Meet the Secretariat

We are excited to present to you the Secretariats of JMMUN 2024! Together with the spirited chairs and the creative press team, they are striving to make this year’s JMMUN a memorable one for you all!

Risako Tomita

Secretary General

Risako (she/her) is a Junior/ Year 11 at Senzoku Gakuen.
She lived in Washington D.C. for four and a half years from the age of five to nine.
She often spends her time training as a lifesaver, a sport developed to improve the physical and mental agility of lifeguards.
Risako has been involved with MUN for five years beginning as a delegate, and then as a chair, and currently as our Secretary General.

A message from Risako:

My name is Risako Tomita, and I will be your Secretary General for JMMUN 2024.
Through my experience as a chair in previous JMMUNs, I have not only gained a deep understanding of the structure of the modern world but also memories of meeting and conversing with new people.
I hope JMMUN 2024 will be a fresh, memorable experience where you can academically challenge yourself and step out of your comfort zone.

Karen Takeuchi

Deputy Secretary General

Karen (she/her) is a Junior/ Year 11 at Senzoku Gakuen.
She lived in London for four years from the age of five to nine.
She enjoys reading books, as long as they’re fictional.
Karen has been involved with MUN for five years (participating in the recent Oxford MUN 2023) beginning as a delegate, and then as a chair, and currently as our Deputy Secretary General.

A message from Karen:

Hi, my name is Karen Takeuchi and I will be your Deputy Secretary General for JMMUN 2024. I will work my best for a successful conference, and I look forward to seeing you all in March!

Sky Kanthatham

Head of Press

Sky (she/her) is a Junior/ Year 11 at Senzoku Gakuen.
She was born in New York and lived in Hong Kong for ten years throughout the ages one to eleven.
She spends her time going to dance lessons and enjoys doing anything active.
Sky has been involved with MUN for five years (participating in Harvard MUN 2023 and Oxford MUN 2023) beginning as a delegate, and then as a press member, and currently as our Head of Press.

A message from Sky:

Hi! My name is Sky Kanthatham and I will be serving as the Head of Press at JMMUN 2024. I hope to be able to support delegates and make JMMUN 2024 an unforgettable experience!!! I look forward to seeing both familiar faces and new faces at this year’s conference!

Natsuki Fukami

Deputy Head of Press

Natsuki (she/her) is a Junior/ Year 11 at Senzoku Gakuen.
She lived in Hannover, Germany for five years throughout the ages seven to twelve.
She enjoys playing tennis and singing, especially songs from Legally Blonde, a musical her club is currently working on.
Natsuki has been involved with MUN for five years beginning as a delegate, and then as a press member, and currently as our Deputy Head of Press.

A message from Natsuki:

Hi! My name is Natsuki Fukami, and I will be serving as the Deputy Head of Press at JMMUN 2024. To those of you who participated in previous JMMUN conferences, I hope many of you join us again for JMMUN 2024, and I look forward to meeting new people as well!

Grant Wales

Faculty Advisor

I am honored to be a part of JMMUN 2023. I have been advising the MUN club at Senzoku Gakuen for 9 years and have been with JMMUN since its inception. It has been wonderful to see the conference grow year by year and to see the innovations and evolutions that take place with each iteration, just as it is wonderful to see MUN spreading more and more through Japan. I think this year’s theme is especially important. The theme of Renaissance that the Secretariat came up with this year is a fascinating look at how our pasts inform our futures, and how we should look to replicate successes while making amends and correcting for mistakes. Throughout the Renaissance, while humanism flourished, spread the belief that we hold within our own power the ability to elevate ourselves and solve the problems that plague the human condition. I believe this conference speaks to that, as it continues, despite adversity, to achieve new heights. We thank you for being a part of that. On a personal level, I love reading and writing literature, cooking, and cats – so if you see me at the conference, please share book recommendations, recipes, and cat memes.

Chad Fasca

Faculty Advisor

This year’s conference marks my third official experience with the model United Nations program at Senzoku. I’ve been impressed with the level of diligence and sophistication displayed by the students in the planning and implementation of the JMMUN conference. Each year, students delve into complex issues that weigh heavily on the lives and futures of millions of people, amassing a wealth of evidence and understanding in the process. I find it inspiring to see students at the junior high and high school level engaged in this level of discourse and in mobilizing their peers to make lasting change in the world. The model United Nations program fulfills a vital role in the shaping of the lives of young people as global citizens, providing an impetus to peer beyond national boundaries and cultural barriers. While students in classrooms can easily perform research on the climates, customs, and conundrums of communities worldwide, MUN participation demands that students take this intellectual endeavor a step further by encouraging them to dwell within the data of another land and see the world through a new set of eyes. The value of this act is profound on two levels. Foremost, students must address and, perhaps, overcome their own preconceived notions about other cultures. More intimately, students develop their capacity for empathy by recognizing their limits of their own perspective and the challenges faced in other locales. Given all that MUN represents, I am excited to be a part of this year’s conference and the JMMUN Press team. I look forward to a fascinating and illuminating conference in 2023.

Alex Short

Faculty Advisor

It is my pleasure to be part of the JMMUN this year. This is my first experience of the Model United Nations and I have really enjoyed getting to know how the conference works and the extensive planning that is required to organise it. I have been profoundly impressed by the dedication and hard work of those involved; in particular I admire the efforts of the more experienced members to nurture and encourage the involvement of the newest recruits. The JMMUN is an  invaluable opportunity to learn more about the world around you and to think about how to solve the myriad of problems that face the global community. On a more personal note, I enjoy being active and participating in as many outdoor activities as possible, especially snowboarding.