About the Young Carers
Association

A former young carer, Seigo began caring for his mother, who lives with an intractable disease, at the age of 15. After graduating from university he joined a major Japanese medical device manufacturer, but left after three years to care for his mother. Following roles at several startups, in 2019 he launched an online community and career support services for young carers, and in 2021 he founded the Young Carers Association. He has served as a committee member for the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare's 2021 national survey on young carers, as an external advisor on young carers for the Ministry's 2022 child abuse prevention awareness program, and as a committee member for the Children and Families Agency's 2023 study on effective support for young carers. He is a co-author of "Young Carer: Watashi no Katari" (Young Carers in Their Own Words).

A former young adult carer. When he was 20, his grandmother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's-type dementia, and he was involved in her care for about nine years. Having struggled deeply without understanding from those around him, he began supporting young carers on his own, hoping to help others who were going through the same. He later joined the Young Carers Association out of sympathy with Miyazaki's vision. He is a 7th-cohort member of METI's "SHIDO: Next Innovator" program.

A former young carer. After graduating from Hokkaido University in 2014, she worked in new business development and HR at an IT startup, and holds a national career consultant license and a Mental Health Management Certification (Grade II).
Because several of her family members developed mental illnesses during her school years, she joined the Association with the hope that carers can build careers that fit their own lives, interests, and strengths. She currently oversees the Association's peer support work on social media and career counseling, alongside a parallel career at Loandeal Inc., where she works in talent development and organizational development for large companies.

A former young carer whose mother developed a mental illness when Ayuna was eight years old. She experienced a period of school refusal in junior high school. After graduating from a part-time high school, she trained as a nurse and worked in psychiatric nursing, where she studied trauma care. She is a registered nurse and certified public psychologist, and serves as vice-representative of Kodomo Peer, a group for children of parents with mental illness, and is a contributor to the group's book on growing up with parents with mental illness.

A certified social worker and former young carer who cared for her mother, who has roots outside Japan, and her grandmother, who lived with dementia. After graduating from the Faculty of Law at Keio University, she worked as a reporter and editor for a newspaper and a medical media outlet and in marketing at a global IT company before joining the Young Carers Association. She now practices social work as a Young Carer Coordinator. Her interests include gender, feminism, and queer studies.

A former young adult carer who cared for his bedridden grandfather with dementia during university. Through that experience he came to appreciate the importance of emotional care for people who need care and their families, and went on to study clinical psychology at the University of Tsukuba's graduate school. He joined the Association's staff during his master's program and now also works as a Young Carer Coordinator. He is a certified family counselor^* and holds a master's degree in psychology. He also serves as a peer support staff member at Carer Works, a general incorporated association.
*Certified by the Japanese Association of Family Psychology / Family Counseling

After graduating from university, Nobumi worked as a reporter for a children's newspaper and as a magazine editor before moving to Australia upon marriage. There she worked as a freelance writer and translator, editing a local Japanese-community paper and translating children's books, while also teaching Japanese at a supplementary school in Melbourne. Volunteering during the COVID-19 lockdowns sparked her interest in youth support, and she completed a youth work course in Melbourne in 2023. Learning about the situation of youth workers and young carers in Japan during her job search, she returned to Japan on her own for the first time in over twenty years, determined to support young carers as a youth worker during this period of transition.

A former young carer. From the age of 13, Erika spent about ten years caring for her mother, who lived with right-side paralysis and aphasia. Throughout her school years she balanced her studies with the tension between her own aspirations and her family's care needs, and went on to work for a major Japanese bridal company. She did not even know the term "young carer" while she was one; only after her caring role ended did she realize it described her. She joined the Association hoping to help young carers live fuller, more authentic lives, and is also involved in employment support for people with disabilities.