on behalf of the Japanese Studies Association of Australia (JSAA)

Professor Kent Anderson is President of the JSAA and Director, Faculty of Asian Studies, ANU College of Asia-Pacific and ANU College of Law, The Australian National University, Canberra , ACT

Ian McArthur is a fellow of the Department of Asian Studies at Macquarie University and lectures in Japanese language at the University of Sydney . He is a former executive member of the JSAA.

The Japanese Studies Association of Australia is the peak body representing teachers of Japanese language and Japanese Studies at tertiary and secondary institutions around Australia .

The Japanese word sushi first entered the Macquarie Dictionary in its 1985 revised edition when it was defined simply as a Japanese dish of boiled rice. Subsequent definitions exhibit a more nuanced understanding of sushi with all its different ingredients, reflecting the understanding many Australians now have of Japan .

This is a pleasing development. But gratifying as this is, there are some worrying developments in the study of Japan in Australia . These relate to an apparent decline of interest in the in-depth study of Japan by Australians.

Certainly a large number of students in Australia are coming to the study of Japanese motivated by an interest in aspects of Japan 's popular culture. Things like animated films, known as anime , or even the fad for cosplay from the Japanese fad for dressing in the costumes of characters in these same animated films.

Japan also remains — as it has for over the past 40 years — Australia 's largest export market. Moreover, in the last decade, our security relationship with Japan , covering joint partnerships in East Timor, the Pacific, Cambodia , and Iraq , has provided the ‘bookends of peace' in the West Pacific that ensures our trading economies can prosper.

As a result, the study of Japan is crucially important for Australia . A lot of Australians agree. Australia has a higher proportion of its population learning Japanese than any other country. A 2003 Japan Foundation survey found that of the 40 universities in Australia , 33 were then teaching Japanese Studies. There were over 15,000 enrolments in Japan-related subjects. Two-and-a-half-thousand were in Japanese Studies, and just over 11,000 in Japanese language.

Numbers studying Japanese language have risen slightly since then. But, of concern to those of us in the field is the drop in students doing Japanese Studies in the past decade. This is defined as the study of non-language subjects like history or society where these relate to Japan . This decline means the pool of experts who know Japan in depth is dwindling.

But here's the problem. While overall numbers studying Japan haven't fallen, the number and proportion of Australians among students studying Japan in Australia has dropped in recent years.

By contrast, the number and proportion of international — mainly Asian — students studying Japan-related subjects in our universities, has grown.

The presence of international students among the overall student body studying Japan is something to celebrate. But this drop in the proportion and number of Australians studying Japan means the domestic pool of Japan-literate people is dwindling at the very same time as these international students are returning to Asia and bringing an Australian perspective to their understanding of Japan . This has foreign policy implications for Australia 's integration with the Asian region, but we are not entirely convinced Australia 's political leaders appreciate this contribution to regional understanding that our universities are making.

For our part, we would like to see more of our prime ministers speaking to the leaders of Asian countries in their own languages, including in Japanese. Regrettably, the number of federal parliamentarians who can speak any Asian language in a functional sense would probably not exceed the number of fingers on one hand.

Of course we have the now world famous exception of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's ability to speak Mandarin. And, if Barak Obama is elected President in the United States and the hyper-sensitive domestic environment allows him to celebrate his Indonesian linguistic ability, we'll have two old fashioned ‘Western' leaders speaking the patois of the Pacific. What better symbolism is there for the shift to the ‘Pacific Century'? These two leaders should not be the quirky exceptions though, and our commitment to teaching more Australians about Japan and Asia must persist.

One of the reasons given in the Japan Foundation report for the fall in interest in Japan was a perception among political leaders that Japan 's decade of economic stagnation in the 1990s had downgraded Japan 's importance to Australia .

Despite the rise in profile of trade with China , Australia still sells more to Japan than any other country inside or outside of Asia, including China and the United States combined . It will remain so for years to come.

Of course, China 's rapid economic growth and strategic importance to our region are also attracting Japan 's attention. How Japan and China engage with each other affects Australia , as does how the United States interacts with these two Asian giants. So more of us who teach about Japan are finding it useful to incorporate into our courses aspects of Japan 's relationship with China . If Australians are to live comfortably in our region, we must understand the Sino-Japanese and the Sino-Japanese-US relationship. Indeed, one of the great contributions Australia can make in the 21 st century is acting as interpreter between these three countries to help them find a productive, inclusive path forward. Our unique location and history, but also our unique commitment to learning about Asia in the post-war era, has positioned us to play this role, if we remain committed to investing in the education necessary.

Many things about Japan have become almost matter-of-fact – more so here than in other so-called Western countries – since we share the same time zone. For instance, a growing number of Australians take charter flights to Japan's northern island of Hokkaido for skiing holidays. Many school children visit Japan for exchanges and homestays.

The more Japan-literate Australians become, the better. It is important we keep up the supply of Australians with a knowledge of Japan to become the educators, business negotiators, and diplomats who can represent our interests in negotiations involving Japan . And we should also reassess our commitment to learning about Japan to take account of Japan 's changed role in our region.