Scholars 2021-Present

Kevin Rickman

Kevin Rickman

2024–2025 Kevin Rickman received his BAs in English and Philosophy from UW Parkside, MAs in Philosophy and Second Language Studies at UH-Manoa, and he has continued his studies of comparative philosophy, philosophy of language, ontology, and ethics as a PhD candidate in philosophy at UH-Manoa. His dissertation combines all of these facets by focusing on the nature of the relationship between our language use, the ecosphere we are a part of, and the ethical value we must place on the interdependent and mutually reflexive relationship we have with ourselves, language, each other, and society. By drawing attention to this complex and foundational relationship, Kevin hopes to bring about meaningful change in environmentalist efforts. The Crown Prince Akihito Scholarship affords Kevin the opportunity to study Kyoto School Philosophy in Japan, and this can help him to both bring Japanese philosophy to the larger community and correct for the anthropocentric perspective so prevalent in the world in our current era.

Ken Tanaka

2023–2025 Ken Tanaka, M.D, is a Japanese physician. He is excited to pursue his PhD and MPH to elucidate the long-standing mysteries of malaria hemozoin crystal to develop and deliver new antimalarial drugs with less drug resistance to patients. He was honored with the Quad Fellowship Award as a Representative of Japan by the U.S Government. Dr. Tanaka obtained his medical license from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan, M.D from Chiba University School of Medicine, and MS from New York University.

Jason Alexander

Jason Alexander

2023–2024 Jason Mark Alexander received his B.A. in History and Japanese from Colgate University, and an M.A. from Kyushu University’s International Master’s Program in Japanese Humanities. Currently, Jason is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Sociology at UH Mānoa and a Student Affiliate at the East-West Center. His ethnographic dissertation research in Japan, facilitated by the Crown Prince Akihito Scholarship, will investigate grassroots, diaspora, and civil society relationships in the Japanese-Burmese-US social movement that advocates for democratic justice against authoritarian destruction in Burma.

Taiki Sano

2022–2023 Taiki Sano received his BA in American Studies from the University of Tokyo and is currently an MA candidate in anthropology at the same university. He will enter the PhD program in anthropology at the University of Hawai’i, Mānoa this fall. His current research interests include gender, sexuality, race, food, and illnesses. At UH Mānoa, he aspires to delve into the complexities of eating disorders.

James "JD" Parker

James “JD” Parker

2022–2023 and 2024-2025 JD Parker is a Ph.D. student in the Global & International Education track within the Department of Educational Foundations at UH Mānoa. Prior to arriving at UHM, JD received his B.A. in History and M.Ed. in Educational Leadership and Administration from West Texas A&M University. He also earned an M.A. in East Asian Languages and Cultures from the University of Kansas where he researched educational policy reform in post-war occupied Japan. Currently, he is a visiting student researcher at Kyoto University where he investigates human rights education (HRE) as a global educational trend in the context of teacher training in Japan. JD will utilize the Crown Prince Akihito Scholarship to explore how international frameworks and discourses of human rights are integrated or contested in local constructions of human rights in Japan.

Ryo Dobashi

Ryo Dobashi

2021-2023 Ryo Dobashi received his Bachelor’s degree in Applied Marine Science from Hokkaido University. He also completed the Nitobe College Undergraduate Program with honors. He received a Master’s degree in Marine Bioresource and Environmental Science from the Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences at Hokkaido University. He was honored with the Sasa Shigeo Award by the Graduate School for his academic achievement. Ryo is currently a Doctoral student in the same Graduate School and will be a Ph.D. student at the University of Hawaii at Manoa from Fall 2021. His research interest is Marine Geology and Geochemistry for exchange of gas between the ocean and the atmosphere.

Leah Wasil

2020-2021 Leah Wasil received her BA from Central Washington University in Anthropology and East Asian Studies, and her MA from Brandeis University in Anthropology and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. Currently she is a PhD candidate in the Anthropology department at UH Manoa. She conducts her research in the guidance of Dr. Christine Yano. She is interested in Japanese archaeology, heritage making and identity politics, and UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Her work investigates relationships between public archaeology and heritage production.

Christopher Molina

2021-2022 Christopher Molina received his Masters of Music in composition from the University of Michigan, and is currently a doctoral composer and Ph.D. candidate at the University of Hawaii. His music combines world music instruments with classical, celebrating acoustic music, jazz and folk influences, as well as soundscapes in the natural world. He performs internationally with the Japanese shakuhachi flute, and his residency at UH Manoa has allowed him to collaborate both locally and with musicians in Tokyo, Seoul, and Shanghai. With support from the Crown Prince Akihito Scholarship, he will complete his dissertation on the late concertos of Tōru Takemitsu, as well as an original work for orchestra with shakuhachi soloist, in Tokyo in conjunction with Senzoku Gakuen College of Music and Meiji University.