The Hakubi Project

5th

Recruit: Mar. 2013
Term: Apr. 2014 ～ Mar. 2019  The Map of Hakubi Researchers. 

Short Introduction

Driven by a strong sense of justice and his passion to protect the defenceless, Stefan pursued a career in legal academia after concluding his studies in law, philosophy, and political science. Prior to joining Kyoto University, he taught and researched primarily at law schools in Australia and China. Fostered by his interests in international law, cultures, and the environment, his continuous and extensive field work throughout the Asia-Pacific region has earned him the title of 'The Indiana Jones of Law' by several colleagues. His current research focuses on the protection of cultural heritage, its interplay with human rights and cultural identity, the pillaging and trafficking of cultural property and other forms of art crime, and the protection of the environment. The research considers these issues in view of the impact of rapid development and change on societies, local cultures, and the environment in order to develop more effective protection mechanisms in the context of justice and sustainable development in East and Southeast Asia.

Latest News

• Dec. 14, 2017

  Stefan Gruber published, "Legal Frameworks for World Heritage and Human Rights in Australia” with Ben Boer in the book titled as “World Heritage and Human Rights: Lessons from the Asia-Pacific and Global Arena”, Peter Larsen (ed) (p.217-237, Routledge, 2017).

• Nov. 20, 2017

  Stefan Gruber published, "Heritage Conservation Law” in the book titled as “Local Government Planning and Environment NSW, vol. C”, the Hon Justice Brian J Preston (Eds.) (LexisNexis, 2017, Australia).

• Sep. 27, 2017

  Stefan Gruber published a chapter, " Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage 1972.” in the book titled as “Multilateral Environmental Treaties” (Elgar Encyclopedia of Environmental Law series), M. Fitzmaurice, A. Tanzi with A. Papantoniou (eds) (Edward Elgar Publishing, UK)

• Sep. 25, 2017

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on "Regional Case Studies from China", at the Third AHRC Workshop: Art, Crime and Criminals: Plunder. Looting and Destruction. In collaboration with the German Government. (7-8 September 2017, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Berlin, Germany).

• Aug. 27, 2017

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on "Repatriating Looted Cultural Artefacts to Asia: Recent Cases and International Law", at the 6th Biennial Conference of the Asian Society of International Law: Asia and International Law in Times of Uncertainty (25-26 August 2017, Seoul, Republic of Korea, Organized by the Korea Chapter of the Asian Society of International Law).

• Jul. 27, 2017

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on "Cultural Heritage Protection and Human Rights in Asia", at the 10th International Convention of Asia Scholars, Chiang Mai International Exhibition and Convention Centre (CMECC), Thailand (20-23 July 2017, Organized by the Regional Center for Social Science and Sustainable Development (RCSD), Chiang Mai University).

• Jul. 27, 2017

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on "Heritage Protection and Human Rights in Asia", at the TEDx Kyoto University, Kyoto University (8 July 2017)

• May. 25, 2017

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on " Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage for Environmental Sustainability in East Asia" at the 14th Asian Law Institute (ASLI) Annual Conference: A Uniting Force? – ‘Asian Values’ and the Law, University of Philippines, College of Law (UP), Novotel Manila Araneta Center, Philippines (18-19 May 2017)

• May. 12, 2017

  Stefan Gruber published a chapter, "The Tension between Rights and Cultural Heritage Protection in China.” in the book titled as “Heritage, Culture and Rights: Challenging Legal Discourses”, Andrea Durbach and Lucas Lixinski (eds) P149-163 (Hart Publishing, Oxford)

• Apr. 28, 2017

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on " Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage for Environmental Sustainability in East Asia" at the 3rd International Expert Meeting on Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage of West and Central Asia: Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage for Environmental Sustainability, Regional Research Centre for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage in West and Central Asia, Tehran, Iran (23-24 April 2017).

• Oct. 26, 2016

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on "Looting and Illicit Trafficking of Asian Cultural Artefacts: Domestic Strategies, Regional Cooperation, and International Treaties" at Art, Antiquities, Heritage and Wildlife Crime in Southeast Asia conference (Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 22 October 2016).

• Sep. 30, 2016

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on " The Fight against Illicit Trade in Asian Cultural Property" at the 11th Annual World Customs Organization PICARD Conference; Manila Hotel, Manila, Philippines (27-29 September 2016).

• Sep. 23, 2016

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on "Access to Justice, Public Interest and Heritage Protection in Asia" at the Asian Law & Society Association (ALSA) Conference: Law and Society in Asia: Defining and Advancing the Field, Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, Singapore (22-23 September 2016).

• Aug. 15, 2016

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on " Ethics, Academic Honesty and Intellectual Property in Research" at the 2016 Amgen Scholars Japan Symposium, Kyoto University (7 August 2016).

• Jun. 27, 2016

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk, title as "The Role of Courts, Standing and Public Participation in Cultural Heritage Protection in Asia" at the 14th Annual Colloquium of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law: The Environment in Court (20-25th June, 2016, University of Oslo, Norway).

