Daiwa Scholars 2023
The Daiwa Scholars by Bikky Sunazawa's 'Ekashi Mask' in the Foundation's gallery on 31 July 2023.
The Foundation is delighted to announce the seven Daiwa Scholars 2023.
In 2023 seven Scholars were selected. They include two law graduates, a sports marketer, an aspiring translator and publisher of children’s books, an illustrator, and two scientists, one specialising in neurodegenerative diseases and the other in fish parasites.
The Scholars have studied at the following institutions, some having studied at more than one: Cardiff University; City, University of London; Royal Drawing School, University College London, University of Birmingham, University of Cambridge, University of Glasgow, University of Oxford, University of Portsmouth and University of the Arts London, London College of Communication.
Announcing the new Daiwa Scholars, Jason James, Director General of The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation, said:
“The Trustees of the Daiwa Foundation have chosen seven new Scholars for our flagship Daiwa Scholarship programme. As always, they are individuals of enormous potential across a wide variety of fields. This year there are two lawyers, a sports marketer, an aspiring translator and publisher of children’s books, an illustrator, and two scientists, one specialising in neurodegenerative diseases and the other in fish parasites. As a result of COVID delays to the 2020 and 2021 cohorts, we have a bumper crop of 18 Scholars in Japan at the moment, and when the 2023 Scholars join them this September, the number on the programme will hit another new record. We are excited to be able to support all these highly talented people in their engagement with Japan”
Daiwa Scholars 2023 departed for Tokyo on 6 September 2023.
Their profiles with photographs can be found via the following link.
Daiwa Scholars 2023 blog!
Click below to read about what the Scholars have been getting up to. More updates throughout the year:
JAKE’S BLOG OWAIN’S BLOG OLIVIA’S BLOG RHI’S BLOG SHANA’S BLOG
About the scholars
Jake Barraclough
Jake Barraclough completed a BSc in Geography at the University of Birmingham in 2018, and an MA in Creative Business Leadership at Savannah College of Art and Design in the USA in 2022. Since finishing his MA he has taken up a sports marketing internship at a startup. Jake’s passion for Japan arose from his participation in martial arts and distance running. His enthusiasm was fuelled further when he read The Way of the Runner by Adharanand Finn who visited Japan to discover the secrets of its running success. This encouraged Jake’s interest in the popularity of “eki-den” or “road relay races” in Japan. Following a period of study in Japan, he aspires to a career in sports promotion and to ultimately manage his own company.
Jake’s homestay while on the Scholarship was in Minenohara, Nagano Prefecture and his work placement was with TEMPO, a media company that tells stories about Japan’s running culture in a way the rest of the world can understand.
Melissa Boyce-Hurd
Melissa Boyce-Hurd was awarded a BA in French by the University of Oxford in 2020. In 2023 she completed an International MA in Children’s Literature, Media and Culture run by the University of Glasgow. As a child she fell in love with the magic and storytelling of Studio Ghibli films, later developing an interest in anime and manga as imaginative mediums that make use of flexible and creative narrative structures. During her MA she became increasingly interested in Japan and Japanese children’s books. She aspires to a career in book publishing, specialising in Editing or Foreign Rights. She is also keen to work with translation and foreign works, and to increase awareness of Japanese picture books and children’s books in the UK.
Melissa’s homestay while on the programme was in Kochi, Shikoku. Her work placement was with Tokyo Weekender Magazine.
Owain Cooke
Owain Cooke was awarded an LLB by the University of Cambridge in 2022. In 2023 he completed his Postgraduate Diploma in Bar Vocational Studies at City, University of London. During his time at Cambridge, he worked as a Programme Assistant for two weeks on the month-long Meiji University Law Programme at Corpus Christi College, teaching law to the Japanese undergraduates who had travelled to Cambridge. As a result, Owain gained considerable insights into Japanese culture and learned a number of Japanese phrases. Owain was a co-author of ‘Beyond the Galapagos Syndrome: Mapping the Future of UK-Japan Economic Cooperation’, a policy paper advocating for greater trade and international development cooperation between the UK and Japan. After gaining fluency in Japanese, Owain aspires to a career at the Bar of England and Wales, specialising in international commercial disputes and the East Asia region.
