Past TEDx event

TEDxHamamatsu

Took placeSeptember 21, 2026
LocationHamamatsu, Sizuoka, Japan
FormatStandard
Welcome to TEDxHamamatsu. This year's theme is GLOW. When we look up at the night sky, our eyes are drawn to the brightest, most dazzling stars. But beside them are other stars, too — nameless, giving off only the faintest light, barely visible at all. Unremarkable, yet undeniably there, quietly shining. Perhaps the same is true of our own world. Dazzling achievements and dramatic success are not the only kinds of light. In the nameless days of ordinary life, a small light is shining too. It may be that no one has noticed it yet — perhaps not even you yourself. The people who take this stage at TEDxHamamatsu 2026 are not someone special, set apart from you. The ideas set free here are not stories from some distant world. The source of that light, surely, is within you as well. That small light, still only faintly glowing — to notice it yourself, and to nurture it, slowly, little by little. We hope TEDxHamamatsu 2026 can be a place where that quiet realization begins.

Speakers

Speakers may not be confirmed. Check the event website for the latest lineup.

  • Akiko Shiozaki

    Family Roots Navigator

    Born in 1981 in Kanagawa Prefecture and now based in Fukuroi, Shizuoka, she runs a genealogy and family-history research company in Hamamatsu. Since her university days, she has aspired to enter politics and worked on community revitalization. After graduation, she joined Recruit, where she worked in sales and helped launch a recruitment magazine. Following her marriage to an administrative scrivener, she founded her own company and has since dedicated herself to preserving family histories and passing the connections of life from one generation to the next into the future. In 2014, she received the Human Power Award. Her interests include work, sunflowers, gardening, reading, and manga. Her favorite foods are ginger and pickled plums, and her motto is, “Always keep the sun in your heart.

  • Hisanor Kobayashi

    Factory Pride Catalyst

    Born in 1977 and originally from Kakegawa, Shizuoka, Kobayashi Hisanori is the third-generation president of Coprec, a precision sheet metal fabrication company. He leads “Be Proud of the Factory,” a project that seeks to create a new standard in manufacturing by promoting workplace transformation through investment in people. His guiding belief is to “raise the pride of those who make things and, from Kakegawa, help elevate the status of manufacturing in a positive way.” He also serves as Representative Director of the Factory Pride Association (FPA).

  • Masaki Matsushita

    Enshu Textile & Local Industry Translator

    Born in 1980 and originally from Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Masaki Matsushita is the representative of HUIS, an apparel brand based in the Enshu region. While working for the local government in a role connected with regional industry, he encountered Enshu textiles and became concerned that their world-class value was not sufficiently recognized, even within the region itself. Through HUIS, he continues to share the richness of fabrics woven on traditional looms, the skills of local craftspeople, and the history and landscapes of the textile-producing region.His work offers an alternative to mass production and explores how this kind of manufacturing could shape the future of both regional industry and locally made apparel

  • Naoki Ishikawa

    Learning Innovator / Virtuoso Drummer

    Born in 1975 and originally from Tokyo, Naoki Ishikawa moved to the United States at the age of 13, where he won three world titles in marching snare drum. For many years, he performed, taught, and directed at the highest level as a main cast member of the Broadway production Blast! and other major stage productions in Japan. Drawing on his experience as a top-level performer who has continually pushed the limits of both body and mind, he now develops and shares his own approaches to learning and mental well-being, incorporating insights from neuroscience and psychology.

  • Takahiro Nishida

    Innovator for Sustainable Infrastructure

    Born in 1975 and originally from Hiroshima Prefecture,Takahiro Nishida holds a Ph.D. in Engineering and specializes in materials for civil infrastructure. His research focuses on helping essential infrastructure such as bridges, roads, and ports remain safe and usable for longer. He investigates the deterioration of concrete and the corrosion of steel, while developing repair and reinforcement technologies as well as new materials. In recent years, he has also participated in collaborative research on “Bio-Smart Concrete,” which uses microorganisms to create self-repairing concrete. Through his work, he shares the appeal and possibilities of civil engineering with the next generation.

  • Takumi Nagai

    Ocean Weaver

    "Born in 1971, Takumi Nagai lives in Zushi and serves as Co-Representative Director of SOKKA, a general incorporated association. His connection with the ocean began when he became involved in lifeguarding during university. Since then, he has never strayed far from the ocean. He has worked in black pearl farming in French Polynesia, for a weather forecasting company serving surfers, and at Patagonia Japan. Today, he runs an after-school ocean and mountain activity club for children, as well as a nursery school. Takumi is committed to creating opportunities for children to spend time in and around the water, helping them develop a healthy and meaningful connection with nature."

  • Toi Hirai

    Nonprofit Entrepreneur

    Born in 2001 and originally from Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Hirai Toi is the representative of CoCoTELI, a nonprofit organization supporting children and young people with parents who have mental health conditions. In his final year of kindergarten, his father developed depression. As a result, Hirai grew up with struggles he felt unable to share, including childhood abuse and the need to provide emotional care for a parent. At university, he connected through social media with others facing similar challenges, which led him to begin his work in this area. He was selected as one of Forbes JAPAN’s 30 UNDER 30 in 2024, recognizing 30 people under the age of 30 who are changing the world. For the 2025 academic year, he received the Kansai University President’s Award.

Organizing team