In May 2023, Hannah Slater traveled to Japan to conduct research for her forthcoming dissertation that examines how contemporary artists in Japan have responded to the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, Tsunami, and Nuclear Disaster. 

Hannah visited Tokyo in order to view specific exhibits related to her research. Of note was the exhibit World Classroom: Contemporary Art through School Subjects (featuring the work of artists Fujii Hikaru and Hatakeyama Naoya) at the Mori Art Museum, and Waiting for the Wind, featuring the work of Shiga Lieko at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo. 

From Tokyo, Hannah traveled north to conduct field research at specific areas particularly affected by the tsunami and nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Miyagi, and Iwate prefectures. This included visiting multiple museums and information centers such as the TEPCO Decommissioning Archive Center in Tomioka, the Great East Japan Earthquake and Nuclear Disaster Memorial Museum in Futaba, and the Iwate Tsunami Memorial Museum in Rikuzentakata.