Scott Musgrave-Takeda, PhD Candidate

In July I had the pleasure of presenting at the Oceanian Conference of International Studies 2023 at the University of Melbourne. It was the first time presenting at a conference in person as the pandemic or my field work had restricted attendance in previous instances.

I attended the keynote speech on opening night by Professor Robbie Shilliam of John Hopkins University. Professor Shilliam gave an insightful talk about the idea of frontiers and the work of Hans Morgenthau. A very entertaining talk that stimulated quite a lot of reflection on my part in regards to thinking about Okinawa.

I presented on the first official day of the conference to a small audience where I was joined by presenters that focused on the ideas of down-up state creation in Japan and nuclear weapons acquisition in a South Korean context. A fairly eclectic group of presenters that provided positive and new views.

My talk focused on the barriers presented by the US-Japan Status of Forces Agreement in finding amicable solutions to environmental problems in Okinawa, presenting some of my fieldwork research on PFAS and the Yanbaru forest. Overall the talk was a success, and I hope that there are a few more people in the world now that are at least a little bit more aware of what is happening in Okinawa today and with PFAS which is now becoming a nationwide issue in Japan.

I am still struck by the lack of knowledge of PFAS with the people I engage with. I find myself having to explain this repeatedly. Even though Australian authorities have governance measures for PFAS pollution, very few people appear to be aware of this or even about PFAS itself. What I have noticed however, is through my research journey, I have inspired people around me to learn more about it which I certainly consider a win overall.

The experience at OCIS was a good one, and it was nice to actually have time to interact with colleagues and sit in on some talks in-person for the first time in a long time.