practice research

In July 2026 CIIP held an in-person international seminar in Okinawa running 1-3 July 2026, co-organised with colleagues at the University of the Ryukyus, and the SEA-EU European University of the Seas represented by Prof. Monika Szuba (University of Gdańsk).

The Ocean of Life seminar explored cultural, intellectual, and environmental challenges, including the impact of colonialism on oceanic exploration, the ocean as a source of myth and identity, and the role of sea narratives in the modern global economy and ecology.

CIIP co-directors presented work on ‘Diving into the Wreck: The Ocean as Museum, and Heritage Beyond Salvage’, and
conducted a University as Infrastructure mapping workshop adapted for the coastal university context, ‘University as Infrastructure: Undersea Cables and Reliance on Big Tech’.

Megen de Bruin-Molé presented a paper “Diving into the Wreck: The Ocean as Museum, and Heritage Beyond Salvage”
Kwame Phillips and Alexandra Anikina shared a short version of the University as Infrastructure mapping workshop adapted for coastal university context, “University as Infrastructure: Undersea Cables and Reliance on Big Tech”
Megen’s map
The most artistic anonymous contribution to the workshop

(Images from the CIIP Instagram account)

We also participated in student presentations of practice-based work.

(Image by Naoko Uchima)

For more information see the event website: https://international-seminar-ocean.my.canva.site

‘Reimagine University’ is an experimental practice research collaboration between staff and students at the University of the Ryukyus, University of Southampton, and University of Gdańsk. PRAG-UK’s Steven Hill writes that ‘Practice as research is set apart by new ways of conceptualising the research process, often leading to an increased diversity in research outputs…Research considered in this light is embodied in the world, with real and direct connections to society’ (ukri.org, 2023).

Reimagine University explores “art as a means to innovate and instigate change in the university context”. Through this and subsequent conversations, and drawing from our shared interdisciplinary background in art, literature, theatre and pedagogy, we advocate for reimagining the university as a creative, inclusive, and socially responsive space.

The field of practice research is still emerging in Japan and is often defined quite differently than in other international contexts; the University of the Ryukyus is among the few institutions actively pioneering this specific approach at the university level. Winchester School of Art at the University of Southampton has been one of the UK’s leading centres for practice research since the 1990s. Both are coastal institutions offering strong commitments to and benefits for their coastal communities, evidenced by our SEA-EU collaboration.

Together, through our leading work in this space, we explore how the arts can foster critical thinking, cultural empathy, and pedagogical innovation, particularly within global, coastal, and multilingual academic settings.

In March and May 2026 we hosted online symposia featuring discussions and presentations of student creative work from University of Southampton and University of the Ryukyus.

In July 2026 we held ‘The Ocean of Life: Where Past Meets Future’, an in-person international seminar in Okinawa running 1-3 July 2026, co-organised with colleagues at the University of the Ryukyus, and the SEA-EU European University of the Seas represented by Prof. Monika Szuba (UoG). We also participated in student presentations of practice-based work.

Naoko Uchima and Titus Spree of Art Initiative Okinawa originated the name ‘Reimagine University’ through their ‘Creative Learning Environments for Innovating University Education’ project: https://cle.okinawa/ryudai-c-1. Art Initiative Okinawa was founded in 2020 to support contemporary art practice in Okinawa.

Tag: practice research

The Ocean of Life: Where Past Meets Future

Reimagine University: Practice-Based Research in Coastal Universities