ICI Implements U.S.-Japan Symposium "Inclusion Matters" in Tokyo (MA UCEDD/LEND)
December 10, 2019
|
| Panelists (L-R) Meguru Kobayashi, BeU Disability Student Support Group; Yui Yuda, Kyoto University; and Mark Bookman, University of Pennsylvania / University of Tokyo; discussing issues in disability self-advocacy and activism in the context of U.S. |
In October, Tokyo-based staffer, Dr. Heike Boeltzig-Brown, and Miwa Tanabe, both of the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) based at the University of Massachusetts Boston (UMass Boston), organized "Inclusion Matters," a U.S.-Japan Symposium that attracted more than 100 attendees. Funded by the U.S. Embassy Tokyo and hosted at the Nippon Foundation's headquarters in downtown Tokyo, attendees included leaders in disability and career services from top universities across Japan, business leaders, major media outlets and postsecondary students with disabilities (SWD).
The symposium, a culmination of seven years of ICI's Japan-focused disability programming, brought together SWD and the professionals who support them.
The event featured two panel discussions:
- Disability Services Professional Perspectives was moderated by Jun Murata from Kyoto University and included Dr. Amanda Kraus from the University of Arizona, who currently serves as AHEAD-President-Elect, Dr. Wendy Harbour from AHEAD's National Center for College Students with Disabilities (NCCSD), disability services provider Fuminori Oketani from the University of Toyama, and researcher Dr. Shinichiro Kumagaya from the University of Tokyo.
- Student Disability Perspectives was moderated by Hiroya Banzono from the International Christian University and included Meguru Kobayashi from the Tokyo-based BeU Disability Student Support Group, Yui Yuda from Kyoto University, Mark Bookman from the University of Pennsylvania / University of Tokyo, and Kim Elmore from the NCCSD's DREAM organization that is run by students.
Following the panels, the symposium showcased a documentary-style film Beyond Access - Our Voices for Inclusion that featured the stories of eleven Japanese SWD, which Boeltzig-Brown and Tanabe co-produced for the event. Speeches by representatives from the U.S. Embassy Tokyo, the Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO), and the ICI / UMass Boston welcomed participants and stated their support of this kind of international collaboration around disability and higher education.
"The symposium was an important step toward increased sharing of information, ideas, and student perspectives between the U.S. and Japan," said Dr. Boeltzig-Brown. "It was good to see so many business leaders at the event as well. Improving the engagement between U.S. and Japanese business communities will positively impact the conversation about SWD, higher education, work and career."
For more information about the event and ICI's Japan programs, contact: Dr. Heike Boeltzig-Brown, ICI / UMass Boston, [email protected]
