Region : East Asia
City : Osaka
Country : Japan

Chapter Leader

Ms. Seiko Furuhashi
(ICC 82-84, 89)
Associate Professor
Osaka Gakuin University
Phone: 81-6-6381-8434
Fax: 81-6-6382-4363
E-mail: SeikoFuruhashi@eastwestcommunity.org

Communication Liasion

Professor Kiyoshi Hamano
(PI 86-92, POP 98)
Kansai University
Faculty of Economics
3-3-35 Yamatecho
Suita-shi, Osaka  564-8680
Japan
Phone:  81-6-6368-0597
Fax:  81-6-6339-7704
E-mail:  hamano@kansai-u.ac.jp

Seiko Furuhashi, President
Kiyoshi Hamano, Vice President and Communication Liaison
Tomohide Ashida, Adviser
Mineo Suenobu, Adviser
Eiji Saito, Adviser
Nobukazu Tanii
Hayato Yamanaka
Fumiteru Nitta
Yumiko Okamoto
Hideaki Sakamoto

The Webpage for the chapter is located at: http://osaka.cool.ne.jp/ewc/

At the Board meeting of the Chapter held on August 5th, the following were discussed: 1) For alumni who have not been active for a length of time, the Board discussed the policy relating to the keeping of membership and the keeping of a mailing list. 2) The newest Board member, Hideaki Sakamoto, accepted the invitation to be part of the Board. Since he is a Staff Writer for the Sankei Shinbun Newspaper, he will provide further diversity to a largely academic oriented Board list. 3) The UH Alumni Association & the EWCA Kansai groups are hosting a Kansai Sake Brewery Walking Tour on November 13, 2011.This tour will include visits to the Kinshi Masamune Brewery, Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum, wine tasting, shopping and dinner at a local restaurant. 4) Chapter President Seiko Furuhashi was in New Zealand to attend a conference held in Wellington from Aug 26 to the 28th. She likewise visited Waikato University and met with local officials and EWC related individuals.

The Chapter held its annual General Meeting on May 28 at Kansai University. Ms. Eriko Yamamoto from the Chuba chapter was welcomed as a guest at the meeting. After Seiko informed the Chapter of Gordon Ring’s retirement, Shikishi, a traditional farewell memento, was signed by all participants and mailed out to Gordon. The Chapter plans to hold its Board Meeting in Osaka on August 5 and a picnic/fun gathering in the Fall for the joint EWC and UH alumni event.

1) The Chapter reports that approximately 30 members participate in Chapter activities. Since January of 2011, seven online Newsletters were distributed to the approximately 50 registered members. 2) They will be holding a Kansai Chapter General Meeting tentatively scheduled for May 28. To date, the actual program and venue has not been decided. A Chapter Board meeting will precede the General Meeting. 3) The Chapter will be involved in activities that will provide assistance to the affected earthquake and tsunami region. 4) Seiko Furuhashi (Chapter Pres.) and Kiyoshi Hamano (Chapter Vice-Pres.) will attend an informal gathering at a Hawaiian restaurant in Osaka of the UH Alumni Association in Kansai on April 16th.

On the response to the 2 proposals: The Chapter is interested in getting more detailed information on the collaborative EWC Chapter Alumni Permanent Endowment for Student Scholarships. The Chapter hopes to include this fundraising information in their Newsletter and will include the item at their scheduled General Meeting. The Kansai chapter supports the 2x per year chapter reporting.

The Chapter submitted a photo, the names of their Chair, Contact Person and Current officers, board or committee members (contact the Alumni office for details). The next general meeting of the chapter is scheduled for spring, 2011.  No official chapter activities occurred during the last three months.  In December, 2010, as EWC alumni are also UH alumni, Seiko Furuhashi was appointed member of the Planning Committee of the UH Alumni Association in Kansai and the December 9th meeting likewise selected liaisons to the Japan American Chamber of Commerce in Kansai and the EWC/EWCA Kansai chapter.