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Update from Team TOMODACHI
October 2014
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TOMODACHI Initiative Programs and Participants Highlighted in the U.S-Japan Council Annual Conference in Honolulu, Hawaii
 Over 500 people from the United States and Japan gathered in Honolulu, Hawaii for the U.S.-Japan Council Annual Conference, held from October 9-10. Several TOMODACHI alumni from Japan and the United States flew to Honolulu to speak at the conference. The public symposium on October 10 featured three keynote speakers during the opening plenary session, including Mr. Masami Iijima, President and CEO of Mitsui & Co., Ltd. In his remarks, Mr. Iijima spoke about the company and their contribution to the TOMODACHI Initiative, including the establishment of the TOMODACHI-Mitsui & Co. Leadership Program, which provides young professionals in Japan and the United States with leadership training and unique access to private and public sector leaders in the U.S.-Japan relationship.
After opening remarks, various panel discussions and roundtable discussions were held in the morning and afternoon. One of the afternoon sessions, “The Making of the TOMODACHI Generation,” featured five TOMODACHI alumni as panelists. Todd Guild of McKinsey & Co. moderated the session and the participants discussed their life journeys and how the programs have impacted them. The session also provided an overview of the future plans for the TOMODACHI Initiative looking ahead to the Olympics and the year 2020. More>>
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The Latest on TOMODACHI Programs and Activities
TOMODACHI on Display in Four Locations Throughout Haneda Airport
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Whether traveling domestically or internationally through Haneda Airport, passengers may well see TOMODACHI on display! Four TOMODACHI advertisements are displayed throughout the terminals in Haneda Airport, thanks to a generous in-kind contribution from the Japan Airport Terminal Co, Ltd. More>>
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Young Americans Launch the TOMODACHI Goldman Sachs Roadshow 2014 in Fukushima
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On September 11, the Young Americans kicked off the TOMODACHI Goldman Sachs Roadshow 2014 at Yanome Elementary school in Fukushima City. The Young Americans are a group of talented performing arts students from the United States who conduct song and dance workshops throughout the world. Over the course of this fall, 15 Young American cast members will be conducting workshops at public elementary and middle schools throughout the disaster-affected prefectures of Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima. As of October 21, 1,500 students and 130 teachers have been inspired by the TOMODACHI Goldman Sachs Roadshow 2014. More>>
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First TOMODACHI Suntory Music Scholars Began Classes in the United States
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Creating opportunities for young Japanese musicians to hone their skills in the United States, the TOMODACHI Suntory Music Scholarship Fund provides scholarships to three of the most prestigious music schools in the United States: The Juilliard School, Berklee College of Music, and San Francisco Conservatory of Music. More>>
The following three scholars were selected and began classes this fall:
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Shun Kumagai was born in Sendai City, Miyagi and began playing the tuba in his elementary school brass band at the age of ten. He learned basic techniques from Osamu Sato, a former teacher at YAMAHA and is currently attending Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. Read more>>
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Takeru Saito graduated from Fukushima High School in Fukushima Prefecture. He began learning classical piano early in his childhood and shifted to jazz piano when he joined a jazz club at his high school. He currently attends Berklee College of Music. Read more>>
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Naoko Tajima was born in Tokyo and plays the violin. At the age of six, she gave a debut recital in Tokyo. Naoko entered the The Juilliard School Pre-College in 2005, and currently attends The Julliard School in New York City. Read More>>
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TOMODACHI Students Perform at the 2014 Grassroots Summit in San Diego
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From September 23 – 30, the Kagura Dance Circle of Fudaimura and the Hirono-machi Student Chorus Group participated in the 2014 Grassroots Summit in San Diego、 thanks to the support of the TOMODACHI Initiative. These eight-day cultural exchanges enabled participants to do homestays, visit companies, meet with fellow students in local neighborhoods, and perform in front of a variety of audiences.