Owain’s work placement was at Clifford Chance.
Dr Rhi Hunt
Dr Rhi Hunt was awarded a BSc in Marine Biology by the University of Portsmouth in 2015. This was followed by an MRes in Biosciences in 2016 and a PhD in Biology in 2022, both undertaken at Cardiff University. Rhi is keen to improve fish health, aspiring to a scientific career in which they can contribute to the creation of new parasite-screening methodologies to reduce the lag phase between infection and subsequent treatment, and the generation of mathematical models to predict the impact of climate change on parasite outbreaks. As Japan and the UK are pursuing the improvement and expansion of aquaculture and fisheries, Rhi considers the development of a new aquatic health lab linking the UK and Japan as being key to increasing the output of aquaculture and fisheries within both countries without compromising animal welfare.
Rhi’s homestay was in Kyushu and their work placement at Shimoda Marine Research Center (SMRC), University of Tsukuba – on the Izu Peninsula.
Olivia Kehoe
Olivia Kehoe completed an MSci in Natural Sciences at University College London in 2023. Prior to her degree, she spent three months travelling and volunteering in Okayama and Shizuoka prefectures during her gap year, sparking a desire to return one day. During her studies she has specialised in neuroscience and the history and philosophy of science, with a particular interest in neurodegenerative diseases and their societal implications. She became increasingly aware of the extent of research in this field in Japan, realising it married her career ambitions with her personal interests in reconnecting with her Japanese heritage. In her final year, she decided to take language classes alongside her Master’s project on protein aggregation in Alzheimer’s Disease. Aspiring to a career in neuroscience, she hopes to further collaboration with Japanese research groups working towards an understanding of neurodegenerative disease and its potential treatments.
Olivia’s homestay was in Tanegashima, Kagoshima Prefecture. Her work placement was primarily at RIKEN Center for Brain Science, with three to five days a month at Eisai Pharmaceuticals.
Shana Pagano Lohrey
Shana Pagano Lohrey was awarded a BA in Illustration and Visual Media by the London College of Communication, University of the Arts London in 2017. She went on to receive The Drawing Year, a fully-funded postgraduate scholarship for study at the Royal Drawing School, from January 2021 to April 2022. Shana first travelled to Japan in summer 2014, visiting Tokyo and Kyoto and trekking in Yamagata Prefecture. She returned in 2015, to take up an illustration internship at Akaoni Design Studio in Yamagata Prefecture. She is interested in Japanese “yōkai” or, as she describes them, “supernatural beings based on idiosyncratic phenomena”. As an artist and illustrator she is intent on developing her practice and exploring visual narratives about sense of place, both in the urban and within the mountainous or coastal regions of Tōhoku as a comparative study. Building on what she learns from artists, galleries and museums in Japan, she is keen to pursue an MA at Tokyo University of the Arts.
Shana’s homestay was in Fukuoka, and her work placement at an art studio.
Sushrut Royyuru
Sushrut Royyuru was awarded a BA in Law (Jurisprudence) in 2022 by the University of Oxford, where he also completed his Bachelor of Civil Law (Masters) in 2023. His main areas of interest include International arbitration law, private international law and commercial law. Sushrut came into contact with Japanese culture and language through learning karate and practising martial arts. He enjoys watching Japanese films and anime. An avid reader of Haruki Murakami novels, he has also developed an appreciation for other Japanese writers including Mieko Kawakami and Yukio Mishima. He has a longstanding interest in Japan’s history and literature, as well as its legal system. He aspires to building a career focussed on the international aspects of law, both as a practitioner and a comparatist. He is interested in the possibility of pursuing transnational litigation in which he can facilitate communication with Japanese clients.
Sushrut spent his homestay at the Sapporo EcoVillage and his work placement was with the Sasakawa Peace Foundation.