Masami ONODA
Director, International Relations and Research Department
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
Masami Onoda is currently Director of JAXA Washington D.C. Office, representing the Japanese space agency in the Americas, and liaising between government organizations, industry and academia. Throughout her tenure in D.C., she has supported the development of U.S.-Japan space cooperation from Japan’s participation in the Artemis Program in 2019 to the historic announcement of the signing of the Pressurized Rover Implementing Arrangement including lunar landing opportunities by Japanese astronauts, in April 2024. Dr. Onoda has held several international positions, including at the intergovernmental Group on Earth Observations (GEO) Secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland, and at the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs in Vienna, Austria. She also worked with Small and Medium size Enterprises in a small satellite technology transfer project while operating the JAXA office in Osaka, Japan. Dr. Onoda holds a Ph.D. in Global Environmental Studies (2009) and master’s degree in environmental management (2005), both from Kyoto University Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies, and a BA in international relations from the University of Tokyo.
