Research Interests:
Research Profile
Sherief Fitz is a historian of modern Japan whose research examines how the Alps became a transnational space of exchange between Japan and Europe. His work focuses on the formation of an “alpine” Japan, tracing how skiing, tourism, environmental practices, and formalised partnerships between mountain regions shaped the development and meaning of the Japanese Alps from the Meiji era to the present. Rather than viewing the Japanese Alps as an isolated or purely national phenomenon, his research explores them as part of a wider history of circulation, in which people, practices, institutions, and ideas moved between the Japanese and European mountain worlds. He is particularly interested in how these exchanges were adapted to local contexts and how they transformed mountain landscapes, regional identities, and relationships between people and the environment.
Curriculum Vitae
Sherief Fitz studied Japanese Studies, German Studies, and Transcultural Studies at Heidelberg University. During his studies, he spent one year at Tōhoku University as an exchange student. He is currently a Research Assistant and PhD candidate at the University of Tübingen and a member of the DFG-funded research project “The Japanese Alpine Empire.”
