Team Members from Asia and the Middle East
Elyor Sobirov – Central Asian Contact
Elyor was born in Djizak city, Uzbekistan. He graduated from Djizak Polytechnic Institute, where he studied economics. Since then, most of his working activities have been with the Institute for Studying Civil Society as well as with youth organizations in and outside of Uzbekistan. He also contributed to the International Organization for Migration as a local consultant in international matters. He has visited several countries including Japan and feels one of his greatest experiences was was being a participant in the World Campus Japan 2007 program. His plans for the future include continuing to find ways to establish friendly as well as business relations between his native Uzbekistan and other countries. Please contact him at centralasia@worldcampus.org
Chiao Yang – East Asian Contact – Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan regions
Chiao comes from Taipei, Taiwan. From 2003 to 2006 she studied law in Beijing for her Bachelor Degree. She is now working and studying for her second degree in Zurich, Switzerland. She has a variety of work experience in different cultural settings, especially in the areas of public relations and communication. Being well traveled in Japan, she has a very good background knowledge of Japan and Japanese culture, and is very excited to provide you more detailed information about the World Campus – Japan program! She can be reached at chhkmctw@worldcampus.org
Mary Ma – East Asian Contact – China
Mary was born in Beijing, China . With a strong passion for other cultures she decided to take a break from school and travel around the world while she was a university student. The experiences in America, Europe and Thailand inspired her to be open-minded and be a global-citizen. In order to get a clearer picture about the world she decided to join World Campus Japan 2007 summer program, which provided her the unique opportunity to learn Japanese culture as well as develop her understanding of many global issues. The six week experience in Japan absolutely changed her life. She is so excited to share her stories with you! Please reach her at china@worldcampus.org
Dennis Zhang – East Asian Contact – China
Born in Beijing China, the Olympic city of 2008, Dennis majored as a student in the Hospitality Industry. After 3 years study he began to work in different international hotels in Beijing. And because of his interest and knowledge about wine, he moved to ASC Fine Wines in 2005 and worked as an Event Coordinator for 2 years. His hobby is the study of languages. This is one of the reasons he took most of his spare time to learn Japanese language and culture. A great opportunity came in 2007 when he joined the World Campus - Japan program. He found that he learned a lot of things from both local people and from each member of the international class. As an experienced person who joined this program, if you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact him at china@worldcampus.org
Chie Aikawa – Japanese Contact
Originally from Tokyo, Japan, Chie spent 6 months in Denmark as an exchange student before joining a worldwide cultural immersion program in 1996. Her passion for international exchange led her to study in Europe, where she earned her B.A. in Communication Studies at an international college in Brussels, Belgium. After living and working in Germany for 3 years, Chie is now back in Tokyo after 10 years of absence and is excited to introduce her home country to everyone around the globe. Please in touch with her to know more about World Campus International, Inc. at japan@worldcampus.org
Miyuki Yamada – Japanese Contact
Miyuki is originally from Nagoya, in central Japan but recently moved near Tokyo. She majored in English literature and education at university. After graduation in 2000, she joined an international education organization and traveled the USA and Europe for 6 months. Thanks to university and this experience, she made friends all over the world and had wonderful experiences. Miyuki has worked in different international fields, such as being an English teacher, translation coordinator, and now a technical support for oversea customers. In the past 3 years, she has supported international organizations in her spare time. She enjoys meeting people full of international spirit and wants to share Japan and Japanese culture with them! Please contact her at japan@worldcampus.org
Reuben Ng – South East Asian Contact
A home-stay program in Miyazaki, Japan, at the age of 15, sparked Reuben's love for cultural immersion. Thereafter, he has visited 14 countries and has given talks in America, Germany, Greece, Japan, Singapore and South Korea. Reuben's other passion lies in research focused on understanding human attraction, and helping individuals develop cultural intelligence. He is the youngest recipient of the Seisoh Sukemune/Bruce Bain Early Research Career Award (2005-2006), and was recently named one of Singapore's "25 Under 25 to Watch" by The Straits Times. Currently pursuing his masters in Psychology, Reuben looks forward to sharing his passion for Japan with you. Reach him at southeastasia@worldcampus.org
Tiara Shafiq – South East Asian Contact
Born to a Bangladeshi family in Johor, Malaysia, Tiara has spent her whole life immersed in multicultural environments including some time in Japan. She grew up in diverse environments, traveled her whole life, and has plenty of experience with youth issues, media and communications, creativity, community service, and global education programs. Currently she is studying Creative Industries in Brisbane, Australia, as well and is active in volunteer and activist work and would love to tell you more about the World Campus – Japan program by reaching her at southeastasia@worldcampus.org
Ivan Ditya Saputra – South East Asian Contact – Indonesia
Born in Bandung, Indonesia, Ivan graduated from the School of Business and Management Bandung Institute of Technology, majoring in Marketing. Right now, he is a banker in one of Indonesias local banks. For him, WCI gives an opportunity to connect with people from all over the world. While in Japan, he learned more about the world, Japanese culture, friendships and courtesy, and most importantly, he got to know more about himself. Ivan really wants to share his great experience as a WCI member, so that everyone can also feel what he felt and learn there what has influenced his thinking and attitude today. To know more, please be in contact with Ivan at indonesia@worldcampus.org
Gizem Gurson – Turkish Contact
Gizem is originally from Istanbul, Turkey. After finishing high school, she went to study at the International University of Bremen, Germany with students from 80 different countries. Her studies focused on cultural differences and how to understand them in arts and literature. Her passion for international cultures also brought her to join a global leadership program where she was exposed to Japanese culture for the first time. Being originally from a city that is in the middle of Asia and Europe, her observations inspired her to write her BA thesis about the differences and similarities of childrens literature in Japan, Turkey and England. She would be happy to share her exciting experiences in different cultures if you reach her at turkey@worldcampus.org
David Burton – Middle Eastern Contact
Born in Brisbane Australia, David has spent his career dedicated to youth development and adult education around the world. He has a home in Denver, Colorado but is currently living in Doha, Qatar in the Middle East where he worked as the Head of Programme for the Asian Games 2006 Youth Camp. David has traveled throughout Japan since 1988 and is committed to giving you this vital connection to your future. Contact him at middleeast@worldcampus.org
Lisa Bseiso – Middle Eastern Contact
Lisa is a child of the world, born to a Colombian mother and a Palestinian father, she holds an American passport, but spent all of her youth in Qatar. She has had the opportunity to travel all over the world and familiarize herself with all her languages (English, Spanish and Arabic) and cultures as well as with the World Campus Japan 2007 program. Lisa studied international relations with a minor in communications in Florida. Soon after graduating, she joined the world of humanitarian relief NGOs and started working with the Florida Refugees Center. After a year in Florida, Lisa returned to Qatar to start working with Reach Out To Asia in 2006. Lisa loves her job and only asks one thing from the volunteers and that is that they have a big heart and be willing to give. Please contact her at middleeast@worldcampus.org