三井レクチャー・シリーズ 三井レクチャーシリーズは、三井USA財団の寛大なご支援により実現しています。現代の日本とテネシー州への理解を深め、コミュニティと交流の場を作ることを目的としています。今年は、世界における日本の足跡と、過去40年間のテネシー州の繁栄への貢献に焦点を当てた3つのフォーラムに、著名な講演者をお招きしました。 三井USA財団は、1987年にMitsui & Co. (U.S.A.), Inc.のフィランソロピー部門として1987年に設立され、事業を展開している地域で積極的な社会貢献活動を行っています。 |
Jackson has more Japanese companies per capita than any other community in Tennessee. Japanese companies in Jackson represent long-standing investment, strong partnerships and thriving operations.
Mandy White, Chief Economic Development Officer of the Greater Jackson Chamber, has supported many of these companies from site selection to expansion. Mandy will discuss how Jackson supports Japanese industry during the next Mitsui Lecture Series.
In Jackson, they understand what companies need and how to help them grow. Japanese firms in Jackson benefit from an active peer network, and the entire community embraces longterm global partnerships. It's a recipe for success.
Mandy White is the Chief Economic Development Officer of the Greater Jackson Chamber in Jackson, TN. Mandy loves that her role with the Greater Jackson Chamber allows her to be a part of a team that makes the community stronger. Each day brings something new, and she enjoys connecting with people from all over the world.
Originally from Ashland City, Mandy holds a B.S. from Union University and is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma Economic Development Institute, Dale Carnegie Training Course, Leadership Jackson, WestStar, TVA’s Leadership Institute, and Leadership Tennessee.
Mandy works as part of Team Madison County to market Jackson to industrial companies in an effort to have them locate in Madison County. She is also part of the team focusing on existing industries, working closely to identify and assist with growth opportunities for local manufacturing companies. Since her involvement with Team Madison County, nearly 16,000 new industrial jobs have been created, representing investments of over $4.46 Billion.
A chamber staff member for over 26 years, Mandy serves on the Jackson Regional Municipal Planning Commission, the Madison County Ethics Committee, the general advisory board for the TN College of Applied Technology-Jackson and Union University’s McAfee School of Business Executive Advisory Board. She is a member of the Japan-America Society of TN, where she serves on the Board of Directors as Vice Chairman, and the TN Economic Development Council, where she was Past President. Mandy also served on the Board of Directors for the TN Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the University of TN Center for Industrial Services. She is an advisory board member for the University of TN Certified Economic Developer Program. Mandy is a frequent speaker for various economic development conferences and training programs.
Mandy serves on the Board of Directors and is the TN State Coordinator for Southeast German Shorthaired Pointer Rescue. She is a member of the Zeta Tau Alpha Alumnae Association and served as an Advisor to the local collegiate chapter for over a decade. She also serves as Past President of the Board for Regional Inter-Faith Association. She has been named one of "Jackson's Finest Young Professionals," Union University's "Next Generation of Great Leaders,” Jackson-Madison County African American Chamber of Commerce's “Outstanding Woman in Business, one of the inaugural “Most Influential Women in Jackson” and ZTA Outstanding New Alumna and Advisor of the Year. Mandy has received Union University’s Alumni Meritorious Service Award and the Certificate of Merit for ZTA, the highest national award given to an alumna for their service at the local level. Mandy was recognized as “One of the Top 50 Economic Developers in North America” by Consultant Connect, and she was named a Jackson Community Champion by Leaders Credit Union and WBBJ-TV.
In her spare time, Mandy enjoys game night with friends and family, hanging out with her dogs, baking from scratch and traveling. She attends Skyline Church in Jackson. She and her husband, Darrell, reside in Jackson.
Past Programs
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The beautiful design of a Japanese strolling garden, the rich traditions of Japan's shamisen music, the mindfulness of the traditional Japanese tea cerermony and the simplicity and harmony of ikebana v can all be found right here in Tennessee. Robin Howell, Curator of the Japanese and Asian Garden at Memphis Botanic Garden; Mahagi LaCure, Japanese Language Teacher with the Asian Culture Center of Tennessee and Coordinator of Shamisen Knoxville; and Sachi Uemoto, Founder of ENISHI will join us for this Mitsui Lecture Series session.
The Mitsui Lecture Series is made possible thanks to the generous support of The Mitsui U.S.A. Foundation. |
Learning English and Japanese
Thursday, March 27th
Join John Gale, Kyoko Hammond, Leo Katz and Mauricio Lopera for a discussion about learning to communicate in a new language - English and Japanese. Language learners of all ages are broadening their horizons and enhancing connections with people from different cultures. The Mitsui Lecture Series is made possible thanks to the generous support of The Mitsui U.S.A. Foundation. |
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Tennessee Entrepreneurs with a Japan Connection
Thursday, March 20th
 Margaret Armour, Nathaniel Hudson, Sumi Worley and Byron Stithem (clockwise, from top left) share their stories about starting and running their ventures.
