South San Francisco Fall In-person Workshop

November 21, 2025 - south san Francisco, CA

​​On November 21, 2025, the California-Japan Sister Cities Network Fall Workshop and Reception was held in South San Francisco. The theme was “Stories that Bridge: Business, Community, and Connection”. As always, it was co-hosted with the Consulates General of Japan in San Francisco and Los Angeles.

The event was attended by 80 people, including sister city leaders representing 29 sister city programs across the state of California, community partners such as JETAANC representatives, and 13 Japan-related business leaders. The workshop was emceed by Kevin O’Donnell, Political Assistant at the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco.

The event began with words of welcome from Mr. Mark Addiego, Vice Mayor of South San Francisco; Mr. Kotaro Otsuki, the Consul General of Japan in San Francisco; and Meg Mizutani, CJSCN President. We were also joined by a special guest, California State Assemblymember Ash Kalra, who gave a toast.

The first section of the workshop focused on the business community. Japan-related businesses with local branches shared their vision in pitch-style presentations of how they could collaborate with sister city programs, especially for youth empowerment. The presenters were:

• Yuko Oku, General Manager, NTA America, Inc.

• Kengo Naito, Vice President, Digital Garage, Inc.

• Akemi Koda, CEO, US-Asia Venture Partners

• Hiroshi Tomita, CEO, Tomita International

• Hirokazu Hisamune, Store Manager, Kinokuniya

• Atsushi Yanai, Owner/COO, NORIA

• Kenji Furushiro, President & CEO, Pasona

• Stephen Katayama, Managing Director, Global Sales, Western Sales Office, Japan Airlines

• Miyuki Vetry, Silicon Valley Branch, Mitsubishi Corporation (Americas)

• Nobu Ishihara, Direct Sales Manager, Toyota Sunnyvale

• Steve Teraoka, Managing Partner, Teraoka & Partners

The second section focused on the sister city community. A panel discussion titled “At the Heart of Sister City Exchanges: Celebrating Our Host Families” featured three sister city members who shared their heartfelt stories of what it means to be a host family. The discussion was moderated by Ryan Tomita, President of San Carlos Sister City Association. The panelists were:

• Preston Lee, Student Volunteer, Sunnyvale Sister City Association

• Harrison Chapman, Co-Chair, Sausalito-Sakaide Sister City Program

• Marie Patea, South San Francisco Sister Cities Association

In addition to the presentations, the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco presented the Sister City Youth Prize of their annual “Once in Japan Photo Contest” to this year’s winner, Weslee Dimalanta (Richmond-Shimada Sister City Program). Mr. Kenichi Kaneda, Senior Vice President of Canon U.S.A., Inc., the contest sponsor, presented the prize. The CJSCN Board was honored to support this contest by serving as judges.

The event concluded with a lively breakout group discussion over dinner.

This workshop offered a unique space for the participants to share their stories, spark meaningful conversations, and explore new opportunities for collaboration inspired by the growing interest in Japan among younger generations.

We received many positive comments in the post-event survey.

• “Attending this event made me realize how grateful and proud I am to be a member of a sister cities program and to contribute to the California-Japan relationship.”

• “Great to see a cross-section of members and also younger participants.”

• “I appreciated the opportunity to connect with other sister cities and see what they are doing differently. I also appreciated the chance to hear from businesses, and would love to see what comes out of those connections with sister city organizations.”

CJSCN would like to thank our co-hosts, presenters, and participants for making this event both meaningful and successful. Special thanks go to the City of South San Francisco for hosting us at their beautiful facility!

All images below are courtesy of the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco.