The Japanese Women's Leadership Initiative: February 2011

Thursday, February 24, 2011

A Simmons Welcome

Yesterday, CGO hosted two representatives from Business and Professional Women Japan (BPWJ), Masako Hiramatsu and Toshimi Matsubara, Esquire. Ms. Hiramatsu was a 2007 Fellow, and it was a pleasure to welcome her back to Simmons campus.

We discussed our preparations for the 2011 Forum Program. The Forum Program is just six weeks away! BPWJ has been crucial in involving participation from the Yokohama City government, including Mayor Fumiko Hayashi, ranked the 39th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes. Ms. Hiramatsu and Ms. Matsubara also updated us about the activities of past Fellows.

Following lunch, our Japanese guests visited the Museum of Fine Arts, where current exhibits include An Unspoken Dialogue with Japanese Tea and Flowers and Festivals: Four Seasons in Japanese Prints.

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Thursday, February 17, 2011

Mark your calendars!

Due to the March 2011 natural disaster, the 2011 Forums originally scheduled for April 9 and 11 in Nagoya and Yokohama have been postponed.
This has been a busy winter! The Center for Gender in Organizations and our partner organization, Business and Professional Women Japan have been busy preparing for:

Recruitment for the 2011 JWLI Fellows Program

Application Deadline: April 30, 2011
Send to Attn: Ms. Yanagishita/Ms. Sakurai
The Office of Business & Professional Women, Japan, JWLI Section
2-21-11 Yoyogi, Shibuya-ward, Tokyo, FK Building 303

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About the Japanese Women's Leadership Initiative

Since 2007, four Japanese women have been invited to Boston each year as Japanese Women's Leadership Initiative Fellows to learn about the American nonprofit sector and to develop their leadership potential. The program includes hands-on training with successful Boston based nonprofit organizations and tutorials in the areas of nonprofit management as well as the “Strategic Leadership for Women” training program at the Simmons School of Management (SOM). Each Fellow develops an action plan for implementation upon return to Japan that addresses the goals of her vision and dreams.

Additionally, The United States-Japan Foundation, based in New York City, approved funding for a three year grant to CGO to create the Japanese Women’s Leadership Initiative Forum Program in Japan. The new program is based upon the success of the US based Japanese Women’s Leadership Program, now entering its fifth year at the SOM, coupled with the growing interest in nonprofit organizations because of the keen needs of society in Japan, the growth in recognition of the Japanese government of the value or nonprofits organizations and the interest of more women in Japan to take on leadership roles. The program is designed to provide a three-year series of seminars and workshops in Japan as part of the movement to create social change by strengthening the capacity of women to provide leadership and work effectively for change while educating a broader audience about the value of the nonprofit sector and its potential role in addressing social issues.

Contact the Center for Gender in Organizations:

cgo(at)simmons(dot)edu