Recipients of the Tenth Nakasone Yasuhiro Award
Mr. John SWENSON-WRIGHT, PhD

United Kingdom

Award of Excellence
Born: Jan. 15, 1965
Occupation: Senior Lecturer, Japanese Politics and International Relations, Cambridge University;
Fellow, Darwin College, Cambridge University
Dr. Swenson-Wright is a leading expert in Japan’s foreign policy and has produced exemplary research
results in the field. As an Associate Fellow at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, he has actively
participated in academic exchange between the UK and Japan, the UK and Korea, and international
stpolitics in East Asia and has issued policy proposals. He participates in the UK-Japan 21 Century
Group and the UK-Japan Global Seminar. As a scholar on Japan, Dr. Swenson-Wright has built an
extensive network and contributed greatly to development of UK-Japan exchange. He often appears inmedia where he provides accurate and insightful comments about East Asia and Japan’s foreign policy.
These activities were judged by the Committees to be deserving of the Award of Excellence.

Ms. Yoko IIZUKA, PhD

Japan

Incentive Award
Born: May 30, 1969
Occupation: Research Associate, Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases, The University of Tokyo HospitalBesides the clinical practice, education, and research in diabetes, as an effort toward
internationalization, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan has adopted a project withthe theme “Research of the Development of Japanese-style Diabetes Medical Care in China.” Dr.
Iizuka participated as a member of medical teams from Japan sent to Shanghai in 2011 and toHangzhou in 2012 with the mission to provide high-quality Japanese diabetes treatment. In China,
where diabetes is rapidly increasing, Japan’s diabetes medical care has had great effect. TheCommittees highly evaluated her contribution to the Japan-China medical exchange activities.

Mr. Toshihiro NAKAYAMA, PhD

Japan

Incentive Award
Born: Feb. 14, 1967
Occupation: Professor, Faculty of Policy Management, Keio University
As an expert in US political diplomacy, Dr. Nakayama is active in many fields related to US foreign
policy and Japan-US relations. Having been the Tokyo correspondent for the Washington Post, he has
a strong reputation for accurate explanations and in-context transmission of information in English
media. At a time when Japan-US relations and mutual understanding face obstacles, Dr. Nakayama
actively conveys Japan’s perspective to the international community via the media. The Committees
deemed these efforts beneficial to securing peace and security.

Ms. Akiko FUKUDA
Incentive AwardJapan

Born: Sep. 28, 1977
Occupation: Executive Director, World Federation of the Deafblind;International Member, Japan Deafblind Association
As a member of the international cooperation committee of the Japan Deafblind Association, Ms.
Fukuda both receives trainees from overseas and participates in international conferences. In
November 2013 she was selected to be Executive Director of the World Federation of the Deafblind
and as an expert visited Uzbekistan with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) project tosupport deafblind individuals by providing knowledge and expertise. In Japan, Ms. Fukuda serves as
an instructor for JICA and other organizations working to build a community for people with various
disabilities. Her achievements in both the domestic and international spheres were highly evaluated by
the Committees.