Friday, June 7, 2024

The FEWture Conference

Meet the Speakers

Meet our inspiring speakers! Hailing from all over the world, these women will be sharing insights, best practices, and real-world experiences that will be invaluable to attendees. Scroll down to check out the panels and workshops that will be held at the conference and stay tuned for more that will be confirmed soon!

Panel Discussions

Inspiring workshops

Friday, June 7, 2024 8:30am - 5:30pm | Gala, 7:00pm

Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Otemachi

In partnership with:

Four Seasons

Panel Discussions

Diversifying Tech / STEAM for Equitable Impact

Yan Fan

Co-Founder, Code Chrysalis

Yan is the co-founder of Code Chrysalis, a training company working to help Japanese enterprises transform their workforce. She started, built the technical foundations, grew, and pivoted the company into a multi-million dollar business.
Saori Osu

Public Relations, Marketing, Research and Policy Advocacy, Yamada Shintaro D & I Foundation

Saori, a pioneer in the social sector, is boldly committed to the cause of empowering girls and women. After graduating from Keio University, she propelled her journey at Hitachi, Ltd., navigating IT sales, advertising, and public relations until 2008.
Nicola Vote

CEO & Founder, Nicola Vote Consulting

Nicola started her career more than 25 years ago as a CIR (Coordinator for International Relations) on the JET programme, which led to positions in Japanese governmental organizations promoting international cooperation and technical standardization.
Yuki Aizawa

Women In Tech™ Regional Director of APAC

Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Rinne™, a purpose driven tech start-up providing blockchain solutions ticking the ESG, SDG to make a real impact through innovation and emerging technologies.
Moderator
Kristine Ayuzawa

Director, People Operations, Wahl & Case

Kristine has helped globally-minded professionals build meaningful careers for over 15 years. Her experience in the recruitment industry began with interim and executive search and grew to include talent management, leadership development, and sales operations.
Moderator
Mahi Patki

Programs Co-Director, FEW Japan

Mahi Patki is a graduate student majoring in Environmental Sciences at the University of Tokyo (UTokyo). Born in India, she has lived in Japan for the past 15 years and is proactively engaged in many student-led projects tackling environmental and social issues.

Enhancing Board Diversity for Innovation

Rika Nakazawa

Global VP, NTT

Rika is a technology leader, VC investor, best-selling author, and frequent public speaker on technology-powered industry transformation. She is Global Vice President with NTT’s New Ventures & Innovation team where she is building Agile Co-innovation practices for emerging technologies like 5G, Edge Computing, AI, and IoT.
Caroline Codsi

Founder, Women in Governance

Caroline Codsi is a trailblazer for gender equality in corporate sectors.  She founded Women in Governance in 2010, the organization that launched the first North American Parity Certification™ in 2017 that has reshaped workplaces and is endorsed by global giants like Accenture, FedEx, Pfizer, Rolls Royce, and many other industry leaders.
Angela Yuen

Co-President, Women in Law Japan

Angela Yuen, Deputy General Counsel and GM of Legal Operations at JERA Inc., Tokyo, oversees global legal functions, driving digital transformation and innovation.
Dr. Andrijana Cvetkovikj

CEO and Founder, BrioNexus | Special Advisor for International Cooperation, Ministry of Culture of Japan | Ambassador of Science and Diplomacy, EU's Acrid Network

Andrijana Cvetkovikj is a dynamic leader with a multifaceted career in diplomacy, filmmaking, and business. She was Macedonia's first Ambassador to Japan, and currently serves as an Advisor for International Cooperation to Japan's Minister of Culture.
Moderator
Tracy Gray

Founder, We are Enough

Ms. Gray is the Founder/Managing Partner of The 22 Fund (The 22), an impact, early-growth venture capital firm with a mission of growing generational wealth/mobility & creating the clean, quality jobs of the future in LMI communities by increasing the global competitiveness of climate tech/sustainable manufacturing companies, intentionally targeting women- and BIPOC-owned businesses.
Moderator
Dr. Jackie F. Steele

President, FEW Japan

Dr. Jackie F. Steele is a trilingual, Canadian political scientist, author, and longtime Japan resident. Jackie has taught at leading universities in Canada (UOttawa, SFU) and Japan (UTohoku, UTokyo, Nagoya Law). As CEO of enjoi Diversity & Innovation, she shares her expertise on how to design and implement diversity-positive ecosystems and corporate cultures.

