Archive for year: 2016

Atsuko Fish, the JWLI Founder and a U.S.-Japan Council board member, hosted a luncheon featuring the trainees of the TOMODACHI Disability Leadership Program in Boston on Tuesday, December 6th. It was an inspiring, informative and interactive discussion and held as a part of “Regional Women in Leadership Networking.” 19 people gathered and explored the theme of “Leadership through the Lenses of Gender and Disability.” The three 2016 TOMODACHI trainees were Yui Awai, Toshiko Kudo and Tomomi Takata. The trainees and the attendees discussed differences and similarities surrounding people living with disabilities in Japan and the U.S. The trainees also shared their experiences as young leaders with disabilities, and how they were planning to apply their learning to make positive impact in Japan. The group had a lively discussion and identified actions to take and what Japan could learn from the U.S. Mari Fujii from the Consulate General of Japan in Boston gave a presentation on Japan’s womenomics policy and how Japan’s business sector has been promoting women’s participation. The luncheon concluded with a strong belief that these trainees would make a difference for others with disabilities in Japan.

It was our pleasure to meet Yoko Okura. She is an incredible woman who is a journalist and used to be at a TV station in Japan. She currently studies at Harvard Kennedy School and has her own online column on Nikkei Women Online where she shares her perspective on women’s empowerment and leadership, and gender issues in the U.S. Recently, she published an article after meeting our 2016 Fellows and also sitting in for Simmons College’s Strategic Leadership for Women. Thank you Yoko for the great article!

Check out Yoko’s article “似た価値観の人に相談しても突破口は見つからない” on Nikkei Women Online.

On October 6th, JWLI hosted its 10th Anniversary Reception at Simon College in Boston to celebrate its ten-year efforts in empowering Japanese women and making difference in Japan. Two JWLI alumnae, Tomoe Yamada and Kiyono Yagami, shared the impacts they made in Japan through achieving their Action Plans. They spoke candidly about their experience in Boston and achievements in Japan since then. Listening to the powerful and emotional speeches by Kiyono and Tomoe, the audience of over 100 people learned the continued needs of more participation by women leaders in the Japanese social sector. JWLI Founder, Atsuko Fish, and JWLI’s academic partner, Patricia Deyton of Simmons College, both thanked a number of community partners and host organizations that contributed to JWLI’s success. They also highlighted some of the Fellows’ successes. The event also included a graduation ceremony of the 2016 Fellows. Over the past 10 years, so many individuals and organizations supported JWLI. Without them, JWLI would not have made it to the 10th year. Thank you so much!

To view more photos from the event, click here.

Our 2015 Fellow, Yuko Nakaoka and her colleague from the U.S. Consulate General’s office in Kansai have successfully participated in the SelectUSA 2016 Investment Summit, one of the highest-profiled events that promote foreign direct investment in the United States. Over 2,500 people from over 65 countries gathered in Washington, D.C. to attend this event, and Yuko and her colleague led the Japanese delegation which was the third largest among the 65 countries. Yuko and her colleague have been awarded by Ambassador Kennedy for their huge successes in strengthening economic ties between Japan and the U.S. Congratulations Yuko and best wishes for your continual success!

Our 2015 fellow, Akiko Ishiyama, has received two Best Speaker Awards at recent gatherings of the Yokohama Ocean Toastmasters Club for her speeches in Japanese and English. Akiko recently joined the Club and gave her very first speech in Japanese at the meeting on May 8th, titled “My Mission”. Her second award was for her speech in English at the May 22th gathering. She gave a short version of her speech prepared for Simmons College’s Strategic Leadership for Women during her stay in Boston. Many questions were raised by the audience who was new to JWLI. Congratulations Akiko!

Click here to check more detail in Japanese.