Structural approaches to vegan advocacy in Japan and Australia

Join Ruby Ramsden and Dr Nick Pendergrast for this Inagaki Seminar series event online as they explore the topic of "Structural approaches to vegan advocacy in Japan and Australia".

This event is delivered in partnership with the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies (TUFS) Global Japan Office.

About Inagaki Seminar #46

As a diet and lifestyle that eschews animal products “as far as is possible and practicable” (Vegan Society, n.d), veganism is deeply intertwined with the animal rights movement. However, plant-based diets have also gained attention in recent years for their low environmental footprint, and for their health benefits. In light of the worsening climate crisis, and as animal welfare violations persist in the animal agriculture industry, it is more critical than ever that we consider veganism as a form of political protest (Wrenn 2018) and as a “knowledge resource” (Twine 2017: 192) for a wider transition toward plant-based food systems.

Ruby Ramsden, a Japanese Studies PhD candidate researching vegan advocacy in Japan and Dr Nick Pendergrast, a senior tutor in Social and Political Sciences who specialises in vegan and critical animal studies, will discuss structural approaches to vegan advocacy in Japan and Australia. Structural approaches are defined by their focus on systems, rather than individuals, as targets of change. While many vegan advocacy initiatives embrace slogans like “Go Vegan!”, motivating individual action, Ramsden and Pendergrast explore why these initiatives in isolation may not be effective. Offering examples from Japan and Australia, they put forward the case for advocacy that focuses on reducing cultural and institutional barriers to vegan practice.

Twine, Richard. 2017. "A Practice Theory Framework for Understanding Vegan Transition." Animal Studies Journal 6 (2): 192-224. https://ro.uow.edu.au/asj/vol6/iss2/12/.

The Vegan Society. n.d. “Definition of veganism”. The Vegan Society. Accessed April 22, 2025. https://www.vegansociety.com/go-vegan/definition-veganism.

Wrenn, Corey Lee. 2018. "How to Help When It Hurts? Think Systemic." Animal Studies Journal 7 (1): 149-179. http://ro.uow.edu.au/asj/vol7/iss1/8.

About the speakers

Ruby Ramsden is a PhD candidate of Japanese studies at the University of Melbourne’s Asia Institute. Her doctoral research examines the vegan movement in Japan, utilising an ethnographic action research informed methodology. She is interested in bringing together the fields of Japanese studies and vegan studies, highlighting what vegan advocacy in Japan can teach us about vegan advocacy more globally.

Dr Nick Pendergrast teaches Sociology at the University of Melbourne. He has taught a wide range of subjects, with a focus on social inequalities. He has published research in the fields of Vegan Sociology, Critical Animal Studies and social movements. His PhD thesis applied sociological theories on social movements and organisations to the animal advocacy movement in Australia and the United States.

Facilitator of this Inagaki Seminar on Japan

Akihiro Ogawa 小川 晃弘（おがわ・あきひろ） - Professor of Japanese Studies and Chair of Japanese Studies (since 2015) at the Asia Institute, University of Melbourne, Australia

About the Inagaki Seminar on Japan Series

This seminar series is named after Mr Senkichi 'Moshi' Inagaki, the pioneer of Japanese language instruction at the University of Melbourne, Australia.

Moshi Inagaki arrived in Australia from Japan in 1897 and commenced teaching of Japanese language at the University of Melbourne in 1919.

Launched in 2017, the Inagaki Seminar on Japan features talks from expert speakers on current topics on Japan within the areas of society, politics, language, and culture, as well as on the Australia-Japan relationship.

Today, the Inagaki Seminar continues to provide updated knowledge on Japan to Japan-interested audiences. Learn about past and upcoming Inagaki Seminars on Japan

Event Format

This event is an online only event delivered via Zoom.

Please register to receive the Zoom details and a reminder email will be sent immediately prior to the online event.

Contact and Accessibility

If you have specific requirements, please don't hesitate to contact us.

For inquiries, please contact Simon Bian at sbian@unimelb.edu.au

Image credit

Archival photo for Moshi Inagaki

Go Vegan photo (cropped for size) by Miika Laaksonen on Unsplash

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