Event Reports
Please check out articles regarding events put on by AzATJ and its members!
Expanding the Workforce: ASU Japanese Open House & Job Fair
On October 30th, hosted in Arizona State University’s Memorial Union, the Ventana Ballroom held a full house for students to talk to representatives and recruiters from businesses and institutes to inspire their next steps beyond college. Sponsored by ASU’s Asia Center and the Consulate General of Japan In Los Angeles, several companies visited campus in order to present job and internship opportunities available locally and/or internationally.
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Such business partners graciously present at the job fair are Asahi Kasei Homes, IRIS USA, Inc., Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix, SUMCO Phoenix Corporation, Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ion Technology USA, Inc., Quick USA, My Navi, Pasona NA, Kanken Techno USA, and Organo USA, all of which set up stations for students to pass by and chat with their representatives. ASU’s Japanese Department, Japanese Student Association, Bridge of Japan-America, and Anime Avalon also prepared booths in the hopes of catching the interest of other students.
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The event began in the afternoon with an opening ceremony as well as a few opening remarks from speakers Dr. Kenro Kusumi, Senior Vice Provost & Dean, CLAS; Naoko Kamitani, Deputy Consul General and Consulate General of Japan in Los Angeles; and ASU’s own Dr. William Hedberg, Director of the Asia Center. Before letting the masses loose, a few guests followed the opening remarks to name and detail each company and their goals that set up booths in the ballroom, and then the mingling began.
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With this Open House & Job Fair, ASU’s Japanese Department has noticeably grown and begun to flourish with interest and opportunities for those itching for what comes next following their degree. Courtesy of the Director of the School of International Letters and Cultures (SILC), survey states that participants came from a wide variety of backgrounds, although the majority present were Japanese major undergraduates or graduates with an additional selection of staff members and residents of ASU. Additionally, they shared their main purpose was to learn about available work or study opportunities in Japan, network with companies and schools, or nurture their general interest in Japanese culture. Every booth at the fair had lines wrapped around themselves, participants eager to hear the details each company had to offer; the majority left fully satisfied and felt welcomed by the representatives’ kindness.
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Returning supporters of ASU’s Japanese Department, Mishima Foods and S&B Foods—as well as Kimino Drinks and Crystal Geyser Water Company—provided beverages and other goodies available to those who completed a scavenger hunt of the surrounding booths. These organizations, as well as all companies present for the fair, continue to help make ASU’s events possible.
Although free of charge for participants, this year’s Japanese Open House & Job Fair was largely successful in serving as a gateway for broadening students’ horizons, providing them with options for the future, and nurturing ASU’s Japanese and other foreign branches within SILC. Hopefully, this wonderful success continues for the following years and fosters further growth and deeper interest among ASU with these companies and organizations.
Author: Caia Phelan-Reyes, senior Writing Major at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences & Japanese Language Major at the School of International Letters and Cultures
Treating Food Insecurity One Onigiri at a Time
During Arizona State University’s 2025 iteration of Humanities Week, nearly two hundred students visited Durham Hall’s SILC Café to participate in the sixth iteration of Onigiri Action, hosted by Professor Kumiko Hirano Gahan from the Japanese department.
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Free of charge to participants, Onigiri Action allows them to engage with Japanese culture, food, and contribute to aid the world’s food insecurity. Students, volunteers, and professors alike lined up to try their hand at making their own onigiri—a triangular ball of rice often wrapped in dried seaweed and seasoned with furikake, sometimes with a filling inside (i.e. popular-choice tuna mayo, salmon, or umeboshi—pickled plum). Healthy, inexpensive, and easy to make, onigiri is a perfect, tasty way to bring awareness to the world’s food insecurity struggle as well as nutrition.
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Similar to previous years, ASU’s event was not held on World Food Day (October 16th), but Onigiri Action continues to advocate for children in need with meals in honor of the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization. In its eleventh year, 2025’s campaign ran from October 7th to November 15th, spotlighting both their community-based activism to fight world hunger, as well as the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals.
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By the end of 2025’s campaign, Onigiri Action received 233,041 photos and thus were able to donate 1,166,605 school meals to children in need. Per each photo submitted with the hashtag #OnigiriAction, they donate five meals with Table for Two, a non-profit organization; they state their goal is to donate one million meals each year. Since launching nearly a decade ago, Onigiri Action has donated 10.17 million meals and counting, and have been awarded the Deputy-Chief’s Award for their charity by the Minister for Foreign Affairs in 2019. Table for Two continues to provide meals to children in East Africa, Southeast Asia and local communities in the United States.
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This year’s supporters—returning names Mishima Foods USA and S&B Foods, as well as Arizona Mutual Trading and Tempe’s local Fujiya Market—provides the rice used and additionally gifts furikake and other seasonings for participants to enjoy. These organizations make ASU’s events possible, helping further successes by supporting the endeavors of Onigiri Action, Table for Two, and ASU’s involvement in the movement.
Despite the event’s absence of cost, participants are able to contribute to a larger cause and make a big difference in a very simple way. Simultaneously, not only does Onigiri Action work as a charity, they serve as a guide for those interested in learning about aspects of Japanese culture, contributing to a global cause, and, in turn, attracting more contributors for future events.
Author: Caia Phelan-Reyes, senior Writing Major at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences & Japanese Language Major at the School of International Letters and Cultures