An international exhibition is full of interesting elements that can be pursued as themes of academic study, from the exhibition itself as a huge event, or the politics behind its organisation, to each of the objects exhibited or its numerous kinds of visitors. In Japan, since the 1980's in particular, the subject of international exhibitions has attracted many scholars as interdisciplinary area of research. However, it seems that for the most part previous studies have had a restricted perspective, simply looking at "Japan" in relation to certain aspects or examples of international exhibitions. Too little attention has been paid to equivalent cases of other Asian nations, which would have provided such research with a more adequate comparative perspective. This team research project will identify and organise a wide variety of relevant issues concerning the subject of international exhibitions, such as the development of forms of cultural display from the 19th Century until today, the role of exhibitions in the processes of each nation's modernisation, and the effects of hosting an international exhibition in connections with economic, industrial, city-planning, and cultural policies, and will reposition them in a comparative inter-Asian context. Within such a context, the position of existing studies will also be relativised, and the study of international exhibitions in general will be given a new light; the project aims, on such a foundation, to be able to draw a longer-term research plan. At the same time, this attempt will be a step to relativise, not only the study of international exhibitions, but the Japanese studies, to open itself as an aspect of the world history rather than an effort to learn about Japan within a limited scope.In the course of conducting the activities of this team research project, it will be of particular importance to pursue historical and contemporary topics concerning international exhibitions in combination and not to divide them, as well as to develop the project as a powerful means to speak out to the actual society, with an understanding of the subject of international exhibitions as a focal point of academic research and policy practices. Finally, the consecutive holding of international exhibitions in the East Asia―Aichi 2005, Shanghai 2010, and Yeosu 2012―are apparently accelerating the study of this subject among young scholars in China and Korea, and it is needless to say that the equivalent study in Japan should be further advanced: This project will also provide a good opportunity for those Asian scholars to be inter-connected each other.

Research Representative	佐野　真由子	国際日本文化研究センター・准教授
Organizer	劉　建輝	国際日本文化研究センター・准教授
Team Researcher	石川　敦子	㈱乃村工藝社・チーフ
〃	市川　文彦	関西学院大学・教授
〃	伊藤　奈保子	広島大学大学院文学研究科・准教授
〃	岩田　泰	経済産業省博覧会推進室・室長
〃	鵜飼　敦子	東京大学東洋文化研究所・特任研究員
〃	江原　規由	(財)国際貿易投資研究所・研究主幹
〃	川口　幸也	立教大学文学部・教授
〃	神田　孝治	和歌山大学観光学部・准教授
〃	中牧　弘允	国立民族学博物館名誉教授
〃	芳賀　徹	国際日本文化研究センター名誉教授／東京大学名楊教授
〃	橋爪　紳也	大阪府立大学・教授
〃	林　洋子	京都造形芸術大学・准教授
〃	武藤　秀太郎	新潟大学人文社会・教育科学系・准教授
〃	稲賀　繁美	国際日本文化研究センター・教授
〃	井上　章一	国際日本文化研究センター・教授
〃	瀧井　一博	国際日本文化研究センター・准教授
〃	Wybe　KUITERT	国際日本文化研究センター・外国人研究員
〃	朴　美貞	国際日本文化研究センター・機関研究員
Team Researcher Overseas	青木　信夫	天津大学・教授
〃	徐　蘇斌	天津大学・教授