Giovanni LAPIS

CURRENT POSITION

01/2023-  Subject Expert
(L-OR/20 - EAST ASIAN ARCHAEOLOGY, ART HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY)

RESEARCH FIELDS

Religions and philosophies of Japan and East Asia; teaching and didactics of religions in public spaces; theoretical approaches to religion; Orientalism and Occidentalism in East Asian and Euro-American cultural relationship; Modernity, Religion and Interculture in East Asian and Euro-American relations

EDUCATION BACKGROUND

03/23/2021: PhD in Asian and African Studies, Ca' Foscari University of Venice. Dissertation title: Religious Education and East Asian Religions. A Study-of-Religion Based Framework for Intercultural and Didactic Approaches. Advisor: Prof. Massimo Raveri/Toshio Miyake. Grade: Positive with Honors

09/07/2009:Master's Degree in Religious Studies, University of Padua. Title of Thesis: A Buddhist Hermeneutics of Modernity. Analysis of Shūkyō to wa nanika by Nishitani Keiji. Advisor: Prof. Massimo Raveri. Grade: 110/110 cum laude.

12/07/2006: Bachelor's degree in East Asian Languages and Cultures, University of Venice.  Grade: 103/110.

CERTIFICATES

01/30/2011: Certificate of Japanese language proficiency level N2, issued by Japan Foundation and Japan Educational Exchanges and Service.

PAST POSITIONS

06/2021 – 05/2022 Research Fellow. 
Research project: The glocalization of East Asian religions: interculturality, hybridity and bricolage among young people in Italy
Supervisor: Prof. Toshio Miyake

08/2016 – 07/2017 Research Fellow
Research and development of multimedia tools for e-learning of Japanese language within the JALEA (JApanese LEArning) project.

IDEATION, MANAGEMENT AND PARTICIPATION IN PROJECTS

11/2016 - 07/2019 at Ca' Foscari University Venice. 
Project Title: SORAPS, Study of Religions Against Prejudices and Stereotypes (2016-1-IT02-KA201-024707), funded by ERASMUS + program, Key Action 2. Responsible: Prof. Massimo Raveri. Duties: Project proposal design, writing and co-directing, creation of scientific-didactic tools, reporting.
 
09/2016 - 08/2017 at Ca' Foscari University Venice.
Project Title : JALEA (JApanese LEArning). Funded by Mitsubishi Corporation. Responsible: Prof. Marcella Mariotti. Duties: research and development of multimedia content for Japanese language e-learning.
 
02/2013 - 06/2016 at Ca' Foscari University Venice. 
Project Title: IERS, Intercultural Education through Religious Studies (IERS 539803-LLP-1-2013-1-IT-COMENIUS-CMP), funded by the LifeLong Learning Programme of the European Commission. Responsible: Prof. Massimo Raveri. Duties: Project proposal design, writing and co-directing, creation of scientific-didactic tools, reporting.
 

CONFERENCES/SEMINARS/INVITED LECTURES

24/08/2025 – 30/08/2025
XXIII World Congress of the International Association for the Study of Religions (IAHR).
Panel: Non-eurocentric religious education. Insights, comparison, and challenges from global contexts
Co-organized with Karna Kjeldsen (Absalon College, Denmark) on the behalf of the EASR (European Association for the Study of Religions) Working group on Religion in Public Education

26/04/2024
16th ISORECEA (International Study of Religion in Eastern and Central Europe Association) conference, Tirana, Albania.
Invited paper: The theme of 'Social Cohesion' in Religious Education. A comparative analysis of England,
Italy and Japan.

03/04/2024
MA Course "Storia delle Religioni" ("History of Religion"), RomaTre University.
Invited Lecture Oltre le religioni mondiali ("After World Religions")

03/04/2024
BA Course "Storia delle Religioni" ("History of Religion"), RomaTre University.
Invited lecture: Introduzione al Buddhismo Chan ("Introduction to Chan Buddhism").

29/01/2024
Workshop of the EASR (European Association for the Study of Religions) Working Group on Religion in Public Education workshop. University of Tromsø – The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
Presentation: ‘REALPOLITIK RE’. Dealing with confessional or crypto-confessional RE through the theme of East Asian religions

07/09/2023
Conference of the European Association for the Study of Religion. Vilnius, Lithuania
Presentation: Representations of East Asian Religions in teaching-learning resources

23/03/2023
Workshop of the EASR (Europan Association for the Study of Religions) Working Group on Religion in Public Education. Roskilde, Denmark
Presentation: Teaching South and East Asian religions within a Euro-American context.

23/01/2022
Teacher training course ANALFABETISMO RELIGIOSO IN EUROPA: I MANUALI SCOLASTICI – PREGIUDIZI E STEREOTIPI ("Religious Illiteracy in Europe: Textbooks – Prejudices and Stereotypes"). Fondazione per le scienze religiose, Bologna.
Invited Lecture: Stereotipi e pregiudizi sulle religioni. Prospettive storico-teoriche e implicazioni per il contesto educativo ("Stereotypes and Prejudices about Religions. Historical-theoretical perspectives andimplications for the educational context").

30/06/2022
2022 Conference of the European Association for the Study of Religion. Cork, Irlanda.
Presentation: East Asian religions, Criticism and Interculturality. Reflections starting from a teacher training course.

02/06/2021
2nd International Conference of the Journal Scuola Democratica REINVENTING EDUCATION 2021 (Online Event).
Presentation: Religious Education and East Asian Religions. Insights for Rethinking Epistemological and Pedagogical Approaches.

