Jingyi Laura Li OC ‘18

Independent Fellow, Japan (2018-20)

Jingyi Laura Li ‘18, a double major in East Asian Studies and Cinema Studies, is the 2018-2020 Oberlin Shansi Independent Fellow. This new program provides Oberlin graduates the opportunity to create their own unique two-year Fellowship in China, India, Indonesia, or Japan. Laura designed her Fellowship to work with Taktopia, a young Japanese company with a social enterprise approach that focuses on language learning in a way that fits each student’s unique educational goals. At Taktopia, Laura will utilize the multimedia skills she developed at Oberlin as Social Media Manager, while also taking charge of designing a number of summer camps; in her second year there, she hopes to establish a Winter Term program connecting Taktopia with Oberlin East Asian Studies majors. Fluent in four languages (Mandarin, English, Japanese, and Spanish), Laura has much experience working internationally: she translated for the art-project space Zajia Lab in Beijing, worked as a Production Assistant for VICE News in Mexico City, and taught English for two summers in Japan. Laura states, “My main goals for the 2-year-long independent project focuses on three parts – preparing myself for academic life and a career, working my best to fulfill the tasks that are required by Taktopia, and finally and more importantly, with this Shansi Fellowship, I wish to better connect Oberlin with Japan.”