Source: Peatix

The second installment of a cross-disciplinary research community centered on "death"!

This project is an academic event of "Living Lab from Death," an initiative that aims to open up the future of society by using death as a starting point.

Death Fest 2025 also had an "Academic Day," which went beyond the boundaries of existing research fields and covered a wide range of themes, including views on life and death, well-being, funeral culture, death tech, social systems and policy research, art and cultural implementation, and was a huge success despite being held on a weekday.

"Death" is a multifaceted theme that cuts across academic fields, and the circumstances surrounding it are constantly changing.

This lab was established with the aim of crossing the boundaries of academia, business, and government, and co-creating new knowledge starting from death.
Going forward, we plan to hold the event regularly as a forum for connections and cross-border collaboration, collaborating with researchers from each research field to derive new knowledge and return the results of that research to society.

This will be the second event following the first one held last year. Please come and join the even more powerful community.

We are also accepting applications from those who would like to present their research, so please apply.
(In principle, we expect research presentations from people in a master's program or above, but we would like to encounter new ideas and research areas, so please do not be bound by this framework and feel free to contact us if you are interested.)

■ Overview
Date and time: Saturday, January 17, 2026, 14:00-16:00
*There will be a social gathering after the event for those who wish to attend.
Venue: SHIBUYA QWS
Participation Fee: Free
Target:
・Researchers and researchers on death and related topics (graduate and undergraduate students are also welcome)
Addressing themes related to death
・Responsible for open innovation and new business ventures
・Those interested in research into the value of death, open innovation, and social implementation
*Although the purpose of this event is research, anyone can participate if they understand and agree with the purpose.

■Timetable (planned)
*There will be no change to the time slot, but details may be subject to change.
13:45 Reception begins
14:00 Opening
14:10-14:40　KEYNOTE: Maki Yamagata
14:40-14:55 SHOWCASE 1: Naoharu Miyamoto
15:55-15:10 SHOWCASE 2: Taiyo Uchida
15:10-15:25 Cross-talk between the three speakers
15:25-15:55 Free discussion
15:55-16:00 Closing
*We are planning a social gathering, so please come along if you have time!

■Speakers (planned)
KEYNOTE: Maki Yamagata

■Presentation title
The world of corpses next to you
- Starting from the scene of an autopsy to research on multiple bodies in disasters -

■Title
Researcher at Rikkyo University's Social Design Institute and former coroner

■Research Field
Handling and managing a large number of bodies in large-scale disasters

■Keywords
autopsy, corpse, large-scale disaster, multiple bodies

■ profile
During his time as a police officer, he examined approximately 1,600 bodies as a medical examiner in the First Investigation Division of the Criminal Affairs Department, and was involved in counter-terrorism measures (autopsies) for the Tokyo Olympics. In 2023, he completed a master's program at Rikkyo University Graduate School of Social Design. He will retire from the police in March 2025. He currently works in disaster relief at the certified NPO Association for Aid and Relief, Japan (AAR Japan), and is affiliated with Rikkyo University's Social Design Institute, where he is conducting research on topics such as "the treatment and management of large numbers of bodies in large-scale disasters."

His books include "The Coroner's Workplace: What the Corpses Tell Us About the Reality of Japan, a Society with a High Death Rate" (Chuko Shinsho Lacre, published December 2025).

©️Yoshifumi Kawabata／AAR

SHOWCASE 1: Naoharu Miyamoto
■Presentation title
Cancer survivors who are conscious of death reflect together and cultivate the ability to deeply appreciate life
~Cancer patients gather to talk at a temple lodging~

■Title
Representative of Office Miyamoto, Representative of Cancer Patient Group Yuzuriha, Director of the Japan Hospice and Home Care Research Association
Priest (teacher) at Yogenji Temple, Jodo Shinshu Honganji sect

■Research Field
outlook on life

■Keywords
The power of space, self-reflection, and the power of resignation

■ profile
Born in 1960, he was working as a pharmacist at Kitano Hospital (Kita-ku, Osaka) when he underwent surgery for stomach cancer in 2007. He then joined the Kobe-based cancer patient group Yuzuriha, becoming its representative two years later (now in his 15th year). Conscious that his own life was coming to an end, he became a monk (Jodo Shinshu Nishi Honganji) in 2011, a path that led to him becoming a Vihara priest in the palliative care ward in 2013. His experience as a "clinical religious practitioner" who was close to people dying of the same cancer as himself was a turning point for him to begin working to address the question, "How should we live?" from a perspective that combines the roles of patient, medical professional, and religious practitioner.

He has previously used his unique MC techniques to hold events such as "Gatherings of Cancer Patients at a Temple Lodging" and "Temple Cafe Discussion Groups." After retiring from the hospital, he has been active in many areas, including planning seminars to put into words the meaning of "living," and giving lectures at medical universities and various organizations.
Affiliated academic societies: Japanese Society of Palliative Medicine, Japanese Society for Bioethics

SHOWCASE 2: Taiyo Uchida
■Presentation title
How should we proceed with online procedures related to death? From the perspective of grief experiences of bereaved families and system design

■Title
Musashi University, Faculty of Sociology, Department of Media Sociology, 4th year student

■Research Field
Sociology of Information and Sociology of Death

■Keywords
Information and communications policy, bereavement, grief, administrative procedures, condolence corner

■ profile
He plans to enter the Master's program in Sociology at the Graduate School of Humanities, Musashi University. He is interested in the experiences of bereaved families facing death and inheritance procedures, and is examining how the online implementation of administrative procedures affects the way bereaved families perceive their grief and the sense of burden from the theoretical framework of the sociology of death. He has also worked on the topic of the digitization of the dead, including AI for the deceased, and has broadened his interest in the relationship between technology surrounding death and the information society through his participation in events such as Tokyo Open Data Day and the Next Generation Internet Policy Study Group.

Venue