• Jun. 10, 2016

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk, title as “Protecting Asia's Cultural Artefacts:The Fight against Looting, Smuggling and Illicit Art Trade" at Protecting the Weak – Entangled Processes of Framing, Mobilization and Institutionalization in East Asia (8th June, 2016, Goethe University, Frankfurt am Main, Germany).

• May. 30, 2016

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk, title as "Asian Legal Perspectives on the Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Artefacts and the Globalised Art Market" at the 13th Asian Law Institute Annual Conference: Asian Perspectives on Legal Globalization (19-20th May, 2016, Peking University Law School, Beijing, Peoples Republic of China).

• Dec. 9, 2015

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on " International Cooperation against Cultural Property Crimes in Asia" at The 5th Biennial Conference of the Asian Society of International Law 2015 (26-27 November, Plaza Athénée Bangkok, Bangkok, Thailand).

• Nov. 12, 2015

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on " International Cooperation and Domestic Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage in China and ASEAN Countries" at International Conference on Cooperation between China and ASEAN States on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage and the Build-up of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (November 8 2015, Xiamen University, Peoples Republic of China).

• Oct. 6, 2015

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on "Reconciliation through Recognition" at Wounds, Scars, and Healing: Civil Society and Postwar Pacific Basin Reconciliation (September 30 - October 2 2015, The University of Sydney, Australia).

• Sep. 24, 2015

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on "Marine World Heritage under Threat" at The 13th Annual Colloquium of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law: Forest and Marine Biodiversity (September 7-12, 2015, Atma Jaya Catholic University, Jakarta, Indonesia).

• Aug. 7, 2015

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on "Public Participation and Community Empowerment in Heritage Protection in East Asia" at the Fourth East Asian Law and Society Conference: The Role of Law in Bridging Chasms In and Among Asian Societies. (August 4-6,2015, Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan)

• Jul. 9, 2015

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk on "Protecting China’s Archaeological Artefacts against Looting and Illicit Art Trafficking" at the 7th Annual Interdisciplinary Art Crime Conference, The Association for Research into Crimes against Art (ARCA) (26-28th June, Amelia, Italy)

• May. 26, 2015

  Stefan Gruber gave a presentation on "Protecting Asia’s Cultural Relics against Art Crime" at Department of Law, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan, 26 May 2015.

• May. 21, 2015

  Stefan Gruber gave a presentation on "The Nepal Earthquake, ISIS, and the Taliban: International Responses to the Destruction of Cultural Property in Asia" at the 12th Asian Law Institute (ASLI) Annual Conference: Law 2.0: New Challenges in Asia at College of Law, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan, 21-22 May 2015.

• May. 10, 2015

  Stefan Gruber gave a presentation on "Current threats to heritage in Asia" at the 129th Kaitokudō lecture series at Sajikeizo Memorial Hall, Osaka, Japan, 9-11 May 2015.

• Apr. 13, 2015

  Stefan Gruber published "Human Displacement and Climate Change in the Asia-Pacific" in Environmental Law Dimensions of Human Rights (ed. by Ben Bohr) from Oxford University Press.

• Apr. 10, 2015

  Stefan Gruber gave a presentation on "Transnational criminal justice and the illegal trade in artefacts" in the symposium on "Diversity of transnational criminal justice" at Kobe University and QMUL Joint Events on International Law 2015 at Kobe University, Kobe, Japan, 10 Apr. 2015.

• Dec. 3, 2014

  Stefan Gruber gave a presentation on 'Heritage protection law, cultural identity and rights in China' at the second biannual conference of the Association of Critical Heritage Studies at the Australian National University, Canberra, Australia, 2-4 December 2014.

• Nov. 21, 2014

  Stefan Gruber published ‘Forge and Export: The Trade in Fake Antiquities from China’ in: Marc Barell and Joris Kila (eds) Cultural Property Crimes: An Overview and Analysis on Contemporary Perspectives and Trends (Brill, 2014) 61 (with Toby Bull).

• Oct. 23, 2014

  Stefan Gruber published ‘Perspectives on the Investigation, Prosecution and Prevention of Art Crime in Asia’ in: Saskia Hufnagel and Duncan Chappell (eds) Contemporary Perspectives on the Detection, Investigation and Prosecution of Art Crime: Australasian, European and North American Perspectives (Ashgate: 2014) 221

• Oct. 21, 2014

  Stefan Gruber gave a presentation at the conference "The Effectiveness of Public International Law in Light of Current Political Events" by the German-Australian-Pacific Lawyers Association at the University of Heidelberg on 17-19 October 2014

• Oct. 6, 2014

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk "Preserving the Past for a Sustainable Future - Human Rights Dimensions of Cultural Heritage" at "The UNESCO Chair for Human Rights, Peace and Democracy at Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran in the Islamic Republic of Iran on 29 September 2014"

• Aug. 5, 2014

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk at "the 12th Annual Colloquium of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law: Energy for a Fair Society and Safe Planet" at the Universitat Rovira I Virgili, Catalonia on 30 June – 5 July 2014

• Jun. 6, 2014

  Stefan Gruber gave a talk at "The 12th ANJeL Japanese Law Conference: Japanese Law and Business Amidst Bilateral and Regional Free Trade Agreements" at James Cook University on 16 May 2014