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Collaborative Futures: Humanities Beyond the Crisis Discourse
February 25 @ 12:30 pm - 2:00 pm
FreeA Workshop with Dr. Michael Facius, Tokyo College, Institutes of Advanced Studies, The University of Tokyo
Moderated by Dr. Mark Turin, Associate Professor, Institute for Critical Indigenous Studies and Department of Anthropology, UBC
The Chronicle of Higher Education recently declared that the “crisis of the humanities is over.” Even if we want to believe this, the future of humanistic scholarship seems more unclear than ever.
In this facilitated lunchtime workshop, Dr. Facius will share findings that emerged out of a four-year research project that led him to Germany, South Africa, Canada, and finally to his home university in Tokyo. His work attempts to shift the premise of the crisis discourse, asking “what if we spent some of the energy we use to critique conditions and try to convince people who don’t care of the value of the humanities on rethinking our own academic practice – and especially on how we work together?”
Dr. Facius’s presentation will reflect on conditions and innovative practices that can foster collaborative futures.
Dr. Michael Facius is an associate professor at Tokyo College, an institute for advanced studies at The University of Tokyo, where he is spearheading the research cluster “The Humanities, Society, and the Future of Academic Knowledge.” Previous stops include Freie Universität Berlin, where he completed a PhD in Global History and Japanese Studies, and University College London. Recent publication: “metttasphere – Narrating identity across borders and media”, torch press (2025).
February 25th, 2026
12:30-2:00PM
Liu Institute Caseroom (entrance through the courtyard)
6476 NW Marine Drive.
This event is held on the ancestral and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam).
Lunch will be provided. Registration is required.
