power of Journalism in a Post-Mass Media Age” which postulated that though we can expect in an era of greater choice in media types for the publics attention, the size of audiences for specific mass media such as printed newspapers and traditional free to air TV will decline and that each era of new media leads to innovation and success that we have not imagined.

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The joint conference featured speaker for 2013 was Professor Jerry Platt, the Vice-Chair of the International Academic Forum’s Advisory Board. Professor Platt is Professor Emeritus at San Francisco State University, and is currently teaching at Akita International University in Japan. Professor Platt spoke on the evolution of international public opinion regarding Japan, from the Post-war period of the early 1950’s through to the current Post-Fukushima environment in 2013, examining both media texts and public opinion polling over that time.

IAFOR would like to thank our joint conference co-chairs Professor Gary E. Swanson (University of Northern Colorado) and Professor Tamara Swenson (Osaka Jogakuin University), as well as our other programme advisers.

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ABMC 2013 ‘Corporate Governance and Business Sustainability’ ACPEL 2013 ‘Trust: Governance, Society and Sustainability’ The Fourth Annual Asian Business and Management Conference (ABMC) 2013 and the Inaugural Asian Conference on Politics, Economics and Law 2013 (ACPEL) welcomed 150 delegates from over 30 countries.These joint conferences offered an occasion for in-depth interdisciplinary discussions covering a wide range of topic streams from management and public policy, through to civil court processes and financial economics.

The plenary session this year had a very strong line-up with Keynote Speaker Professor Yozo Yokota (pictured left) who is currently President of the Japanese Center for Human Rights, an internationally renowned jurist and diplomat, Member of the Committee of Experts of the International Labour Organization and former United Nations Special Rapporteur to Myanmar. Professor Yokota spoke on the relationship of Business and Human Rights and sort to illuminate the delegates with the current attitudes and expectations surrounding this area of business thought. His key message and evidence was that by promoting and expecting Human Rights business and societies thrive, yet those businesses and societies that do not promote human rights are not as effective, productive nor successful.

Our first featured speaker Professor Edward Yagi (pictured right), has had a distinguished career in both naval aviation and diplomacy before becoming a fulltime business faculty leader at Nanzan University, Japan. His presentation ‘When Problem Solvers Never Solve the Problem’ raised the point that stakeholders in a problem or issue will never find a workable solution, as their vested interests requires the problems continued existence.

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The second featured speaker, Mr Nicholas Benes (pictured left) has enjoyed an academic background in political science, law, and investment banking, before also becoming involved in advocacy and teaching. His presentation ‘Director Training: The Easiest, Most Obvious Way to Improve Japanese Boards’ compared and contrasted the differences in Japanese and United States company board of directors, highlighting the need for specific professional training and the requirement of appointing outside directors into Japanese businesses and organisations to develop improved corporate governance.

A feature of this year’s conference was a special ‘Data Science for Luddites: An IAFOR Workshop’ which was lead by Professor Jerry Platt (pictured right) and Bryce Platt, IAFOR’s Technology Coordinator. The goal of the workshop was to help delegates improve their research skills and outputs by developing and enhancing their knowledge of Data Science so as to uncover patterns, discern meaningful links and relationships, and generate data visualizations in support of a compelling academic narrative.

IAFOR would like to thank conference chairs, Professor Jerry Platt (Akita International University and IAFOR Advisory Board Vice Chair) and Professor William Baber (Kyoto University), and the many programme advisers for their continued and committed academic support and guidance, as well as all the participants that attended ABMC/ACPEL 2013. IAFOR looks to 2014 when we can again exchange our views and approaches further the inspiring discussion!

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