IJA General meeting – Ireland Japan Association

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IJA Annual General Meeting 2026 | Review

5th March 2026/in News/by ija

The 36th Annual General Meeting for the Ireland Japan Association took place on Tuesday, 3rd March 2026. The meeting was held as a hybrid event with members attending in person and remotely via Zoom platform.

Catherine Grennell-Whyte, Chairperson of the Ireland Japan Association (IJA), opened the meeting by remembering the former Ambassador of Japan to Ireland, H.E. Ambassador Junji Shimada. On behalf of the IJA Council and community, she extended her deepest sympathies and heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and former colleagues. Ambassador Shimada made a valued contribution to strengthening the relationship between Japan and Ireland and will be remembered with great respect and gratitude.

Chairperson’s Report

Catherine Grennell-Whyte introduced attendees to the Chairperson’s Report for 2025, noting that 2025 was another active and positive year for the association. The Council focused on strengthening member engagement, expanding cultural, educational, and professional programmes, and continuing to build meaningful connections between Ireland and Japan.

A major highlight of the year was the IJA receiving the prestigious Japanese Foreign Minister’s Commendation, recognising the Association’s longstanding contribution to strengthening bilateral relations.

On behalf of the Council, Catherine Grennell-Whyte warmly welcomed the new Ambassador of Japan to Ireland, His Excellency Manabu Miyagawa. She thanked the Ambassador and the Embassy team for their continued support and collaboration and expressed the association’s appreciation for the strong relationship with the Embassy of Japan in Dublin, which the IJA looks forward to continuing.

During 2025, the IJA organised and participated as co-organiser in variety of events, including language conversation groups, the Japanese Book Club, Japanese language courses, Calligraphy and Ikebana workshops, a Sake Tasting event, the Annual Dinner, the Ushioda Scholarship Award Ceremony, the DFGI Conference in collaboration with JETRO and TCD, the Annual Golf Outing, the Chairperson’s Lunch, the Ireland-Japan rugby reception hosted by Dillon Eustace, the Bounenkai celebration, and the book talk by Azumi Uchitani in January 2026. The Association also supported and promoted many events organised by partner organisations, members, and friends through its communication channels. The Council is currently working on a strong programme of events for 2026.

Catherine Grennell-Whyte thanked all IJA members for their engagement and encouragement, highlighting the support of the 2025 Patron members – Fitzwilliam Capital and Yamamori Group. Chairperson extended special thanks to the Council team, the IJA Secretary and both Vice Chairs she had the opportunity to work alongside – Tsugumi Yamamoto and Neil Cowhey. She noted that is has been a privilege to serve as Chair and to contribute to strengthening the relationship between Ireland and Japan.

Financial Statements 2025

A summary of the IJA Financial Statements for 2025 was presented to AGM participants. Membership subscription fees for 2026/2027 were reviewed and approved, and the newly elected IJA Council members were announced.

Council Elections 2026

Catherine Grennell-Whyte informed that for the 2026 elections, the IJA received a sufficient number of nominations to meet the constitutional requirements for Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson, and Ordinary Council members representing Corporate members, allowing these positions to be filled without requiring a vote. For the Ordinary Council seats representing Individual members, eight nominations were received with six places available. The elections were conducted via the online voting platform ElectionBody from 17th – 24th February 2026. The results were reviewed and certified by an independent assessor, IJA Accountant, Stephen Power.

The Chairperson extended sincere gratitude to all outgoing council members for their dedication, participation, and teamwork during their tenure.

From R-L: Neil Cowhey, IJA Chairperson and Raymond Hegarty, IJA Vice Chairperson

The newly elected IJA Chairperson, Neil Cowhey, addressed AGM attendees, expressing his sincere thanks to Catherine Grennell-Whyte for her leadership over the past three years and for advancing the association’s mission of strengthening Ireland-Japan relations through education, business, and culture. He also thanked the outgoing Council members for their dedication and contributions, welcomed Raymond Hegarty as the newly elected Vice Chair, and congratulated all incoming Council members, encouraging open collaboration and new ideas for the year ahead.

The newly elected IJA Council for 2026:

Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Ex-Officio

Neil Cowhey, Dillon Eustace (IJA Chairperson)
Raymond Hegarty, IJA Individual Member (IJA Vice Chairperson)
Catherine Grennell-Whyte (Ex Officio)

Corporate Members:

Atsushi Kadota, ElectroRoute
Graham Hodgkin, SMBC Bank EU AG
Graham Ryan, Yamamori
Jonathan Kelly, Ryugaku+
Peter Vambeck, Fitzwilliam Capital
Yuka Nagano, Clerkin Lynch

Individual Members:

Azumi Uchitani, IJA Individual Member
Cormac Hegarty, IJA Individual Member
Eddie Hughes, IJA Individual Member
Maria Mardiki, IJA Individual Member
Paula Kelly, IJA Individual Member
Rie Mishima, IJA Individual Member

Not on Council but invited to attend meetings:

Keiko Nakata, Embassy of Japan (Honorary Member)

Many thanks to IJA Corporate member, Dillon Eustace for hosting the AGM 2026.

