Akira Sawata
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Pronouns: he/they
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Doctoral Student, HE
Areas of interest
- Queer and Trans Student of Color, Immigrant, and International Student
- Anthropology of Education
- Student Activism and Civic/Political Engagement
- Hope, Temporality, and Spatiality
- Internationalizations of Higher Education
MA, Education (International Education), University of Tsukuba, 2024
BA, Global Japanese Studies, Meiji University, 2022
Akira Sawata is a critical scholar-practitioner dedicated to advancing theories and practices that empower socially marginalized populations in higher education. Originally from Japan, he brings extensive experience in research, education, advocacy, and organizational leadership, with a focus on supporting minoritized youth—particularly queer and trans students, international students, immigrant students, and those at the intersections of these identities.
Their research explores the everyday practices of minoritized students, centering their identities and enactments of sexuality, gender, race, ethnicity, ability, citizenship, and nationality. Theoretically grounded at the intersection of Queer Theory (notably Queer Utopia, Negativity, and Temporality), Anthropology of Hope and Loss, Student Activism and Student Voice, Queer Migration Studies, and Mobility Studies, he investigates how queer and trans students (dis)engage in hope and (un)imagine their futures amidst harsh political and social attacks on their lives, rights, and aspirations.
Honors and Awards
JASSO, Repayment Exemption for Outstanding Achievement (full-exemption), 2024.
JASSO, Scholarship for Study Abroad (Graduate Degree-Seeking Program), 2024.
University of Tsukuba – Alumni Association, Prize of Leo Esaki, 2024.
Fulbright – Japan, Fulbright Scholarship for Graduate Study, 2024.
Tsukuba Conference 2023, Best Presentation Award, 2023.
Meiji University, Scholarship for Students with Outstanding Academic Achievement, 2021.
Sawata, A. (2024). Kousateki-zokusei ni motozuku komyunithi keisei-katei to taisyo-senryaku: Ibasyo-kan-ketsujo wo meguru ajia-syusshin-gei-ryugakusei no katari wo jirei to shite [Community Building and Coping Strategies in the Intersectionality: Narratives of Asian Gay International Students about a Lack of the Sense of Belonging]. Intercultural Japan (Bulletin of the Intercultural Education Society of Japan), 60, 74-91.
Sawata, A., Hagiwara, Y., Aiura, Y., Masaki, R., Kihara, R., Fujishima, A., & Gotou, M. (2024). LGBTQ+ toujisya-gakusei・hi-toujisya-gakusei ni your syakai-seigi no tame no kyoudou-gata-kyouiku-jissenn: Gakusei-sakuru ni okeru sanka-gata-akusyon-risachi [Social-Justice-Oriented Collaborative Learning of LGBTQ+ Students and Thier Allies: Participatory Action Research in Student Organization]. The Journal of East Asian Educational Research, 18, 13-40.
Sawata, A. (2024). Nihon no daigaku ni okeru kwia (seiteki-mainorithi) ryugakusei no seikatsu-keiken to sono shien: Toujisya・shiensya no shiten kara [The Lived Experiences and Support of the Queer International Students at Japanese Universities From the Perspectives of Students and Supporters]. Master's thesis, University of Tsukuba.
Sawata, A. (2024). kousateki-na sei wo ikinuku tame no syounin wo meguru jirenma: "LGBT ni jyuyou-teki an kuni" syusshin no kwia ryugakusei no aidenthithi kousyou ni tyakumoku shite [Dilemmas over Recognition for Surviving an Intersectional Life: Focusing on the Identity Negotiation of Queer International Students from “LGBT-Friendly Countries”]. Research Collection of Sociology of Education at Kyushu University, 27, 37-46.
Inugai-Dixon, C., Maya, K., Sawata, A., Gilmour, G., Betty, E., Holmes, E., Roberts, S., & Umetsu, S. (2023). International Baccalaureate Schools as ecosystems and the implications for self-organized teacher professional learning: A report of self-directed action research between IBEC students and IB teachers. The Journal of Research into International Baccalaureate Education, 7, 131-141.