Mr. Wakao Koike, Director, Budget and Finance Division, Finance Affairs Department, The Japan Foundation

“On the 3.11 2011 the Great East Japan Earthquake devastated Japan and its people on an unprecedented scale.  At the time, I was looking for the ways to support my home country as the Deputy Director of the Japan Foundation, Sydney.  Japan Aid 11-3-11@UTS was one of the earliest fund-raising events organized in Sydney in the aftermath of the disaster. It attracted over 350 people and raised over $31,000, including a $20,000 donation from UTS.  The event was testimony to how the UTS Japanese Programme, linked to the Bachelor of International Studies, has established itself as an important contributor to and partner of the Japanese community in Australia and beyond.“

Mr Koike is a Japanese cultural diplomat, formerly stationed in Sydney, and now returned to Japan.   Students in the BAIS have often benefited from the links that School of International Studies staff have forged with organisations like Mr Koike’s.   On occasion, students have the opportunity to give back.