Fumihiko Tominaga is an environmental and social safeguards specialist working at the intersection of climate finance and policy, sustainable development, and ESG. His professional experience spans multilateral climate funds, the United Nations system, and Japanese foreign missions, with a focus on ensuring that climate and infrastructure investments deliver meaningful environmental and social outcomes while supporting inclusive economic growth. Fumihiko shares concrete actions that people can take that link climate action with their daily lives. Check out what Fumihiko has to say about being a global citizen! 

Casey Lartigue is the co-founder and co-president of Freedom Speakers International (FSI) in Seoul, Korea. He is co-author of Songmi Han’s memoir "Greenlight to Freedom,” and he is a columnist with the Korea Times newspaper. Casey shares about his formative experiences living abroad in Taiwan and South Korea. From his work teaching English abroad to his work at the Cato Institute, he drew from his passions for storytelling, advocacy, and education to support North Korean refugees. It was a chance encounter with one North Korean refugee that showed him a pathway to contributing to freedom through empowering others to use their voice for positive change. Check out what Casey has to say about global citizenship! 

Felipe Iwahashi is a multilingual professional with a strong background in linguistics, cultural exchange, and educational research. He has extensive experience teaching English and Japanese. Currently, he works at the International School of Sciences and Arts in Costa Mesa as a language instructor and Project Based Learning teacher. Felipe is passionate in fostering cross-cultural communication, supporting future leaders, and enhancing language learning through innovative and interactive methods. Our conversation centered on his cross-cultural journey from Brazil to Japan to the United States. The themes of evolving identity and uncovering one’s voice are present throughout this episode. Check out what Felipe has to say about being a global citizen! 

Michelle Hobby-Mears is the Associate Dean of Students and Director of Student Activities at Soka University of America (SUA). She speaks about her journey to support the early years of building out SUA’s residential programs. Her strongly aligned values and calling to support students from all around the world informed her decision to work at SUA for over 26 years. She speaks about the importance of faith, leading a contributive life, and engaging in dialogue. Check out what Michelle has to say about being a global citizen! 

Frank Arce is the Assistant Dean for Admissions and Financial Aid at Harvard University Graduate School of Education. He is a mission-driven leader who believes education is both a public good and a powerful vehicle for social mobility. His work centers on expanding access, affordability, and student success—especially for traditionally underserved populations. Check out Frank’s journey as a first generation student who found his passion to serve students within higher education. With a deep commitment to HGSE’s motto of learning to change the world, Frank shares valuable insight into the ways that Harvard attracts and fosters global citizens. Enjoy the conversation! 

Christine Hwang is an online learning designer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She is interested in civics and literacy learning design for multilingual learners as well as the role of EdTech/AI in 21st-century education. She grew up traveling between the US and China. Her experiences navigating change in different social and cultural contexts challenged her to understand her identity from multiple perspectives. Her interest in education stems from both her passion to advocate for mental health and her family background. We discuss at length the importance of digital tools and learning environments within school contexts. Check out what Christine has to say about being a global citizen in the digitalized world! 

Simon Chow is PhD candidate at the UCLA School of Education and Information Studies. He is a first gen student who immigrated to the US from China with his family. His journey from Bowdoin college for undergraduates studies to Harvard for graduate studies is marked by seeking a deeper sense of belonging with his own Chinese heritage and LA upbringing. Simon shares some of the practical ways in which he joined in efforts to create spaces of belonging for minority groups in predominantly white spaces. He also offers insights about what being a global citizen means as a first gen student. Check out Simon’s journey to build more communities of belonging. Enjoy!  

Alejandra Valencia is an elementary school vice principal with over three decades of teaching experience. Her story starts with the struggles of moving to the US with her family from Mexico as undocumented migrants. Despite growing up with the stress of possibly seeing her parents get deported, she was intent on focusing her efforts on education. With the support and encouragement from her parents, she used education as a vehicle to empower herself and strengthen her voice to combat the injustices she witnessed in the manual labor her parents did. As an educator and Latina, she grew from encounters with people who showed her new possibilities of becoming. Alejandra is providing that same example for her students, teachers, and staff within the school community. With hope and strong faith, she believes that through education, new generations will rise above the obstacles and create pathways of peace. Enjoy the conversation! 

Yukari Hirano is the Vice Principal at the International School for Sciences and Culture in Costa Mesa. She is passionate about creating an inclusive and supportive community of learners where each student feels seen and loved. Her experiences as a student in Soka schools in Brazil, Japan, and the US were foundational in her own development as a global citizen. Yukari also shares about her own personal journey with grief and the way in which she was able to model what creating hope for oneself and others looks like. Enjoy our conversation!

Julian Velarde is the Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator at the Orange County Fire Authority. He is passionate about fostering an inclusive environment through strategic DE&I planning and community engagement. Prior to his work in the Fire Authority, his decades-long career in higher education cemented his ability to create safe and engaging spaces for students to feel a deeper sense of belonging. Julian speaks to his childhood experiences of being raised in a foster family and then an adoptive family as crucial experiences for him to embrace others and cultivate gratitude. Through his personal experiences of disruption and navigating change, he expresses his commitment to supporting people to grow from new possibilities and respect diversity. Julian also brings in his own Christian beliefs and values to understand what his mission is to contribute to society as a global citizen. 

Dr. Paul Sherman is recently retired Chair, Community Social Services program at the University of Guelph-Humber, Toronto, Canada. 

He is the founding and current director of the Soka Education Research Centre on Global Citizenship where he mentors undergraduate students in conducting research on topics related to the theory and practice of Soka education and global citizenship. 

Paul has developed and taught undergraduate courses on global citizenship in Canada and Japan, and has developed and led study abroad courses in Sweden, Japan, Italy, and Austria. For the past four years he and his research students have been engaged in a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) project with Japanese and Malaysian high schools. 

Paul received his PhD in Education and Social Justice from Lancaster University, UK. He has authored numerous peer reviewed publications on the highly aligned subjects of global citizenship education and Soka education. Enjoy our conversation about his efforts to build greater awareness of interconnection and global citizenship.