Japan-Utah Space Business Seminar Held in Salt Lake City, Utah (August 25, 2026)

On Tuesday, August 25th, the Consulate-General of Japan in Denver and World Trade Center (WTC) Utah co-hosted a Japan-Utah space business seminar in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The seminar was held in conjunction with the 40th Small Satellite Conference, an annual international event on small satellites hosted in Salt Lake City. Approximately 65 participants attended the seminar including Consul-General Hiroyuki Okajima, Honorary Consul of Japan in Salt Lake City Jani Iwamoto, and representatives from Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) Los Angeles office on the Japan side, along with Japanese companies and organizations participating in the conference. The Utah side was represented by WTC Utah representatives and the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) and joined by companies and organizations in the space industry in Utah.

Moderated by Director of International Trade and Diplomacy Franz Kolb, the seminar began with opening remarks from Consul-General Okajima and WTC Utah CRO Rich Israelsen, followed by presentations on initiatives from both Japan and Utah. The presenters were as follows:

[For Utah]
Tara Rosander – Deputy Director of GOED
Gerritt Vander Linden – Vice President of Commercial Partnerships & Growth at 47G

[For Japan]
Yuichi Saida – Associate Senior Researcher of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Shinsaku Nakamura – Chief Senior Researcher of Japan Space Systems
Yasutaka Asai – Chief Executive Director of Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) Los Angeles

We will continue to dedicate our efforts toward further strengthening space cooperation and economic ties between Japan and Utah.