kazuyoshi Kawasaki

Assistant to the Executive Director, JAXA

Mr. Kazuyoshi Kawasaki joined the National Space Development Agency of Japan, NASDA (Former JAXA) in April 1987, and already then, engaged in the International Space Station (ISS) Program since 1987. During his professional career at the ISS program, he was a visiting scientist at NASA JPL in 1998-1999.

At the newly formed Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) in October 2003, Mr. Kawasaki continued his engineering career at the ISS program until 2011. He then joined JAXA Space Exploration Center (JSPEC) to pursue lunar and planetary exploration missions in 2012-2014.

Based on his extensive engineering experience, he was then appointed as the deputy director of JAXA’s Space Exploration Innovation Hub Center from 2015 to 2019, and became the director of Management and Integration Department, Human Spaceflight Technology Directorate in 2020. Director of the Strategic Planning and Management Department in 2022 coordinating and oversighting the entire JAXA activities.

Since April 2024, Mr. Kawasaki resides as the Associate Director General in charge of JAXA Space Exploration Center (JSEC) as well as Space Exploration Innovation Hub Center.