Research Interest：
- Education development, post-disaster education, post-disaster housing relocation and resettlement, Southeast Asia, the Philippines
Education：
- Master of Economics, Graduate School of International Cooperation Studies, Kobe University (Expected: March, 2026)
- Faculty of Economics and Business Management, National University of Laos, Short-term exchange study program, Lao PDR (August, 2024)
- Bachelor of Global and Regional Studies, Doshisha University (March, 2024)
- Exchange Student, University of Bergen (August, 2022-June, 2023)
Experiences：
- Internship at Eastern Visayas State University, the Philippines (August–September 2025)
- Sub-Interpreter, Cabinet Office Youth International Exchange Program “Ship for World Youth” 2024 Port of Call Activities (February, 2025)
- Internship (accepted at a development consulting company) (Assigned to Padeco Ltd/Egypt), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japan (November, 2024-December, 2024)
- Guest speaker, Global Career Talk, Faculty of Global and Regional Studies, Doshisha University
- Internship at Ministry of Education and Sports, Lao PDR (August, 2024-September, 2024)
- Volunteer, Understanding Risk Global Forum 2024, World Bank (June, 2024)
- Japanese Participant Youth, Ship for World Youth(2023), International Youth Exchange Program, Japanese Cabinet Office (August, 2023-February, 2024)
- Food Ribbon Project, Public relations (March, 2023)
- UN Students’ Association Bergen Event Planner (August, 2022-June, 2023)
- Save the Children Norway(Redd Barna) Volunteer (January, 2022-June, 2023)
- International NGO ViVID staff and project manager (single mother support in Republic of Ghana) (November, 2021-June, 2022)
- General Affairs Manager, The 22nd Kansai Model United Nations Conference (October, 2021-August, 2022)
Publications：
Peer-Reviewed Journal
- Sakurai, A., Koike, T., Yokogawa, N., Watanabe, M., Okamoto, K., & Meidinger, B. (2025). A Structural Analysis of Disaster Memory Inheritance through the Lens of the Kobe Model: A Case Study of Super Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. Bōsai Kyōikugaku Kenkyū [Journal of Disaster Education Studies], 6(1). [In Japanese]
Academic Associations：
- Japan Society for International Development (JASID)
- Japan Comparative Education Society (JCES)
- Japan Society for Humanitarian Action Studies (JASHAS)
- Japanese Society for Disaster Education
Academic Conference Presentation：
- Okamoto, K. “Education and Settlement Awareness among Youth Experiencing Post-Disaster Relocation: A Case Study of Tacloban City, the Philippines.” Poster presented at the 36th Annual Conference of the Japan Society for International Development (JASID), Hiroshima University, November 2025.
- Okamoto, K. “The Role of School-Based Social Capital in Post-Disaster Resettlement: A Case Study of Tacloban, Philippines” Paper presented at the 21st International Education Development Forum, Tohoku University, October 18th, 2025. (E)
- Yokogawa, N., Sakurai, A., Meidinger, B., Koike, T., Watanabe, M., & Okamoto, K. “A Study on the Transmission of Disaster Experiences of Typhoon Haiyan in Tacloban City, Philippines” Paper presented at Japanese Society for Disaster Education 6th Conference, Momoyama Gakuin University, June 14, 2025. (J)
- Koike, T., Watanabe, M., Okamoto, K., Meidinger, B., Yokogawa, N., Sakurai, A., & Aure, F, A. “Comparative Study of Disaster Memory Transmission between Japan and the Philippines: Cases of Kobe City and Tacloban City” Paper Presented at UNESCO Chair Conference 2025 Gender, Disaster, and Well-Being, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, May 27, 2025. (E)
- Okamoto, K. “Girls’ Education and Early Marriage Among Syrian Refugees in Jordan: Quantitative Analysis of Household and Social Factors” Proceeding of the 21st International Education Development Forum, p. 44, 2024, (E)
Language/ Skills：
- English, Arabic (Beginner), Japanese(Native)
- Microsoft Office（Word, Excel, Powerpoint)
Message to Potential Candidates to Ogawa Seminar：
My name is Kyoko Okamoto, and I entered GSICS in April 2024. A few encounters in my life had a deep impact on me which led me to decide to pursue a career in international cooperation. Two specific encounters stand out as the most impactful. The first is the video interviews about ‘child labour’ in Ghana, which I watched during my childhood and it deeply resonated with me. While the second being, learning about a Japanese woman running an orphanage in Cambodia on TV when I was in junior high school. Consequently, these encounters inspired me to join the Ogawa Seminar. Joining the Ogawa Seminar was of great pleasure and honor to me. Here, I can seize the opportunity to achieve a career in the field of educational development.
I am currently keenly interested in girls’ education and education for refugees, particularly in the Middle East. This interest was sparked by my experience of representing the delegation of Afghanistan at the All Japan Model UN Conference and meeting friends with refugee backgrounds when I was an exchange student in Norway. As an undergraduate, I studied issues in the international community with a focus on Europe. For my graduation thesis, I combined my interests with Europe and wrote about Islamophobia in Norway.
Although I have only been here for a short time, I feel that the Ogawa Seminar offers plenty of opportunities for students who want to contribute to the world in the field of educational development to achieve their goals. I have learned a lot from the experienced and active senior students as well. If you want to make an effort to achieve your goals in the field of educational development, the Ogawa Seminar is waiting for you!
