We had a fantastic International Women’s Day networking dinner on 10th March 2023, and we want to express our gratitude to everyone who attended!
This was our first face-to-face event since the pandemic, and we were thrilled to see members from a wide range of sectors, from those just starting their careers to those with extensive experience. The event reminded us of the importance of building strong networks with diverse individuals. There are always valuable insights to be gained, both for your career and your life.
In Australia in 2021, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne, we have been enduring prolonging lockdowns, state border closures, and, of course, the country’s border closure, which makes us feel far from our homeland – Japan.
It is a difficult situation for everybody, but… How do you make sure your mental health during this challenge time?
We hosted a mental health webinar with Ms Asami Koike on Tuesday 19th October 2021. Asami san is the founder of Shapes and Sounds which is an online platform that talks about Asian Australian mental health and wellbeing.
She guided us in this topic and answered important questions such as;
● What are the common mental issues which Japanese people in overseas may face? ● How do we access a psychologist in Australia?
During the seminar she mentioned;
“Being a Japanese Women in Australia (or any person with Japanese background in a Western society), the Japanese mentality of Gambaru 頑張る and persistence 我慢 can sometimes affect our mental health.”
When working in a non-Japanese environment, it is important to understand that it may be difficult to recognise this mentality for people from other cultures. Being polite, quiet, and prioritising others’ needs are great Japanese attitudes, but probably there are some occasions you may need to communicate about yourself clearly, especially in a non-Japanese environment. We need to find a balance between honouring our culture and adjusting to the local culture. Take a moment to identify what works for you and what no longer works for you.
A recording of this seminar is now available. If you are interested in more, please send a request to [email protected] We are happy to share this important and mind-altering seminar with you!
Thank you very much Asami san for providing your insights! We are sure this seminar encouraged a lot of Japanese businesswomen here in Australia. At least, it did to me!
How did you celebrate International Women’s Day this year? It was on 8th March 2021 and the official theme was #ChoseToChallenge
We celebrated IWD by hosting a webinar in partnership with Australia Japan Society of Victoria and Celebrating Women in Japan on Tuesday 9th March 2021. AJSV is an organisation based in Victoria to promote bilateral relationships in business, culture and education between Japan and Australia. CWiJ is a social media project to raise the profile of women in Japan.
The webinar opened by Ayumi, our committee member, and she introduced three panellists who are experts with extensive business experience across Asia-Pacific.
Ms Melanie Brock – is one of Japan’s best-known ASPAC specialists advising Japanese and Australian corporations.
Ms Nobuko Kobayashi – is Partner and Managing Director with EY-Parthenon and contributes Opinions to Nikkei Asian Review.
Ms Kaoru Nishinakagawa – is a business-oriented entrepreneur and innovation consultant and co-founder of Innovation Dojo.
While Celeste, Vice President of AJSV, moderated the discussion, the panels exchanged their experience and insights.
The highlights are;
Kawaii culture holds us back
Japan’s Kawaii culture unconsciously shapes how Japanese women behaves. In professional context, it often better stepping out of the Kawaii coma. Find more here
Importance of networking
There are millions of people with amazing career, both female and male. It’s important to keep your antenna up and share ideas with them. We couldn’t agree more! Let’s expand your network through us.
Mentor/Mentee program
Seek mentors/mentees to seek advice and expand your vision. Keep eye on the CWiJ’s initiative
We felt grateful to have more than 60 registrants across Australia and Japan. Thank you very much for your support!
Lastly, thanks again to Australia Japan Society of Victoria and Celebrating Women in Japan for the collaborative opportunity. Especially for your efforts in organising, Celeste and Ayumi.
-How to thrive in life and work in the era of diversity –
Our Committee members with Ms Sasaki greeting to the attendees
2020 has been a challenging year for everybody. We took this as an opportunity to get out of our comfort zone and tried a webinar for the very first time!
Our very first webinar on Tuesday, December 15th, featured Ms Kaori Sasaki, Founder & CEO of ewoman, Inc. She kindly accepted our offer and shared her expertise. Ms Sasaki is one of the most renowned diversity experts in Japan and a highly sought-after speaker. It was such an honour to have her for our 1st webinar!
We commenced with Hiroko’s opening remarks, where she touched on the Japanese Businesswomen’s Society’s history and introduced our special guest for the night.
Ms Sasaki started her presentation by sharing her unique background starting as a translator to becoming a founder and an influencer.
She explained that ‘Diversity’ works when each person contributes in their unique way. Diversity is not about one particular minority group. It’s a viewpoint. Having this viewpoint enables each of us to contribute to our success collectively. For example, it can be applied to design – diversity of design – and just about any area.
She also shared a lot of tips on how you can contribute and thrive in the era of diversity. If you want to lean more, please visit ewoman’s website.
The Q&A session facilitated by Yuko also provided a lot of valuable advice. We received several questions related to leadership. Ms Sasaki responded that there is no right and wrong but effective leadership is inclusive and flexible.
The webinar concluded with a lot of key takeaways. Ayumi thanked Ms Sasaki and ewoman for sharing her story and the opportunity to learn about ‘diversity’. She also expressed gratitude to Herbert Smith Freehills who kindly provided the webinar platform this time.
Thank you again to Ms Sasaki, ewoman, HSF, and all the members who attended the webinar.
We continuously support Abenomics’ initiative to empower female professionals and hosted a side event of the World Assembly for Women (WAW!) on 24th June 2019 in Sydney. Prior to this, the government of Japan and the committee of W20 Japan hosted “5th WAW!/W20” in 23-24 March 2019, where many leading female professionals gathered.
This year, we invited Miss Atsuko Kobayashi, the owner of Small Forest. Atsuko is the first female winemaker in Japan, and the only Japanese winemaker to establish a wine brand in Australia. She gave us a keynote speech on ‘work and success overseas’
Followed by a panel discussion with Miss Kana Wakabayashi, then-executive director of JNTO Sydney, Miss Chie Majima, Managing Director of Hitachi Australia Pty Ltd, Miss Yuko Wakamatsu, Global Partnership Advisor of CSIRO and Miss Rika Sasaki, Advisor of AUSTRADE, moderated by Mr Tadashi Saida, then-Managing Director of Sumitomo Australia Pty Ltd.
Special thanks to Herbert Smith Freehills Sydney office.
