Irene Hirano Inouye Distinguished Lecture Series
The Irene Hirano Inouye Distinguished Lecture Series is a signature series centered on the leadership values and principles that inspired Irene Hirano Inouye to empower community, uplift women, and build bridges between the US and Japan.
With the inaugural program planned for January 2025, the series will feature national leaders and voices who are shaping democracy to provoke thought and inspire change in the US. It is one of two signature Distinguished Lecture Series centered on the leadership values and principles inspired by Norman Y. Mineta and Irene Hirano Inouye.
“Irene’s remarkable legacy of leadership at JANM and beyond is inspiring. Her courage, determination, and vision laid the strong foundation on which all of us at JANM stand today. She made extraordinary contributions to the museum field and to democracy. JANM and the Democracy Center are proud to present the Distinguished Lecture Series in her honor. ”
—Ann Burroughs, JANM President and CEO
Upcoming Lecture
INAUGURAL IRENE HIRANO INOUYE LECTURE SERIES PROGRAM
Friday, January 31, 2025 | 4 p.m. Reception | 5:30 p.m. Lecture
The Democracy Center presents the inaugural Irene Hirano Inouye Distinguished Lecture with special guest speaker Lonnie G. Bunch III, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, in conversation with Lisa Sasaki, Deputy Undersecretary for Special Projects at the Smithsonian Institution.
About Irene Hirano Inouye
Irene Hirano Inouye was the inaugural executive director of the Japanese American National Museum, later becoming its president and CEO. Hired in 1988, she guided the institution for twenty years, overseeing the Museum’s renovation of a former Buddhist temple in Little Tokyo as its first headquarters in 1992 and the construction of the 85,000-square-foot Pavilion expansion in 1999. In 2005, JANM opened the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy, which included the newly-built 200-seat Tateuchi Democracy Forum. Under Hirano Inouye’s leadership, the Museum traveled exhibitions nationally and internationally, became an official affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, and was accredited by the American Association of Museums.
Hirano Inouye also headed T.H.E. (To Help Everyone) Clinic prior to coming to JANM, providing medical counseling and education services to the southwest Los Angeles community. She served as Chair and trustee for both the Ford Foundation and the Kresge Foundation, and served as a trustee and board member with the Washington Center, Smithsonian Institution’s Asian Pacific American Center, American Alliance of Museums, National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Smithsonian Institution, and the National Museum of American History.
Irene Hirano Inouye Distinguished Lecture Series Advisory Council
Jennifer Hirano, Co-Chair, Irene Hirano Inouye Distinguished Lecture Series; JANM Governor
Ann Burroughs, Co-Chair, Irene Hirano Inouye Distinguished Lecture Series; President and CEO, JANM
Devon Akmon, Director, Michigan State University Museum
Suzanne Basalla, Partner, Geodesic Capital
Lily Stevens Becker, President, Ted Stevens Foundation
James M. Ferris, Professor and Director, USC Center on Philanthropy and Public Policy
Atsuko Toko Fish, Chairperson, Japanese Women's Leadership Initiative; Founding Trustee, Fish Family Foundation
William T Fujioka, Chair, JANM Board of Trustees
Tom Iino, Founding Chair, U.S.-Japan Council; JANM Governor
Ken Inouye, Assistant to the Vice Chancellor for Administration, University of Hawaiʻi West Oʻahu; JANM Governor
Yuko Kaifu, President, JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles; JANM Governor
Debra Nakatomi, President & CEO, NakatomiPR
David Ono, Anchor and Reporter, KABC7; JANM Governor
Rip Rapson, President & CEO, The Kresge Foundation
The Honorable John Roos, Former U.S. Ambassador to Japan; Founding Partner, Geodesic Capital
Jennifer Sabas, Director, Daniel K. Inouye Institute; JANM Governor
Catherine Ann Stevens, Senior Counsel, Mayer Brown LLP
George Takei, Actor, Writer, Activist; JANM Trustee and Chair Emeritus
Keith Terasaki, MD, Chairman, Terasaki Family Foundation
Toshizo “Tom” Watanabe, President, The Toshizo Watanabe Foundation
W. Richard West, Jr., Founding Director and Director Emeritus, National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution
As of 12/18/24