From Manga to Manifesto: Youth Culture, Protest, and the Global Circulations of ONE PIECE

26. März 2026, von AAI-Redaktion

Foto: Tom Gahleitner

We are pleased to invite you to the upcoming interdisciplinary research workshop at the Asia-Africa-Institute at the University of Hamburg:

From Manga to Manifesto: Youth Culture, Protest, and the Global Circulations of ONE PIECE, 26–27 March 2026, Edmund-Siemers-Allee 1, Hamburg, Germany.

In the spirit of the motto “1 theme, 2 days, 3 departments”, the workshop is jointly organized by Nora Derbal (Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies), Kerstin Fooken (Japanese Studies) Hewan Semon Marye (African Studies).

The workshop explores how popular culture—particularly the global phenomenon of ONE PIECE—travels across linguistic, cultural, and political boundaries to inspire new forms of protest, belonging, and political imagination among young people in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.

We welcome colleagues and students interested in questions of youth culture, protest aesthetics, and the global reimagining of Japanese visual media to join us for two days of presentations and discussions.

Please find the Call for Papers attached. We warmly encourage you to circulate it among interested colleagues and graduate students.

Submission deadline: 1 December 2025
Please send proposals to both nora.derbal"AT"uni-hamburg.de and kerstin.fooken"AT"uni-hamburg.de.

We look forward to your participation and to stimulating discussions in Hamburg this coming March!

Call for Papers

With best regards,
Nora Derbal, Kerstin Fooken, and Hewan Semon Marye
Asia-Africa-Institute, University of Hamburg