Ayako Sakurai

Ayako Sakurai is an Associate Professor at the School of Business Administration, Senshu University, Japan, where she has taught since 2013. Her research focuses on the international mobility of 19th-century German scientists and their impact on the development of the scientific community in Meiji Japan. She is affiliated with the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science through a collaborative workshop she co-organized in 2020.

• PhD in History of Science, University of Cambridge (2007)

Her work bridges historical analysis of science with transnational cultural exchanges, emphasizing material culture, collecting practices, and the globalization of scientific knowledge. The 2020 workshop at the Max Planck Institute highlighted her interest in natural-historical surveys and expeditions in the Asia Pacific region.

Her sole documented publication, "German Naturalists in 19th-century East Asia" (2020), reflects her expertise in 19th-century German scientific expeditions. Her research intersects with subfields such as imperialism, visual culture, and practical knowledge exchange.