INSPIRE ACTION Community Spotlight
We are proud of the many women who play a vital role in the successes of Nikkei Place!
Meet Naomi Ostwald Kawamura
Naomi Ostwald Kawamura is the Executive Director of the Nikkei Place Foundation. She is also a member of the JEDI (Justice, Equity, Decolonization, and Inclusion) Network with Vantage Point and serves as the Vice President of the Washington DC-based charity, the Museum Education Roundtable. She has a Master's in Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and is completing a PhD in the Faculty of Education at the University of British Columbia.
What or who inspires you to take action?
My parents Michiko and Ikunosuke are both very hardworking, generous, and service-oriented people. They have instilled in me the same desire to serve the communities to which I belong. My relationship with my daughter has also inspired me towards leading a richer, purpose-filled, and more future-oriented life.
What are some traits you think great leaders possess?
Self-awareness, humility, and the willingness to share power.
Do you have any words or sayings you live by? Or some of the best advice you’ve received that you would like to share?
"It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences."
- Audre Lorde