Mr. Isao Kano took the helm of the Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE/Japan) in April 2023, bringing 40 years of experience in international business and the extensive knowledge he has gained through postings in seven different countries.

Having joined Mitsubishi Corporation in 1984, Mr. Kano was posted in Vienna, Düsseldorf, Brisbane, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, and London, and has worked in mineral resources trading, investment, and development. He also has extensive experience in management globally and served in various corporate functions such as corporate planning. In 2016, he became senior vice president & COO of the Mineral Resources Trading Division, and Chairman & CEO of Mitsubishi Corporation RtM International Pte Ltd, Singapore. In 2018, he became regional CEO for Europe and managing director of Mitsubishi International (Europe) plc.

While serving at Mitsubishi Corporation’s overseas offices, Mr. Kano served as the president of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the UK, as well as vice chairman of the Nippon Club and as a director of the Japan House London Trust. He has participated in JCIE’s UK-Japan 21st Century Group since 2018, serving as a core member of the Japanese side. He has also been a member of JCIE/Japan’s Board of Directors since 2022.

He currently holds the following responsibilities:

• Executive Committee Member, The Trilateral Commission Asia Pacific Group
• Japanese Executive Director, UK-Japan 21st Century Group
• Japanese member of Foundation Council of Japanese-German Center Berlin
  (JDZB): Japanische Mitglieder des Stifungsrat des JDZB (Japanisch-Deutsches Zentrum Berlin)
• Japanese Director, Japanese-German Forum
• Member of Steering Committee, the Korea- Japan Forum
• Director, Executive Committee on Global Health and Human Security
• Director, Friends of the Global Fund, Japan (FGFJ)
• Chair, Roundtable on Japan’s Migration Policy
  
  

Mr. Kano is a graduate of Hitotsubashi University with a BA in Commerce and Business Administration, and also completed Harvard Business School’s LFO (Leadership in Financial Organizations) program in 2012.