This year we celebrate the small, yet gratifying milestone of producing a fifth issue of New Voices, showcasing the depth and breadth of Japanese Studies scholarship being undertaken by Honours and Masters students in our region.
Launched in December 2006, New Voices aims to support early career researchers and postgraduate students in Japanese Studies to share their research interests with as wide an audience as possible.
In the past five years, the scope of New Voices has been continually expanded to provide a more accessible and effective platform for emerging scholars and now invites submissions from Honours and Masters students from both Australian and New Zealand universities. I hope that New Voices acts as both a resource for general readers interested in Japanese Studies and as a valuable support for emerging scholars based in Australia and New Zealand to continue their research and interest in Japan.
I’d like to thank the following people for their assistance on this issue of New Voices: our Guest Editor, Dr Mats Karlsson for his helpful advice and support during the editorial and publication process; members of the editorial advisory board, for kindly offering their time and expertise to review the articles; Sayuri Tokuman and Susan Yamaguchi for editorial assistance; and finally the 7 contributors and their supervisors without whose interest and enthusiasm this project would not have been possible.
Nao Endo
Director
The Japan Foundation, Sydney
December 2011