The students from the Kagura Dance Circle of Fudaimura, Iwate prefecture, had an opportunity to perform their dance in front of tens of thousands of people at the San Diego Padres baseball game. Students from Hirono Middle School in Fukushima had the opportunity to perform Japanese children’s songs at the Opening and Closing ceremonies of the 2014 Grassroots Summit.
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TOMODACHI NGO Leadership Program supported by J.P. Morgan Launches the Two Day Workshop Focused on Developing and Sustaining High Performance Teams
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From September 25-26, the TOMODACHI NGO Leadership Program, supported by J.P. Morgan, gathered leaders from various NGOs in Japan to participate in a two-day leadership workshop in Tokyo. Organized by U.S.-based NGO Mercy Corps in partnership with Japan Platform, the workshop focused on providing vital skills necessary to develop and sustain high-performing teams, incorporating videos, brainstorming activities, and discussions that explored the question: “As a leader, how do we build and sustain a strong team?” More>>
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Four TOMODACHI-UNIQLO Fellows Embark on their Studies in the United States
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This fall, four fellows were selected to receive the TOMODACHI-UNIQLO Fellowship, which provides a world-class educational experience to Japan’s next generation of business and fashion leaders. The selected fellows are:
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YO DOUGLAS worked for the Japanese branch of GILT, an American E-commerce startup, as an editorial manager where she oversaw the editorial and photography teams creating effective, attractive visuals and copy for both web and social media. She is currently participating in the Master’s program at Fashion Institute of Technology majoring in Global Fashion Management. Read More >>
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KEI YAMAWAKI worked at Bain & Company for four years in various industries including consumer products, high-tech and private equity. Kei studied Organic Chemistry at Brown University and is currently working towards her MBA at The Stanford Graduate School of Business. Read More >>
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YUI YASUDA worked for Brooks Brothers Japan as a buyer for more than 2 years and has been interested in expanding sustainability and ethics in the fashion industry in Japan and is currently studying Global Fashion Management at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. Read More >>
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KOPI AKASAKA received his Bachelor of Arts in Fashion Design at Central Saint Martins College of Art in London. He has experience working with Thom Browne and Antonio Azzuolo in New York, as well as Heaven Tanudiradja in Antwerp and Tim Soar in London. He is now pursuing a Master’s of Fine Arts at Parsons The New School for Design. Read More>>
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Nobu's Japan Holds Second Charity Dinner Event to Support the TOMODACHI Initiative
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On October 6, 2014 Nobu's Japan held its second charity dinner event at Nobu Tokyo. The dinner featured the culinary talents of host Chef Nobu Matsuhisa and Chef Eric Ripert, the owner/chef of Le Bernardin in New York. As with the first charity dinner, held in July 2014, the charity dinner marked the climax of the filming of a Discovery Networks television series that tells a story about Japan's vibrant culinary culture as seen through the world's top chefs. In the filming of the second episode, Chefs Matsuhisa and Ripert travelled to Nagasaki to learn about the influences the city's multi-cultural heritage has had on its food scene, and to sample the incredible variety of ingredients from both land and sea. More>>
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Upcoming Programs and Events
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Nov 1 – 16 Six American students from the Washington, D.C. area will travel to Tokyo and Sendai for the reciprocal portion of the TOMODACHI US-Japan Youth Exchange Program (ACIE) exchange; a reception will be held in Tokyo on Nov. 14
Nov. 12 – 22 TOMODACHI and the U.S. Embassy Tokyo are collaborating on the Voluntary Visitor for Educators Program in which Japanese educators travel to the Washington, DC and Portland, Oregon for meetings and cultural activities
Nov 13 TOMODACHI Reception (by invitation only)
Nov 15-16 TOMODACHI Honda Cultural Exchange Program Orientation will be held in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture
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Recruitment for TOMODACHI Program Participants
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Special Thanks to Our Newest Donors!
Sponsor ( contributed $100,000 to $1 million)
Supporter (contributed $10,000 to $100,000)
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