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テネシー日米協会では、テネシー州の地元コミュニティによる日本企業と日本人駐在者へのサポートについて、情報交換を行う機会を再び設けたいと思います。そして、日本コミュニティがテネシー州にもたらしてきた多くの貢献についても見ていきたいと思います。 1月29日、長年にわたりテネシーと日本の両コミュニティでご活躍されてきた3名の日本人の方々が、テネシー州住民としての経験を分かち合ってくださいます。(以下、敬称略) アルダーマンくみ - テネシー州アジア文化センター 事務局長 清水秀子 - ヴァンダービルト大学 日本語上級講師 高山完司 - expCommercial Realty 日米投資スペシャリスト 司会はテネシー日米協会 日本人コミュニティアウトリーチ＆サポートサービス・マネジャーの セッションはすべて日本語で行われます。セッション終了後、英語の字幕付きで録画をご覧いただけます。 |
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| Celebrate the beautiful cherry blossom season with Yurina Yoshikawa at a special, in-person evening session of The Mitsui Lecture Series. Cherry blossoms hold profound cultural significance and symbolism in Japan. Yurina will discuss Japanese and American literature with cherry blossoms as a motif with mingling and refreshments after the lecture. This is the first event of 2024 Japan Week, Japanese cultural events and activities leading up to the Nashville Cherry Blossom Festival. Yurina Yoshikawa is a writer, an instructor and Director of Education at The Porch Writers' Collective in Nashville. Yurina also hosts JAST’s online book club - Reading Between the Lines |
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TNGO: Shifting Gears in Tennessee Tuesday, March 5th |
| Join Victoria Hirschberg for an online session about The Transportation Network Growth Opportunity. The TNGO initiative is an economic development tool designed to make our state the premier destination for mobility R&D investment in the Southeast and the next generation of high-quality jobs. Victoria Hirschberg has more than a decade of experience in economic development. Assistant Vice President for Research, Outreach and Economic Development at the University of Tennessee System, Victoria is working alongside the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development as TNGO Interim Director to oversee the rollout. |
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2022-2023 Programs |
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BNA Nashville International Airport is transforming. Stacey Nickens, Vice President of Corporate Communications and Marketing at Nashville International Airport, discussed BNA Vision, the growth and expansion plan that includes the onsite Hilton Hotel, the beautiful, new grand lobby with 24 TSA security screening lanes and multimedia digital and visual art and a new state-of-the-art international arrivals facility. With the opening of the new international arrivals facility, expanding international air service is a priority. Stacey also offered updates on the work to bring new international service to Nashville International Airport and BNA's New Horizon, the next step in the improvement and expansion of the airport, including two concourses, a new air freight building, terminal roadway improvements and additional upgrades to further enhance the traveler experience. As Vice President of Corporate Communications and Marketing, Stacey Nickens serves as the spokesperson for BNAand is responsible for the organization’s internal and external communication strategies, including community relations, advertising, events, customer experience, and BNA’s arts at the airport program which includes both visual art and music. While having a lasting impact on BNA is top of mind for Stacey, she is also heavily involved in the Nashville community. As someone who deeply values relationships, Stacey is heavily involved in the local community, and she serves on numerous boards. Stacey earned a bachelor’s degree in public relations from the University of Tennessee at Martin. She is married to her husband, Bryant, and they have one son, BJ. The Mitsui Lecture Series is made possible by the generous support of The Mitsui U.S.A. Foundation. |
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Robotics and the Future of the Automotive Industry The automotive industry, Tennessee’s largest manufacturing sector, has long adopted technology, with robots being prevalent for almost 60 years. As one of the world's largest automotive parts manufacturers, DENSO has been a pioneer and industry leader in robot design and manufacturing automation since the 1960s and has played a major role in helping Tennessee become an automotive production leader for more than 30 years. |
| Brian Nolen, director of Manufacturing Learning, will lead a discussion of DENSO’s history in Tennessee, the company’s use of robotics in manufacturing, and what the future holds for automotive manufacturing. At DENSO, Nolen leads development of systems that best prepare DENSO’s manufacturing resources for current and future challenges of a rapidly evolving advanced manufacturing marketplace. He is based at DENSO’s manufacturing facility in Athens, Tennessee. Nolen joined DENSO in March 1999 as a quality assurance specialist. After advancing through various quality engineering roles, he was appointed to general manager of Quality Engineering in 2009. Nolen later made the transition to manufacturing director of North American Gasoline Products, then served as vice president of Manufacturing for Powertrain Products until 2023. Nolen holds a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from Tennessee Technological University in Cookeville, Tennessee. He later earned a Master of Business Administration from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. |
