Featured | Call for Nomination: 2026 Richard J. Samuels Dissertation Award in Japanese Studies [Apply by June 15]

Forum Contributors

Tomoaki Nakano

CAPT Tomoaki NAKANO (USJLP 2019, 2024) is an active-duty officer in the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF). Over a 21-year career, he spent most of his time at sea, serving on seven naval ships and at two task group headquarters. From 2022 to 2023, he commanded the destroyer JS Fuyuzuki. His ...

Micah Murphy

Micah Murphy (USJLP 2019, 2022) was a career Surface Warfare Officer, most recently in charge of the U.S. Military Sealift Command, Pacific. He retired in early 2026, moved with his family to Upstate NY, and is now helping run the New American Industrial Alliance, a multi-sector trade organization ...

Tom Le

Tom Le (USJLP 2022, 2023) is an associate professor of politics at Pomona College and research affiliate at the PRIME Institute at Meiji Gakuin University. He is author of Japan’s Aging Peace: Pacifism and Militarism in the Twenty-First Century (Columbia University Press, 2021). The Japanese ...

Margaret K. Lewis

Maggie Lewis (USJLP 2016, 2017) is a professor at Seton Hall Law where she previously also served as Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Institutional Operations. A scholar of legal issues in the U.S.-China relationship, her research focuses on China and Taiwan with an emphasis on criminal ...

Ken Jimbo

Dr. Ken Jimbo (USJLP 2006, 2007) is a Managing Director of Programs at the International House of Japan (IHJ/I-House) and a Professor of International Relations at Keio University. He is concurrently an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the Canon Institute for Global Studies (CIGS). He served as a ...

Yuka Mizoue

Yuka Mizoue (USJLP 2024, 2025) has worked for TV Asahi as a TV journalist and documentary filmmaker for 20 years. Her passion and life mission are to promote gender equality in Japan through journalism. She has recently been recognized with the Media Ambitious Award for her documentary Sexism: The ...

Ryo Sahashi

Ryo Sahashi (USJLP 2010, 2011) is a Professor of International Relations, Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, the University of Tokyo. Dr. Sahashi specializes in international politics in East Asia. He sits on government panels, including the Council on the Use of Real Estate and the Advisory ...

Noah Sneider

Noah Sneider (USJLP 2024, 2025) is The Economist’s East Asia Bureau Chief. He primarily covers Japan, North Korea, and South Korea. He also contributes to coverage of China, Taiwan, the Pacific, and the Philippines and to broader thematic coverage of Asia. Prior to this, he led the paper’s coverage ...

Miyuki Inoue

Miyuki Inoue (USJLP 2015, 2016) is a newspaper journalist and currently works within the president’s office, exploring the future direction of journalism and media amid a period of rapid transformation. She holds a master’s degree in International Relations from Columbia University’s School of ...

Kenji Kushida

Kenji Kushida (USJLP 2014, 2015) is a Senior Fellow at the Asia Program in the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP), directing Japan research and programming themed “Innovative Japan, Global Japan,” and he leads the Japan-Silicon Valley Innovation Initiative @ Carnegie. He is also ...

Sohei Ide

Sohei Ide (USJLP 2016, 2017) is a journalist for Japan’s Kyodo News with over 25 years of career reporting on macroeconomy, fiscal, and monetary policy. His latest book, “Talking To The World’s Great Minds About What Comes After Capitalism”(2024), explores progressive ideas for a radical overhaul ...

Mineko Okamoto

Mineko Okamoto (USJLP 2003, 2004) is a Public Editor at the Asahi Shimbun. She joined the company as a reporter in 1989, mainly covering social security and healthcare policy. She also has extensive experience in the city news section and local bureaus, reporting on a wide range of issues from ...

Kyoichi Sasazawa

Kyoichi Sasazawa (USJLP 2007, 2008) is an award-winning Japanese journalist and a Project Professor in International Journalism at Juntendo University Faculty of International Liberal Arts. He has previously worked for The Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan's leading national newspaper, and served as a science ...

Daisuke Furuta

Daisuke Furuta (USJLP 2022, 2023) is the editor-in-chief of the Japan Fact-check Center(JFC). He started his career at The Asahi Shimbun and later moved to BuzzFeed, where he served as the founder and editor-in-chief of its Japan edition. In 2019, he left BuzzFeed and began working as a freelance ...

Atsushi Shiraki

Atsushi Shiraki (USJLP 2024, 2025) is an associate professor at the University of the Ryukyus Law School and a divorce counsel qualified in Japan, New York, and Maryland. His academic interests include conflict of laws, family law, and transnational litigation. As a Fulbright Scholar, he studied at ...

Hiroaki Ishii

Hiroaki Ishii pursued graduate studies in the United States after working in the human resources department of an automotive-related manufacturer for over six years. Upon earning a master’s degree in international relations, he returned to Japan and joined Amnesty International Japan in 1995. In ...

Haruka Nagao Nagase

Haruka Nagao (USJLP 2025, 2026) founded ViVarsity (NPO) in 2010 and link design lab in 2018 to support immigrants in Japan and promote multicultural understanding. Based in Okazaki, near Toyota City, her organization assists foreign residents who settle long-term. It organizes life-skills seminars, ...

Sayaka Watanabe

Sayaka Watanabe (USJLP 2024, 2025) is Superintendent of Education for Minoh City in Osaka, Japan, and founder of WELgee, a nonprofit organization supporting refugees in rebuilding their lives in Japan. During her university years, she worked with local NGOs in conflict-affected areas of Bangladesh ...

Mao Narita

Mao Narita oversees business development and corporate partnerships at the non-profit organization WELgee. Following her experience in the human resources sector within the private enterprise, she currently focuses on career education programs in Japan for individuals with refugee backgrounds, ...

Paul Hastings

Paul Hastings is President and CEO of the Japan ICU Foundation, a New York–based organization that works with International Christian University and partners across Japan and the United States to nurture global citizens. He joined the foundation in 2006 and has led it since 2015, shaping its growth ...

Sera Koulabdara

Sera Koulabdara (USJLP 2025, 2026) is the CEO of Legacies of War, an advocacy and educational organization dedicated to addressing the enduring impacts of war through U.S. funding for global humanitarian demining, survivor assistance, and explosive ordnance risk education. A recognized expert in ...

Stephanie Acosta

Stephanie Acosta (USJLP 2024, 2025) is a social worker with experience in philanthropy, government, and nonprofits. Currently at the El Paso Community Foundation, Stephanie is a Program Officer managing the Migrant Families Relief Fund, grants, and social impact projects aimed at addressing unique ...

Mark Haidar

Mark Haidar (USJLP 2025, 2026) is a visionary entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience in technology and business. He is the Founder and Chairman of Dana Holdings and Founder and CEO of Monarch Insurance. Previously, he co-founded Dialexa, which developed 200+ products before its acquisition ...

Reyhaneh Maktoufi

Dr. Reyhaneh Maktoufi (USJLP 2025, 2026) is an Iranian-American National Geographic Explorer, a researcher, and a communication trainer, strategist, and consultant. With 15 years of experience, Rey helps train experts to find authentic ways to share impactful stories and build trust with their ...