Yoshi Anpuku, a Mathematics graduate of Kyoto University and a native of Osaka, currently serves as the CEO at Nikoli, Japan’s pioneering puzzle magazine publisher established in 1980. He has authored over 100 Sudoku books catering to all skill levels and is renowned for inventing Shikaku, the world’s first pencil puzzle based on area concepts. Notably, Yoshi played a key role in creating the largest Guinness record crossword with 66,666 clues.
Yoshi travels globally to impart puzzle knowledge, conducting workshops such as “Japanese Puzzle Party” and “The Story of Shikaku” at prestigious venues like the National Museum of Mathematics in NYC. His expertise has been recognized at events like MOVES 2022, where he delivered a speech titled “Playing with Puzzles: a presentation to honor the memory of Maki Kaji.” He has taught popular puzzle classes to students ranging from kindergarten to high school in the U.S. and has showcased Sudoku creation at the Sudoku Championship in Malaysia.
Nikoli’s puzzles, including the world-famous Sudoku, are handcrafted and licensed worldwide. In the U.S., companies like Workman and Sterling have published many enduring Nikoli puzzle books.
- Atlas Obscura Article: Inside Japan’s Cult-Favorite Puzzle Laboratory
- The National Museum of Mathematics: MOVES 2022
Toshiko M. Calder earned her Master’s Degree in education policy / international education from the Graduate School of Education and Human Development at George Washington University, and her Master’s Degree in Japanese pedagogy, East Asian Languages and Cultures from Columbia University.
From 1968 to 1976, she worked in literature and magazine departments at Shinchosha Co., Ltd, where she was responsible for authors such as Yukio Mishima and Shotaro Ikenami. In 1978, she moved to the United States and worked as a Researcher at Harvard Business School. Since 1980, Calder has been been engaged in Japanese language education, including founding and teaching Japanese courses at Cambridge Center for Adult Education (MA), Mercer County Community College (NJ), and teaching as a lecturer at Princeton University.
Calder works extensively in supporting heritage Japanese language education, and is currently a board member of the Princeton Japanese Language School, as well as an advisor at the Japan Foundation in Los Angeles Center.
Publications:
- "Heritage Language Education for the New Generation in American Supplementary Schools" in "International Mobility and Education" edited by Hiromi Ebara, published by Akashi Shoten in 2011.
- "Heritage Japanese Language Acquisition for the New Generation of Overseas Japanese" in "Towards an Open Society for Immigrants" edited by Takashi Miyajima and others, published by Fujiwara Shoten in 2019.
Based in Washington DC, Maki is responsible for managing Aflac Life Insurance Japan’s engagement and analysis with respect to international politics and economic policy and global regulatory issues. She also manages Aflac International’s activities in Washington relating to international economic policy, global regulatory policy and Japan-related policy matters.
Prior to joining Aflac in 2010, Maki was Director of Japan Research for Dewey & Leboeuf LLP’s International Trade Group based in Washington, DC. During her tenure at the law firm, she published articles whose topics included Japanese insurance regulations, U.S.-Japan relations, U.S. trade, industrial and competition policy in journals, such as the Wall Street Journal and the Japanese weekly Ekonomisuto. Before she moved to Washington in 1996, she was a staff writer in Tokyo for Japan’s largest business daily Nikkei. Maki has master’s degrees in international affairs from the George Washington University and from the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies.
Currently, Maki serves as a member and co-vice chair on the board of the Japan-America Society of Washington, DC. She also serves on the Board of the Japan Commerce Association of Washington D.C. as well as the Board of the Coalition of Service Industries (a US-based service industry association).
Mr. Fumito Miyake, Minister of Public Affairs at the Embassy of Japan in the United States of America, assumed his present position in September 2023. He transferred from Tokyo headquarters where he served as the Deputy Assistant Minister and Director of the Management and Coordination Division of the Foreign Minister’s Secretariat.
Minister Miyake joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1994 after graduating from Tokyo University’s Faculty of Law, and has served abroad in both the Embassy of Japan in Australia (2004) and the Permanent Mission of Japan to the International Organizations in Vienna (2014). During his time in the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo, he served in a multitude of roles, including Principal Deputy Director of the Second North America Division and Principal Deputy Director of the United Nations Planning and Administrative Division. He was also Director of the Non-Proliferation, Science, and Nuclear Energy Division during the historic first meeting in 2018 of US and North Korean leaders.
Mrs. Yoshiko Tsuda is an instructor for the Nishiura Style of Koh-Do (Incense Ceremony). She was first introduced to the Nishiura Style in 2014, and has also been a student in the art of floral arrangement and calligraphy.
Mrs. Tsuda is also a certified instructor of Jikyojutsu, a traditional Japanese health exercise method, holding weekly in-person classes in McLean, VA, as well as online classes.
Previously in her prior professional career, she was an Associate Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Hoshi University in Tokyo and holds a Doctorate in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Tokyo.