IJA Annual General Meeting 2025 | Review

28th March 2025/in News/by ija

The 35th Annual General Meeting for the Ireland Japan Association took place on Tuesday, 25th March 2025. Meeting was held as a hybrid event with members attending in person and remotely via Zoom platform.

Catherine Grennell-Whyte, Chairperson of the Ireland Japan Association (IJA), opened the meeting by expressing her heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of former IJA Chair Michael Darcy on his passing. She highlighted Michael’s pivotal role in the Association, acknowledging his dedication, passion, and leadership in strengthening ties between Ireland and Japan. His invaluable contributions helped shape the IJA into what it is today, and his unwavering commitment to the community will be remembered with deep respect and gratitude. While his presence will be greatly missed, his legacy will continue to inspire.

Chairperson’s Report

Catherine Grennell-Whyte introduced attendees to the Chairperson’s Report for 2024, which outlined the Association’s key activities, achievements, and challenges over the past year.

Over the past 12 months, the Ireland Japan Association has continued to expand its community, hosting 23 events across cultural, business, and networking sectors. These included language courses, business forums, and cultural workshops, reflecting the growing interest in Irish-Japanese relations. Membership has also seen growth, with six new corporate members and seven new individual members joining in 2024.

The Chairperson expressed deep appreciation to the Council Members, volunteers, corporate partners, and sponsors for their dedication and support. Special thanks were extended to the Embassy of Japan in Ireland, former Ambassador Maruyama, and a warm welcome was given to Ambassador Shimada and his wife as he begins his tenure in Ireland.

The Chairperson concluded by thanking IJA members for their continued support and engagement, emphasizing the Association’s commitment to strengthening ties between Ireland and Japan in the years ahead.

Financial Statements 2024

Summary of the IJA Financial Statements for 2024 was presented with the AGM participants by Vice Chairperson Tsugumi Yamamoto, membership subscription fees were discussed and approved for 2025/2026 and the new IJA Council members were announced.

Council Elections 2025

Catherine Grennell-Whyte informed that for the 2025 elections, the IJA received a sufficient number of nominations to meet the constitutional requirements for Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson, allowing both positions to be filled without requiring a vote. For the Ordinary Council seats, 13 nominations were received – six corporate and seven individual members. The elections were conducted via the online voting platform ElectionBody from Tuesday, March 11, to Tuesday, March 18, 2024. The results were reviewed and certified by an independent assessor, IJA Auditor Stephen Power.

The Chairperson extended sincere gratitude to all outgoing council members for their dedication, participation, and teamwork during their tenure. As per the IJA Constitution, members must step down after three years of service. The following council members were thanked for their contributions: Tsugumi Yamamoto, Vice-Chairperson, Hiro Ino, Individual Member, Jonathan Kelly, Individual Member.

Catherine Grennell-Whyte, IJA Chairperson and Neil Cowhey, IJA Vice Chairperson

The newly elected IJA Council for 2025:

Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson

Catherine Grennell-Whyte, ATTS/Finnair (Chairperson)
Neil Cowhey, Dillon Eustace (Vice Chairperson)

Corporate Members:

Atsushi Kadota, ElectroRoute
Darina Slattery, Oomi Travel
David Tyrrell, NTT Data
Graham Ryan, Yamamori
Peter Vambeck, Fitzwilliam Capital
Yuka Nagano, Clerkin Lynch

Individual Members:

Azumi Uchitani, IJA Individual Member
Eddie Hughes, IJA Individual Member
Maria Mardiki, IJA Individual Member
Paula Kelly, IJA Individual Member
Raymond Hegarty, IJA Individual Member
Verity Swan, IJA Individual Member

Not on Council but invited to attend meetings:

Keiko Nakata, Embassy of Japan (Honorary Member)

IJA Annual General Meeting 2023 | Review

24th March 2023/in News/by ija

The 33rd Annual General Meeting for the Ireland Japan Association took place on Thursday, 23rd March 2023. Meeting was held as a hybrid event with members attending in person and remotely via Zoom platform.

