Akina Nishi is from Los Angeles, California, and is currently completing a teacher preparation program at Cal State Long Beach. A graduate of UCLA, Akina majored in Japanese & Applied Linguistics with a minor in film studies. During her time at UCLA, she took part in several Japanese student organizations to improve her Japanese language skills and cultural knowledge. She’s also been involved with the LA Nikkei community as a volunteer for Japan Film Festival Los Angeles. In her free time, Akina enjoys cafes, museums, concerts, and movies. She’s a fan of J-pop, K-pop, and Carly Rae Jepsen. Her favorite thing to snack on in Little Tokyo is monaka matcha ice cream!

Akina began volunteering with Discover Nikkei in summer 2024. She’s helping us out behind the scenes with English-Japanese translations for our Instagram page and around the website! She has also participated in our annual Nikkei Chronicles series. We are so grateful to Akina for her help!