Japanese American Leadership Delegation to be sent to Japan, Mar 4-12

2011 Japanese American Leadership Delegation

2011 Japanese American Leadership Delegation

Members of the 2011 Japanese American Leadership Delegation introduce themselves before media at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles after the orientation session of their Japan tour in March. (Cultural News Photo)

Japanese government sponsored 2011 Japanese American Leadership Delegation will be sent to Japan from March 4 – March 12. Consisting 13 business-persons, scholars, and officials in government sector, all those who have Japanese ancestors, the 11th anniversary delegation will visit Kyoto, Osaka and Tokyo, and meet Japan’s government, business and Non-Governmental-Organization leaders. This delegation also will participate in an Osaka education symposium on March 7.

On January 21 and 22 at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, 13 delegates were gathered for the orientation session.

The Japanese American Leadership Delegation program promotes the value of sustained people-to-people relationship as critical factor in assuring the long-term success of U.S.-Japan relations.

Funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership, the program is coordinated by the U.S.-Japan Council in Washington, D.C.

The 2011 delegates hail from the Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C. areas and are active Japanese American leaders in their communities, engaged in US-Japan relations and committed to furthering the relationship between Japanese Americans and Japan.

As with past delegations, Irene Hirano Inouye, President of the US-Japan Council, will lead the delegation.

Members of the 2011 delegation are following:

Phyllis Campbell, Seattle, WA

Chairman, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Pacific Northwest

Prefectures in Japan of ancestral origins: paternal side from Tokyo, maternal side form Hiroshima

Erwin Furukawa, Los Angeles, CA

Vice President, Customer Programs and Services, Southern California Edison

Prefectures in Japan of ancestral origins: paternal side from Hiroshima, maternal side from Okayama

Kathryn C. Ibata-Arens, Chicago, IL

Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, DePaul University

Prefectures in Japan of ancestral origins: Akita, Tokyo, and Kochi

Bill Imada, Los Angeles, CA

Chairman and CEO, IW Group, Inc

Prefecture in Japan of ancestral origins: Hiroshima

Val T. Iwashita, Honolulu, HI

Headmaster, ‘Iolani School

Prefectures in Japan of ancestral origins: Kumamoto and Yamaguchi

Susan Morita, Washington, D.C.

Partner, Arnold & Porter LLP

Prefectures in Japan of ancestral origins: Aichi (Nagoya), Tokyo, Nara, Kyoto

Gary S. Moriwaki, New York, NY

Partner, Tax & Estates Department, Fox Rothschild LLP

Prefectures in Japan of ancestral origins: paternal side from Wakayama, maternal side from Saitama

Susan Muranishi, San Francisco, CA

County Administrator, Alameda County

Prefecture in Japan of ancestral origins: Hiroshima

Gary Oda, Honolulu, HI

President, Allied Builders System

Prefecture in Japan of ancestral origins: Yamaguchi

Kenneth A. Oye, Boston, MA

Director, Program on Emerging Technologies (PoET)

Associate Professor of Political Science and Engineering Systems

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Prefectures in Japan of ancestral origins: Hiroshima and Yamaguchi

Genevieve Shiroma, San Francisco, CA

Board Member, Agricultural Labor Relations Board, State of California

Prefectures in Japan of ancestral origins: Hiroshima, Yamaguchi, Okinawa

William Tsutsui, Dallas, TX

Dean and Professor of History, Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences, Southern Methodist University

Prefecture in Japan of ancestral origins: Mie

Mari Watanabe, Portland, OR

Executive Director, Oregon Nikkei Endowment

Prefectures in Japan of ancestral origins: Kumamoto and Tokushima