Raymond Hegarty, IJA Chairperson, thanked the outgoing Council members for their work, participation and team effort throughout the past year, Embassy of Japan for their continued support to the IJA, and all IJA Corporate and Individual members who have supported association and its activities in 2022.

Raymond Hegarty warmly welcomed H. E. Mr. Norio Maruyama, the new Ambassador of Japan in Ireland, wishing him and his team a very successful time in Ireland during his service.

In his report, Raymond Hegarty noted that 10 business and culture events were organized online and in person throughout the past year, including IJA Japanese Conversation Group, Ikebana Demonstration Online, Japanese Language and Culture Course, AGM 2022, IJA Annual Dinner, Summer Ikebana Workshop, IJA Golf Outing 2022, Autumn Ikebana Workshop, Ichigo Ichie Dinner Event, and Bounenkai celebrations. Raymond Hegarty thanked all Council members who have dedicated their time and effort to organise these events.

In 2022 IJA supported and promoted a long list of various events organized by the IJA partner organisations, members and friends – UCD Japan, Experience Japan, Unique Japan Tours, the Ireland Japan Chamber of Commerce, Japanese Film Festival, East Asia Film Festival, Chester Beatty, EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation, Raku Theatre Group, Japan Hockey team games in Dublin, and many more.

The IJA supported Experience Japan festival and Japanese School of Ireland with donations in 2022.

Raymond Hegarty informed that IJA member’s network had 33 corporate members and 58 individual members in 2022. The IJA is delighted to welcome our new corporate members who joined the IJA in 2022 and early 2023: IJA Patron member – ElectroRoute, and corporate members – Openskies Aerial Technology Ltd. and K&L Gates Ireland.

An update on the Dr. and Mrs. Ushioda Scholarship was given during the meeting. Raymond Hegarty informed that in 2022 Ushioda Scholarship was presented to 2 students:

Francis Donnelly (2021 winner), studying for BA in Applied Languages, University of Limerick. Francis is currently studying Japanese studies at Nagoya University of Foreign Studies. Due to the pandemic, her departure was postponed in 2021;
Joseph Peter Talento (2022 winner), studying Business Studies International at DCU. Joseph has travelled to Japan for an exchange year at Toyo University.

Raymond Hegarty thanked Paula Kelly for her support and assistance with the scholarship management and administration process over the last year.

Summary of the IJA Financial Statements for 2022 was shared with the AGM participants, membership subscription fees were discussed and approved for 2023/2024 and the new IJA Council members were announced.

Raymond Hegarty thanked Eddie Hughes for his valuable advice, work and participation during his time on the Council. E. Hughes stepped down after 3 year servie on the Council. Raymond Hegarty, who is stepping down after serving 3 years as the IJA Chairperson, will continue his work on the Council as Ex-Officio.

This year the IJA received enough nominations to satisfy the constitutional requirements for Chairperson, Vice Chairperson and Ordinary Council members, and all places were filled without requiring a vote. Raymond Hegarty congratulated Catherine Grennell-Whyte and wished her success in the new role.

Three new Council members were welcomed to the IJA Council this year – Azumi Uchitani, ElectroRoute, Eva Reavley, IJA Individual member and Verity Swan, IJA Individual member who all will join the Council as Ordinary members. All new Council members made short introductions.

The newly elected IJA Council for 2022:

Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson

Catherine Grennell-Whyte, ATTS/Finnair (Chairperson)
Tsugumi Yamamoto, IJA Individual Member (Vice Chairperson)

Ex-Officio

Raymond Hegarty, IJA Individual Member

Corporate Members:

Azumi Uchitani, ElectroRoute
Brian Marconi, JTI
Darina Slattery, Unique Japan Tours
Laura Goonan, Dillon Eustace
Pamela Connell, Bank of Ireland Corporate Banking
Stephen Mullin, CPL Ireland
Yasuyuki Ozeki, JETRO

Individual Members:

Eva Reavley, IJA Individual Member
Hiro Ino, IJA Individual Member
Jonathan Kelly, IJA Individual Member
Paula Kelly, IJA Individual Member
Verity Swan, IJA Individual Member

Not on Council but invited to attend meetings:

Keiko Nakata, Embassy of Japan (Honorary Member)

IJA Annual General Meeting 2022 | Review

25th March 2022/in News/by ija

The 32nd Annual General Meeting for the Ireland Japan Association took place on Thursday, 24th March 2022. Meeting was held as a hybrid event with members attending in person and remotely via Zoom platform.

Raymond Hegarty paid his respects to the late Derek Ryan, founder of Yamamori Japanese restaurants in Dublin. Yamamori has been a Corporate Member of the IJA and supporter of the IJA events for years.