15/04/2021
MA Course "Storia delle Religioni" ("History of Religion"), RomaTre University.
Invited lecture: Introduzione al Daoismo ("Introduction to Daoism").

08/05/2019
Workshop "Storia del pensiero e delle religioni e del Giappone" ("History of Japanese thought and religions"). Ca'Foscari University of Venice.
Presentation: Religious Education e religioni est-asiatiche. Riflessioni teoriche e metodologiche ("Religious Education and East Asian religion. Theoretical and methodological reflections").

12/11/2018
Conference: Religioni e Stereotipi: Scuola e Università per l'Integrazione ("Religions and Stereotypes: School and University for integration"). "M. Foscarini" European Lyceum, Venice.
Presentation: "Presentazione del progetto Europeo 'Study of Religion Against Prejudices and Stereotypes'"("Presentation of European Project 'Study of Religion Against Prejudices and Stereotypes'").

27/06/2018
Summer School "Summer Institute in Venice: Fact and Value in Public Life Plural Cultures, Media, and The Academy Today", Venice.
Presentation: Education to Interculturality through the Study of Religions. the Problem of East Asian Religions.

15/05/2018
Workshop: Metodi e strumenti per l'interpretazione dei fatti religiosi ("Methods and tools for the interpretation of religious facts"). RomaTre University.
Invited Lecture: Insegnare la religione attraverso gli stereotipi ("Teaching Religion Through Stereotypes")

04/05/2018
Seminars of Ca' Foscari Center for Humanities and Social Change Workshop, Ca' Foscari University of Venice
Presentation: East Asian Religions: Issues and Challenges in Religious and Intercultural Education from a Study of Religions point of view

06/10/2017
Annual Conference of the International Society for Historical and Systematic Research on Textbooks and Educational Media, Ausgburg, Germany
Presentations: The Projects "Intercultural Education through Religions Studies" (IERS) and "Study of Religions against Prejudices and Stereotypes" (SORAPS)"

26/05/2017
The Third International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd’17) , Faculty of Business Administration and Management, Universitat Politècnica de València, Spain.
Presentation (with Marcella Mariotti and Alessandro Mantelli): JALEA: an authentic and personal path to JApaneseLEArning

26/05/2017
Workshop: School and Religious Super-diversity: Italian and European Didactic Experiences. La Sapienza University of Rome.
Invited Presentation: Presentazione dei progetti IERS – Erasmus plus - SORAPS ("Presentation of projects IERS and Erasmus Plus SORAPS")

02/04/2016
Conference "L'insegnamento della materia ‘ storia delle religioni e del libero pensiero’ nella scuola. per una prospettiva scientifica, laica e aconfessionale in Italia alla luce delle esperienze in Europa" ("The teaching of the subject ' history of religions and freethinking' in school. for a scientific, secular and aconfessional perspective in Italy in the light of experiences in Europe"), "Piero Calamandrei" Study Center, Turin. In cooperation with University of Turin, Cà Foscari University Venice and Benvenuti in Italia" Foundation.
Organization and co-direction of the second session of this conference organized by the , University of Turin, Cà Foscari University Venice and Benvenuti in Italia" Foundation.

26/01/2016
Workshop: Scuola & Religioni. Buone pratiche dell'offerta didattica formativa della scuola pubblica italiana ("School & Religions. Good practices of the educational training offer of the Italian public school") Palazzo Montecitorio, Rome.
Invited presentation: Il progetto "Intercultural Education through Religious Studies" e l'insegnamento della storia delle religioni nella scuola pubblica("The 'Intercultural Education through Religious Studies' project and the teaching of the history of religions in public schools").

ACADEMIC TEACHING EXPERIENCE 

09/2020 - 12/2020 - UNIVERSITY TUTOR - UNIVERSITY CA' FOSCARI VENICE
Course: "Buddhism, Nature and Technology in China". Duties: Cooperation design of the online part of the course, Moodle page management, interaction and forum management, activity creation and feedback on student papers.

08/06/2020 - 09/2020 - TEACHING ASSISTANT - UNIVERSITY CA'FOSCARI VENICE
Course: "History of Religions and Philosophies of China Mod. 2" . Duties: Support in preparation and correction of midterm and exam papers, online student reception. Assist students with final papers
 
01/2019 - 08/2019 UNIVERSITY TUTOR - UNIVERSITY CA' FOSCARI VENICE
Course: "History of Religions and Philosophies of China LM". Duties: Cooperation design of the online part of the course, Moodle page management, interaction and forum management, activity creation and feedback on student papers.

01/2018 - 08/2018 UNIVERSITY TUTOR - UNIVERSITY CA' FOSCARI VENICE
Course: "History of religions and philosophies of China LM". Duties: Cooperation design of the online part of the course, Moodle page management, interaction and forum management, activity creation and feedback on student papers.

09/2017 - 02/2018 UNIVERSITY TUTOR - UNIVERSITY CA' FOSCARI VENICE
Course: "Japanese mod. 2.1 LT". Duties: Experimentation and implementation of activity models on Moodle Platform for tutorials and final exam. 
 
01/01/2017 - 17/03/2017 TEACHERS TRAINER - UNIVERSITY CA' FOSCARI VENICE.
Duties:  Cooperation in devising, planning, coordinating and delivering the English-language training course "Intercultural Education Through Religious Studies - Religions, Fundamentalism and Human Rights in School Education", addressed to international teachers.