Building Equity and an Inclusive Society in Japan... and Beyond

Kozue Oka

Executive Director, Mirai no Mori

Kozue Oka is the Executive Director at Mirai no Mori. Born and raised in Japan, she has always believed in the power of nature.
Namino Rivoal

Representative, Mimoza Ways

Graduated from Kyoto Seika University, Faculty of Humanities. Studied “Gender Equality in the Nordic Countries” and ” Peace Research” at the Oslo University’s Summer School, Norway, and French at the Université Sorbonne Nouvelle Paris III, France.
Maki Muraki

Director, Nijiro Diversity

Maki is a renowned LGBTQ activist. She is a certified social insurance and labor lawyer, and is dedicated to research and social education on LGBTQ issues. She is also an external director of Take and Give Needs and a lecturer at Kwansei Gakuin University.
Rachel Bookman

Glind Fund Inc Representative & Diversity Advocate

Rachel is a disabled scientist and educator based in the United States who is passionate about increasing diversity in the STEM fields in global contexts to create a more inclusive society for all. Rachel was born with a rare form of muscular dystrophy.
Natsuko Izena

Advocate, Equity & Disability Inclusion for Women

Natsuko Izena, a remarkable woman, is eager to share her life journey, her professional endeavors, and the joys of raising her children despite what she refers to as "her difficulties". Natsuko, who stands at a mere 100cm tall due to Osteogenesis imperfecta, bravely navigates life from a wheelchair, yet finds solace in traveling and previously pursued studies in the U.S.A. and Denmark.
Keri Cromb

Former FEW Japan Board Director and Co-Deputy Representative

Keri Cromb, BComm, is a former FEW Japan public relations board director and founding co-deputy representative. Born with partial hereditary nerve deafness and raised by a single father, she first came to Japan in 1998. After participating in the JET Programme, she now raises her bicultural and bilingual children with her Japanese husband in Tokyo.
Emily Larcombe

Producer, Invisible Languages: Okinawa

Emily is a British-Japanese marketing professional currently working in the education sector. Growing up in the south of England, she read French and Spanish philology at university, before later moving to Paris and Tokyo to complete a dual masters degree in Public Policy.
Moderator
Sellisha Lockyer

Associate Consultant, enjoi Innovation Inc

Sellisha is a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Practitioner and Social Justice Advocate. Currently living in Japan, Sellisha is a British DEI Practitioner with a specialism in supporting organisations to be actively anti-racist, improve their gender equity and consider intersections, so that those most marginalised are brought to the centre of focus.
Moderator
Hannah Portner

VP Communications, FEW Japan

Hannah Portner was born and bred in London, but after a life-changing school Spanish exchange trip to Andalusia, Hannah made it her mission to pursue seeing and imagining the world from different perspectives. This initial quest took her to the University of St Andrews, Scotland, where she read French and Spanish.

Creative Strategies for Real Estate Investing and Regional Revitalization

Blanka Kobayashi

Marketing Director, Kobayashi Group Japan

Blanka Kobayashi is multi-talented entrepreneur. She studied Finance, Marketing and Management in Czech Republic and International Relations at Charles University. She is working as a Marketing Director of Kobayashi Group Japan.
Naomi Saito

Founder of Serendipity, LLC

Naomi Saito is the Founder of SERENDIPITY, LLC. She started her career working for foreign companies such as Prudential Life and Credit Suisse in Tokyo.
Angela Ortiz Pettas

Owner/Founder of Mi Casa Mobara

Angela is an entrepreneur & author in the space of social impact, fitness & education. She began her career in early childhood education, transitioning into social impact following the Great Earthquake and Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011.
Adela Szatvanyi

Strategic Business Consultant

With a diverse background spanning from entrepreneurship to corporate leadership, my journey from owning my business to serving as Vice President at OSF Digital has shaped my experiences and outlook on life. Every day, I strive to grow as a leader, therapist, consultant, entrepreneur and individual.
Moderator
Tracey Northcott

CEO & Founder of Tokyo Family Stays G.K

Australian Tracey Northcott of Enfour, Tokyo Family Stays and Tracey Northcott Consulting, is a serial entrepreneur and multi-preneur based in Tokyo, Japan. She is one of the most successful AirBnB and short term rental hosts in Tokyo.
Moderator
Shizuka Suzuki

Memberships Director, FEW Japan

Shizuka Suzuki was born and raised in a traditional Japanese family in a suburb of metropolitan Tokyo. She lived for four years with her family in the U.S. where she received her high school diploma. Her experience in the U.S. broadened her view on life and opportunities.