In his report, Raymond Hegarty noted that 12 business and culture events were organized online and in person throughout the past year, including IJA Japanese Conversation Group, AGM 2021, Online Book Launch: Black Dragonfly by Jean Pasley, Sake Tasting Night, Origami workshop, Mid-Summer Japanese Outdoor Event, Tokyo Olympics: The Countdown, IJA Golf Outing 2021, Placing Employee Wellness at the Heart of Your Organisational Culture, tickets for the IJA members to the Ireland vs Japan Rugby Match at Aviva Stadium, Business Opportunities in Changing World, and Bounenkai Sake Reception and Dinner.

In 2021 IJA supported and promoted a list of online events organized by the IJA partner organisations, members and friends – UCD Japan, Unique Japan Tours, the Ireland Japan Chamber of Commerce, Writers of Kyoto, Chester Beatty, Lafcadio Hearn Japanese Gardens in Tramore, and many more.

The IJA supported Japanese School of Ireland with a donations in 2021.

Raymond Hegarty informed that IJA member’s network had 35 corporate members and 58 individual members in 2021. Two new corporate members joined the IJA in 2021 – VIOTAS and Shikkui Ireland.

An update on the Dr. and Mrs. Ushioda Scholarship was given during the meeting. Raymond Hegarty informed that after pausing scholarship award in 2020 due to Covid pandemic, in 2021 the IJA was honoured to award it to Francis Donnelly, studying for BA in Applied Languages, University of Limerick. Francis is planning to go to Nagoya University of Foreign Studies to continue her Japanese studies abroad. Raymond Hegarty thanked Paula Kelly for her support and assistance with the scholarship management and administration process over the last year.

Summary of the IJA Financial Statements for 2021 was shared with the AGM participants, membership subscription fees were discussed and approved for 2022/2023 and the new IJA Council members were announced.

Raymond Hegarty informed that this year there are 2 Council members leaving the Council. He thanked Verity Swan and Hiroaki Ozaki for their valuable advice, work and participation during their time on the Council. Yasuyuki Ozeki, former IJA Vice Chairperson will continue his work on the Council as an Ordinary Council member.

This year the IJA received enough nominations to satisfy the constitutional requirements for Chairperson and Ordinary Council members, and all places were filled without requiring a vote. This year 2 nominations were received for the IJA Vice Chairperson seat and voting took place from Thursday, 10th March – Thursday, 17th March 2022. Election results were reviewed and confirmed by an independent assessor – Stephen Power, Power & Associates.

We are delighted to announce that the new IJA Vice Chairperson is Tsugumi Yamamoto, IJA Individual member. We would also like to thank other nominee Hiro Ino, IJA Individual member, who will continue his work on the Council as an Ordinary Council member.

Four new Council members were welcomed to the IJA Council this year – Tsugumi Yamamoto, IJA Individual member who will take the seat of the IJA Vice Chairperson, and Brian Marconi, JTI, Hiro Ino, IJA Individual member and Jonathan Kelly, IJA Individual member who all will join the Council as Ordinary members.

The newly elected IJA Council for 2022:

Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson

Raymond Hegarty, IJA Individual Member (Chairperson)
Tsugumi Yamamoto, IJA Individual Member (Vice Chairperson)

Corporate Members:

Brian Marconi, JTI
Catherine Grennell-Whyte, Finnair/ATTS
Darina Slattery, Unique Japan Tours
Laura Goonan, Dillon Eustace
Pamela Connell, Bank of Ireland Corporate Banking
Stephen Mullin, CPL Ireland
Yasuyuki Ozeki, JETRO

Individual Members:

Eddie Hughes, IJA Individual Member
Hiro Ino, IJA Individual Member
Jonathan Kelly, IJA Individual Member
Paula Kelly, IJA Individual Member

Not on Council but invited to attend meetings:

Sou Watanabe (Honorary Member)

IJA Annual General Meeting 2021 | Review

24th March 2021/in News/by ija

The 31st Annual General Meeting for the Ireland Japan Association took place on Wednesday, 24th March 2021. Following the official guidelines and taking into account the current situation in the country, the meeting took place online via Zoom platform.

The IJA General Meeting was called prior to the AGM 2021 to discuss and vote on the proposal to amend the Paragraph 10 (Election Procedure) of the IJA Constitution regarding the duration of both Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson holding of their positions. The proposed amendment was approved by majority and will be included in the IJA Constitution: ‘10.7. Both the Chairperson and the Vice-Chairperson shall be elected by the Annual General Meeting and shall hold office for a one year period and may be re-elected but may not hold the same office for more than three consecutive years.’

