Dr. Darren J. Aoki

Dr. Darren J. Aoki is Associate Professor in World History and Oral History at the University of Plymouth, United Kingdom. His research interests include gender and sexuality in twentieth century Japan, and more recently, the history of the Japanese diaspora with a focus on oral history and digital storytelling. In 2011, Aoki initiated an oral history pilot project recording and exploring the memories of southern Alberta Nikkei (people of Japanese descent). This grew into the Nikkei Memory Capture Project (NMCP), a long-term community-based oral history project that was awarded a Social Science and Research Council of Canada Insight Grant (2019-2023) as well as other local grants. Launched in summer 2017 by Aoki and co-Leader Carly Adams (University of Lethbridge), the NMCP seeks to spur the narration of the cultural and social history of Japanese Canadians in the latter half of the twentieth century. It is a transnational collaborative initiative bringing together the University of Plymouth and the University of Lethbridge, and key southern Alberta Nikkei community stakeholders. With a research team of postgraduate research students, the NMCP has expanded its focus to include such diverse topics as inter-racial intimacy, sport and recreation, food culture, spirituality, the narration and curation of Nikkei history, and methodological innovation of oral history as it intersects with other disciplinary approaches, technology, and media. Aoki’s publications include peer reviewed articles in Rethinking History, The Journal of Canadian Studies, Asia-Pacific Journal - Japan Focus, Modern Asian Studies, and Japan Forum.