Amazing Toyama’s Culture & Cuisine

Creator of the civic pride slogan “Amazing Toyama”, Dr. Joseph Runzo-Inada is former Rockefeller Chief Resilience Officer for Toyama City and is currently Executive Adviser to Toyama Prefecture. An American, he lives in Toyama with his Japanese wife Keiko and their Boston Terrier. He is an avid cook and traveler and is active in international ecological sustainability.

Coming here for work and only planning to stay a year, I initially had no idea where Toyama even was on the map of Japan, but after just a short time living here it quickly began to feel like my new home. I began here as an ALT (Assistant Language Teacher) for a large junior high school, then having decided to live here long term, I started my own business and now have a small office not far from the city center.