Tuesday, January 29, 2013 11:30p -- Two very busy and rewarding days!

Well, I sure didn't have time to post anything last night, so I thought I'd capture a little bit of Monday and Today in my comments now.

MONDAY:
Monday, we visited SunBridge Global Ventures, Inc. who partners with the Urban Innovation Institute. We were pleased to participate in discussions about how SunBridge seeks young entrepreneurs who are up and coming. They help these young people realize their dreams by assisting with venture capital programs, etc. We also heard from 3 women leaders -- 1 entrepreneur and 2 senior managers. These women shared their stories and general information about the difficulties that women encounter in the Japanese business world. Women are a rare client of SunBridge, as the culture does not yet support women in the business world and most women who start their own businesses do not seek outside support the way men do. Ikuo Hiraishi, President and CEO of SunBridge offered his own perspectives. He happens to be a husband and father that is more like western husbands and fathers. He recognizes that his wife's career is also important and shares in the child rearing.

The women we talked with:
Hiroko Nishiyma, CEO, MyPower, Inc. -- www.mypower.co.jp
Yamano Hiroko, Senior Manager, Hankyu Hanshin Holdings -- www.hankyu-hanshin.co.jp
Mina Marushima, Marketing Manager, Silk Road Technology -- www.silkroad.co.jp

SunBridge has a little golden Buddha in the office. If you sit in the "happy couch", hold the Buddha and scratch his feet, you'll have good fortune!


TUESDAY
Today, we visited the Dawn Center, the Osaka Gender Equality Foundation run by the Osaka Prefecture government. Teiichiro Tokioka, Chairperson of the Board, spoke to us via an interpreter about their program. The Dawn Center is one of the largest organizations for gender equality in Japan. The government realizes that they need to take some action to address the inequalities, but the problem is just not that easy to solve. Centuries of custom and culture keep men AND women of the mindset that each have their own place in the world and that place should not be disrupted. The Dawn Center has 3 pillars in which they operate. 1) To distribute information about gender equality, 2) To organize lectures and promote gender equal rights, 3) To offer consultation and counseling to women. They have a library filled with books, magazines and media to educate and assist women in bettering themselves. The librarian was so excited to show us everything they have!

Pics from Monday - 1-6
Pics from Tuesday - 7-11