RAM+TSVP Talk: "Running a University Lab in Japan as a Foreigner" by Jamie Kass

This event is part of OIST's Researcher Appreciation Month (RAM) in October 2024.

Title: Running a University Lab in Japan as a Foreigner, and Other Things I’m Still Learning How To Do

Abstract: I am a biologist who took a meandering path to my academic career, starting in New York City, and with pitfalls along the way, but with some hard work managed to make it to Japan, land a postdoc at OIST (4 years with the Biodiversity and Biocomplexity Unit), and then get a faculty position at Tohoku University. Hired as the first tenure-track Associate Professor in my department in 2023, I now run an international lab with undergrads, master's students, and doctoral students. Making everything work smoothly is a learning process, especially while I'm still adjusting to work life as a professor in a traditional public university in Japan. I'd like to talk a bit about how I got here (and how you can too!), what I learned along the way, and what I am still trying to get right. I'd also like to briefly discuss my research on biodiversity modeling.

Profile: Jamie M. Kass is tenure-track Associate Professor and PI of the Macroecology Lab at the Graduate School of Life Sciences at Tohoku University. He is an ecologist who researches large-scale patterns and processes in biodiversity, focusing on the development and application of models that make predictions of species' ranges and biodiversity indices over space and time. The Macroecology Lab is a fully bilingual environment (Japanese and English) and currently has 16 members, including undergraduates, graduate students, and professors that together represent 7 countries. Dr. Kass spent 4 years at OIST as a postdoctoral researcher (2019-2023) working with Prof. Evan Economo in the Biodiversity and Biocomplexity Unit. He is originally from New York City, USA and has lived in Japan for ~6 years.

Language: English, no interpretation.

Target audience: General audience / everyone at OIST and beyond.
Freely accessible to all OIST members and guests without registration.

This talk will also be broadcast online via Zoom:

Meeting ID: 944 3763 3083
Passcode: 674054

※ Please note that this event may be recorded and the videos uploaded. In addition, photos may be taken during the event. These are intended for publication online (the OIST website, social media, etc.)※