ABOUT

和歌山県御坊市出身。GE Capital Japan、新生銀行グループで10年間の役員秘書を経て、2011年4月に災害ボランティアとして宮城県三陸沿岸部へ、5月からRQ市民災害救援センター東北本部・女性支援チームリーダーとして南三陸町、登米市を拠点に避難所や仮設住宅等の支援に携わりました。2011年6月、ボランティア有志とRQ被災地女性支援センター（RQW）を設立、2013年6月に法人化し代表理事に就任し、被災地の女性が直面する課題に地元女性と取り組んできました。地域のジェンダー課題や文化的背景の中で、宮城、福島、岩手で次世代を担う若年女性リーダー育成プログラム「グラスルーツ・アカデミー東北」を2015年に開始し、2019年までの4年間で100人が参加しました。2018年からW20日本代表に就任。草の根で活動する女性や次世代のエンパワメントをライフワークとし、現場活動と同時に東京大学大学院「人間の安全保障」プログラム博士課程でもエンパワーメント研究を行っています。

Megumi Ishimoto has an M.A. in International Contribution from the graduate program of Human Security at the University of Tokyo with a major in cultural anthropology, in which her thesis focused on “NGO’s and Fundraising in Japan.” She has 10 years of experience as an executive assistance in American financial companies. In June 2011 after the disaster in Tohoku, Megumi founded Women’s Eye, a nonprofit that began as an organization supporting women in disaster-stricken areas, especially in evacuation centers and temporary houses. It has grown to serve as a central voice for local women who are the pillars of daily survival in the Tohoku region. Women’s Eye held 510 workshops between September 2011 and January 2016, attended by a total of 5,122 participants, with a number of activities such as knitting, cooking, and exercising. These workshops were held to gather people who are separated from their communities, to motivate elderly women isolated in evacuation centers and temporary housing, and to build a community of people supporting each other who are faced with similar issues. Through JWLI, she gained skills in nonprofit management, strategic planning and leadership. With these skills, she has been leading her team more effectively and strategically leveraging good practices and impacts of her organization for its continued growth. In four short months after the completion of JWLI, Megumi raised over $100,000 to host an International Grassroots Women’s Academy in 2015 in conjunction with the United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction. Held in Tohoku, the academy was attended by 40 young women in Tohoku who are expected to become the next generation of emerging leaders in the region, and 15 women leaders from 10 countries mostly from Asia and Latin America.