asami chikae

Asami Chikae

Second Year Master of Public Policy Student

UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs

Asami is a second-year public policy graduate student at Luskin School, and is interested in Science/Technology, and sustainability issues from the perspective of the government.

Before Asami came to UCLA to study public policy for her Master degree, she was working for the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in Japan for eight years. From 2010 to 2014, she worked for the Science and Technology Divisions, launching and managing some programs to fund universities and research institutions, particularly in the area of basic research and nanotechnology/materials science. While she was in the International Education Division from 2014 to 2016, she worked to improve English education for Japanese children and Japanese education for foreign children in Japan. In 2016, she then temporarily transferred to the Cabinet Office to facilitate the Council for Science, Technology and Innovation (CSTI), which sets budget and policy guidelines for Science and Technology. The council is comprised by the Prime Minister, relevant Ministers, and experts.

Prior to that, she earned her associate degree in Electronics and Information Engineering from the National Institute of Technology, Ishikawa College, and then her Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrics and Materials Physics from Osaka University in Japan. Her research there was about improving the efficiency of solar cells using new methods.

Asami is excited to join this program and work with her cohorts to tackle real policy issues governments are facing. Especially, as she believes that science and technology play an important role to solve many issues, she is looking forward to examining how technologies could contribute to countries’ sustainability.