HIGHLIGHT

George Takei

Thank you George for paving the way for many Japanese Americans like myself.
You are forever my Ojichan !

Sheryl Sandberg, COO Facebook

Founder Lean In & Option B - Shoutouts

Earlier this week I got to meet Marisa Hamamoto and Piotr Iwanicki, two dance partners – and dance heroes. Marisa...
Posted by Sheryl Sandberg on Thursday, May 17, 2018

Ever heard of a wheelchair dance group? It exists – and the story behind it is incredible. Marisa Hamamoto was in dance class in 2006 when she had a stroke and became paralyzed from the neck down. Miraculously, she started walking and eventually dancing again. She knew she was lucky – and decided it was her destiny to start a wheelchair dance group. Marisa reached out to her first dance partner Adelfo through Facebook Messenger after looking for paraplegic athletes in LA. They started Infinite Flow - A Wheelchair Dance Company together – the first professional wheelchair ballroom dance company in the US. Marisa says she loves dancing because it’s a universal language that all people understand, no matter what they look like or what their abilities. I couldn’t agree more.
Posted by Sheryl Sandberg on Saturday, January 6, 2018

Facebook Accessibility Summit

Had the honor to speak and perform at the Facebook HQ Accessibility Design Summit in front of 150 Facebook Designers & Engineers Thurs May 16, 2019 for Global Accessibility Awareness Day, a day to get get everyone talking, thinking and learning about digital (web, software, mobile, etc.) access and inclusion. I’m still processing everything I heard and learned, but here are a few takeaways:

Accessibility is a human right.
Good design enables, bad design disables.
Improving on accessibility leads to innovation and helps humanity as a whole = Universal design.
Accessibility leads to creating spaces of belonging and it’s an ongoing conversation. Accessibility is multidimensional: visual, auditory, physical, cognitive, new to tech, generational...

As founder of Infinite Flow - An Inclusive Dance Company I had touched on accessibility in many areas, but there was so much more to learn and improve upon. My talk centered around not underestimating the impact accessibility can lead to. Facebook has shaped my career and birthed Infinite Flow. Thank you to wheelchair dancesport world champion and my partner in crime Piotr Iwanicki for contributing with me. Thank you Facebook for continuing to be a cheerleader of my work. I’m committed to taking action and contributing to the conversation of accessibility and inclusion.

Facebook Community Leadership Program

The Facebook Community Leadership Program is a new initiative implemented October 2018, giving leaders around the world the support, tools, funding and the belief in themselves that they need to best lead their communities. I was selected as 1 of 115 leaders from 46 countries, out of over 6000 applicants worldwide. See the list of the other amazing leaders selected for this program HERE.

Community Voices from Facebook

The Community Voices video series celebrates how people are bringing the world closer together through the Facebook platform. One video is shown each week at the employee wide meeting and some videos are posted online. Thank you Facebook for scouting us among millions of stories.

Infinite Flow: Wheelchair Dance
For Marisa Hamamoto, dance is everything. Previously paralyzed due to a rare neurological condition, she miraculously regained her ability to walk, but made it her mission to make dance accessible to all. And after a powerful Messenger conversation, Infinite Flow - A Wheelchair Dance Company was born.
Posted by Community Voices on Monday, October 23, 2017

Behind the scenes with the amazing storytellers of Only Today: Raymond Tsang, Zippy Etzel, Zac Arenas, and Joyce Tsang (not pictured) — Behind the scenes with the amazing storytellers of Only Today: Raymond Tsang, Zippy Etzel, Zac Arenas, and Joyce Tsang (not pictured)

Oculus VR for Good

Infinite Flow was chosen as 1 of 10 worldwide social good causes to partner in Oculus VR for Good initiative. Thank you to the Oculus team and filmmaker Jessica Kantor for telling our story with a completely new medium. Official international premiere announced shortly.