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Japanese Arts and Culture in the Classroom: How Tennessee Students Are Discovering Japan 教室での日本の芸術と文化：テネシー州の学生はどのように日本を発見しているか January 24, 2023 |
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Margaret Price, Moderator Margaret Price is an international marketer with a passion for brand work and the B2B space. With over 10 years of experience working in Japan, she is particularly invested in the the relationship between Japan and Tennessee, her hometown. She currently works in marketing and podcast launch management with NPR. Kyoko A. Hammond, Lecturer of Japanese Kyoko A. Hammond, Lecturer of Japanese at the University of Tennessee at Martin; M.A. (Japanese Pedagogy and Culture) California State University, Long Beach., B.A. (English Literature) Hosei University, Japan. Mrs. Hammond came to UTM in 2005 and teaches all levels of Japanese, including a Japanese culture course taught in English. Before she came to UTM, she taught Japanese at the middle school and high school levels in Fitzgerald, Georgia, for two years, then taught at the University of California, Irvine, for five years. She is a native of Japan who enjoys spending time with her husband and three children, watching Japanese television dramas, and, of course, visiting her family and friends in Japan. Katie Jones Katie Jones is a Memphis born and raised art educator with over a decade of experience in the classroom that began with working for summer camps at the age of 14. Her love of Japan, manga, and anime began early on with an early introduction from her older siblings in the 1980s which exploded into a full-on study and obsession with a random gift of Gilles Poitras’ The Anime Companion from her friend Mary during a small Christmas party in 1999. Katie would later go on to develop a full career in the arts and study Japanese art and artists, enabling her to write her thesis on Anime in the Classroom at the Memphis College of Art, where she received her BFA in Painting and a Masters of Art in Teaching in Art Education. Katie currently teaches kindergarten through 5th grade art and enjoys regular speaking engagements at conferences and conventions on the topics of art education, anime, and manga. Twenty-two years later, Katie and Gilles Poitras are online friends, and Katie credits Gilles Poitras and her friend Mary for her offbeat career path. Dr. David Meredith, Dr. David Meredith is a writer and educator originally from Knoxville, Tennessee. He received both a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts from East Tennessee State University, in Johnson City, Tennessee. He achieved his Doctorate in Educational Leadership (Ed.D.) at Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tennessee. On and off, he spent nearly a decade, from 1999-2010 teaching English in Northern Japan, but currently lives with his wife and three children in the Nashville Area where he continues to write and teach English. He is also currently the World Language Lead Teacher and Japanese Language Teacher at Antioch High School for Metro Nashville Public Schools. Maika Yamaoka The University of Memphis & Memphis Botanic Garden Maika Yamaoka is a Japan Outreach Initiative (JOI) Coordinator at the University of Memphis and Memphis Botanic Garden. JOI is a program that promotes awareness and understanding of Japan and brings Japanese coordinators to regions of the U.S. where Japanese culture has been less accessible. Since the summer of 2021, Maika has been providing various kinds of programs for Memphis and other Tennessee communities. She has reached out to more than 3,700 people in one year from elementary schools to universities, libraries, and large festivals. Maika believes that cross-cultural understanding broadens people's horizons. When Maika was in Tokyo, she was involved in the management of international exchange programs for youth. Now she is proud to contribute to providing opportunities for people in the U.S. to experience new worlds and cultures. A native of Tokyo, Japan, Maika has visited 27 countries. Traveling to learn about new cultures is her passion. She also likes to cook and walk with dogs. |
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Proper Sake Co.: 伝統を重んじ、現代技術を駆使 利き酒会テネシー州唯一の日本酒蔵にて ２０２２年８月１６日 JAST members and special guests have the unique, exclusive opportunity to meet and talk with Byron Stithem, Proper Sake Co.'s founder and brewmaster, and enjoy excellent sake and delicious food at Rice Vice, Proper Sake Co.’s new bar and tasting room. Byron has a passion for sake, working on recipes in the culinary and fermentation business for more than 10 years. He opened Proper Sake Co. in Nashville’s Pie Town neighborhood in 2017, and his business has since outgrown that space, due to the popularity of his sake. Byron spent the last year building the expanded Proper Sake Co.’s new brewery and Rice Vice, the adjacent bar reminiscent of inviting spots in 1970s and 1980s Japan. Proper Sake is available at local liquor stores, restaurants, and bars, but the best place to sample it is in the new tranquil tasting room decorated with natural materials. This is a registration only event open to members and special guests. Please contact jastninfo@jastn.org with any questions. |
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