Raymond Hegarty, IJA Chairperson, thanked the outgoing Council members for their work, participation and team effort throughout the past year, Embassy of Japan for continued support to the IJA, AIB – the Patron member of the IJA in 2020, and all IJA Corporate and Individual members.

Raymond Hegarty paid his respects to the late Dr. Tom Hardiman (1929 -2020) who was the IJA Honorary Member and a passionate advocate of Ireland-Japan relations throughout his life.

In his report, Raymond Hegarty noted that despite the lockdown and numerous restrictions in 2020, the IJA adapted to the new situation and moved most of the events online. 10 business and culture events were organized throughout the past year, including Noh ‘Between the stones’ workshops and shows in Kilkenny and Wexford and the IJA Annual Dinner 2020 which was the last event the IJA managed to organise before the Covid pandemic hit the country, followed by a list of online events: AGM 2020, Hokkaido and the Coronavirus – coping with the second wave, IJA Photo Competition JAPANORAMIC, Kimono demonstration, Ikebana demonstration, Wellness talk ‘Happy Gut Happy Brain’, Managing Business Recovery Through Covid-19, New Business Opportunities with Japan and Ireland, and the IJA Japanese Conversation Group.

In 2020 IJA supported and promoted 12 online events in partnership with other organizations, IJA members and friends – UCD Japan, Unique Japan Tours and the Ireland Japan Chamber of Commerce.

The IJA supported three organizations with donations in 2020: Dublin School for Japanese Children (DSJC), Experience Japan festival in Dublin and 18th Japanese Speech Contest.

Raymond Hegarty informed that IJA member’s network has 34 corporate members and 47 individual members. Two new corporate members have joined the IJA in 2020 – Clover Aircraft Leasing and NTT Ireland Ltd. Raymond Hegarty thanked AIB for continued support to the IJA over the years as a Patron member.

An update on the Dr. and Mrs. Ushioda Scholarship was given during the meeting, noting that the very first recipient of the scholarship – Sophia Herar (DCU) – returned from her studies in Japan in 2020 where she studied at Kyoto University of Foreign Studies. Unfortunately, due to the global Covid-19 pandemic, Sophia’s stay in Japan was cut short but she has expressed her gratitude for the support to Mrs. Ushioda and the IJA. Raymond Hegarty thanked Donagh Morris for his support and assistance with the scholarship management and administration process over the last 2 years.

In 2020, due to the pandemic, the scholarship award was put on pause but the IJA is delighted to announce that in 2021 the scholarship will be awarded to a student from University of Limerick – based on their academic merits.

Summary of the IJA Financial Statements for 2020 was shared with the AGM participants, membership subscription fees were approved for 2021/2022 and the new IJA Council members were announced.

Raymond Hegarty informed that this year there are 8 current Council members leaving the Council. He thanked Colin Murray (Retro Vino), Donagh Morris (MUFG Fund Services), Eoghan Howe (Bank of Ireland), Graham Ryan (Yamamori), Hiro Ino (IJA Individual Member), Niall Moriarty (AIB), Shane Geraghty (Dillon Eustace) and Zach Schroeder (IJA Individual Member) for their work, participation and team effort during their time on the Council.

This year the IJA received a record number of nominations for the IJA Council elections – 17, and the elections for the very first time were held online from Thursday, 11th March – Thursday, 18th March.

Seven new Council members were welcomed to the IJA Council this year – Catherine Grennell-Whyte (Finnair/ATTS), Karl O’Reilly (KWE Ireland), Laura Goonan (Dillon Eustace), Pamela Connell (Bank of Ireland), Paula Kelly (IJA Individual Member), Rachel Curry (AIB) and Stephen Mullin (CPL Ireland).

The newly elected IJA Council for 2021:

Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson

Raymond Hegarty (Chairperson)
Yasuyuki Ozeki, JETRO (Vice-Chairperson)

Corporate Members:

Catherine Grennell-Whyte, Finnair/ATTS
Darina Slattery, Unique Japan Tours
Karl O’Reilly, KWE Ireland
Laura Goonan, Dillon Eustace
Pamela Connell, Bank of Ireland Corporate Banking
Rachel Curry, AIB Corporate Banking
Stephen Mullin, CPL Ireland
Tsugumi Yamamoto, Grant Thornton Ireland

Individual Members:

Eddie Hughes, IJA Individual Member
Hiroaki Ozaki, IJA Individual Member
Paula Kelly, IJA Individual Member
Verity Swan, IJA Individual Member

Not on Council but invited to attend meetings:

Sou Watanabe (Honorary Member)