Leading with Purpose: Women Transforming Public Service and Business

Deborah Paul

Minister and Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Canada to Japan

Deborah Paul began her current assignment as Minister and Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Canada to Japan in March 2022. She previously served as Canada’s Ambassador to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam from 2018-2022. She has also served as Political Counsellor in Berlin (2013-2016), Tokyo (2009-2012) and Warsaw (2001-2004).
Akiko Domoto

Former Governor of Chiba

Ms. Akiko Domoto is a distinguished leader, currently serving as the President of Disaster and Women Network Japan and representing the Japan Women’s Network for Disaster Risk Reduction. Her illustrious career spans various fields, including politics, media, and environmental advocacy.
Vivian Tokai

Director, Government Affairs, Intel

Vivian Tokai is Director, Government Affairs at Intel Corporation based in Tokyo. She is responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive government relations strategy for Intel Japan to ensure a supportive semiconductor policy and regulatory environment for intel's growth and operations.
Amina Sugimoto

CEO, Fermata

Born in Asia, raised in Africa, and educated in Europe: Amina comes from a very diverse and multicultural background, and her mission is to bring about a paradigm shift in healthcare by promoting better access to healthtech across the globe. 
Moderator
Dr. Andrijana Cvetkovikj

Former Ambassador of Macedonia | CEO and Founder, BrioNexus | Special Advisor for International Cooperation, Ministry of Culture of Japan | Ambassador of Science and Diplomacy, EU's Acrid Network

Andrijana Cvetkovikj is a dynamic leader with a multifaceted career in diplomacy, filmmaking, and business. She was Macedonia's first Ambassador to Japan, and currently serves as an Advisor for International Cooperation to Japan's Minister of Culture.
Moderator
Léa Perceval

Co-President, FEW Japan

Léa Perceval was born and grew up in Haiti before moving to Canada, where she graduated from the University of Montreal with a bachelor’s degree in political communication (2015). She is currently completing an MBA with a focus on Project Management from the University of Laval (2022) while working at the Haitian Embassy in Japan as a Councilor.

Women's Entrepreneurship and Starting a Business in Japan

Hana Nakanishi

Startup Program Coordinator, JETRO

Hana Nakanishi graduated from Akita International University, renowned for its global curriculum and emphasis on international education. Upon completing her studies, she joined the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) in 2021, a government-related organization that works to promote mutual trade and investment between Japan and the rest of the world.
Patricia Bader-Johnston

Founder, Silverbirch Associates

Patricia Bader-Johnston is Representative Director and Japan Country Head for Freyr Life Sciences KK. She is on the Boards of Earthberries Capital Ltd. and Silverbirch Associates KK both involved in renewable energy development and sustainability-related technologies.
Yumiko Horie

Founder, Posse Nippon K.K

A solopreneur and the Founder of Posse Nippon K.K, Yumiko is a former journalist who switched careers in her mid-30s after working at international institutions such as the UN.
Elvira Yunitan

Product Manager, Rakuten Advertising Technology Department.

A solopreneur and the Founder of Posse Nippon K.K, Yumiko is a former journalist who switched careers in her mid-30s after working at international institutions such as the UN.
Moderator
Chinyere Okoli

JMECAA Co-Chair

Chinyere is the Co-Chair of the JMEC Alumni Association and has been an active member of FEW for the past 3 years.
Moderator
Christine Brown

Vice President, FEW Japan

Christine grew up in the Midwest of the United States then moved to New York to study Journalism. Over the course of 16 years, she worked for multiple start-ups in human resources, event and retail management, and real estate.

Hands-on Skills-Building / Holistic Well-being Workshops

Lower Your Expectations To Raise Your Game

Helen Iwata

Sasuga! Communications

Helen Iwata is an award-winning bilingual coach supporting high-potential and high-achieving managers and executives to perform at their best in global business, leveraging the power of the Sasuga! Success Cycle. Originally from England, Helen has lived and worked in Japan for over 30 years. 

Relationships by Design

Sarah Furuya

Sarah Furuya Creative

Sarah Furuya is an executive and life coach, host of the Legends Podcast, and Tokyo’s most popular clothes swap. She holds a BSc in Human Biology and Human Psychology, is trained Systems Coach, a certified Psychometrics assessor and uses Science, Psychology and Story in all areas of her business.

Practical Yoga Play

Kristen McQuillin

Creative and Founder of Media Tinker

Kristen is a "professional dilettante" whose interests weave into a tapestry of creative and corporate jobs. Threading throughout is her passion for making difficult things easier, including yoga.

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Full Day (Conference + Gala)

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