Research Interests
- Refugee and Forced Migration Studies
- Refugee and Immigration Policy in Japan
- Role of Civil Society in Japan
Professional Experience
| Feb 2026 – Present | University of Zurich, Zurich: Doctoral Researcher, SNSF project "Agenda Setting and Framing of Immigration in Japan, 1975-2025" |
| Jan 2020 – Jan 2026 | Japan Association for Refugees (JAR), Tokyo: Secretary of Refugee Studies Forum, External Relations Team |
Education
| Nov 2020 | Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, Venice: M.A. in Anthropology (Cultural Anthropology, Ethnology, Anthropological Linguistics) |
| Mar 2017 | Hosei University, Tokyo: B.A. in Intercultural Communication |
Publications
Journal Articles
- Yamada, Koki (2024). “The Possibility of being “betwixt and between”: Tracing the Experiences of Japanese Students in Refugee Studies and Aid in Italy through Autoethnography,” Journal of International Development Studies, 33(2), 55-68. (Invited, In Japanese: 「宙ぶらりん」な存在の可能性―日本人留学生のイタリアにおける難民研究と支援の経験を辿るオートエスノグラフィーを通じて―) https://doi.org/10.32204/jids.33.2_1
- Wang, Mang, Soyeun Kim and Koki Yamada (2024). “Postscript: International Development Studies for Co-existence/Co-becoming in the Pluriverse,” Journal of International Development Studies, 33(2), 69-76. (Invited, In Japanese: 結びにかえて：多遍世界を共生する国際開発学) https://doi.org/10.32204/jids.33.2_69
- Yamada, Koki (2020). “Support ‘For Asylum Seekers’ and Its Challenges: Segregation and Mechanism of Control through Assistance in Italian Private Refugee Centers,” Refugee Studies Journal, 9, 132-146. (Peer reviewed, In Japanese: 「難民のため」の支援とその課題－イタリアの民間難民施設の隔離と支援＝管理メカニズム)
Presentations
- Yamada, Koki (2018, June 29). “The Paradox of Legal Statuses: The Case of Padua,” Escapes V Conference, University of Milan. (In Italian: Il paradosso degli status giudiziali: il caso di Padova)
Reports
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Yamada, Koki (2025). “Refugee Trend Analysis in Japan, 2023,” Refugee Studies Journal, 14, 177–182. (In Japanese: 2023 年難民動向分析－日本) https://refugeestudies.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Refugee-Trend-Analysis-in-Japan-2023.pdf
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Yamada, Koki (2025). “Refugee Trend Analysis—Global, 2023,” Refugee Studies Journal, 14, 183. (In Japanese: 2023 年難民動向分析－世界) https://refugeestudies.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Refugee-Trend-Analysis-Overseas-2023.pdf
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Yamada, Koki (2024). “Revision of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, 2023,” Refugee Studies Journal, 13, 157-161. (In Japanese: 2023 年出入国管理及び難民認定法－成立までの議論に着目して) https://refugeestudies.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Revision-of-the-Immigration-Control-and-Refugee-Recognition-Act-2023.pdf
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Yamada, Koki (2024). “Refugee Trend Analysis in Japan, 2022,” Refugee Studies Journal, 13, 142–148. (In Japanese: 2022 年難民動向分析－日本) https://refugeestudies.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Refugee-Trend-Analysis-in-Japan-2022.pdf
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Yamada, Koki (2023). “Refugee Trend Analysis in Japan, 2021,” Refugee Studies Journal, 12, 114–120. (In Japanese: 2021 年難民動向分析－日本) https://refugeestudies.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Refugee-Trend-Analysis-in-Japan-2021.pdf
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Yamada, Koki (2022). “Refugee Trend Analysis in Japan, 2020,” Refugee Studies Journal, 11, 185–189. (In Japanese: 2020 年難民動向分析－日本) https://refugeestudies.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Refugee-Trend-Analysis-in-Japan-2020.pdf
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Yamada, Koki (2021). “Refugee Trend Analysis in Overseas, 2019,” Refugee Studies Journal, 10, 151-153. (In Japanese: 2019 年難民動向分析－世界) https://refugeestudies.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Refugee-Trend-Analysis-Overseas-2019.pdf
Awards, Grants and Scholarships
- 6th Young Refugee Scholar Award, June 2018
- JASSO Scholarship for Degree-seeking Students, September 2017 – July 2019
- Excellence Award (2nd) in 39th Essay Contest in Hosei University, March 2017
- JASSO Scholarship for Exchange Students, September 2015 – June 2016