Last year, I wrote a blog post about attending Japan-Maryland Night hosted by the Ambassador of Japan. As you may recall, the state of Maryland and Kanagawa Prefecture are sister-states. This relationship promotes the exchange of ideas including culture, economic opportunities, and education. Most recently, Japan-Maryland Night took place on January 30, 2025, and I was fortunate to have been invited to attend again to celebrate this relationship. This time, however, I was joined by Rama Modali (REPROCELL USA CEO) and Mike Seddon (Director of Operations) as REPROCELL was invited to participate and have a booth at the event (pictured: featured image), marking the company’s first time at Japan-Maryland Night.
The evening began with beautiful renditions of the Japanese and American national anthems and speeches by political dignitaries including Japanese Ambassador Shigeo Yamada and Maryland Governor Wes Moore (pictured). While Ambassador Yamada’s speech was light-hearted and positive, Governor Moore’s speech was much more solemn due to the tragedy that occurred at Reagan National Airport the night prior. He told the crowd that some of those who perished had ties to Maryland and he left the event early so he could tend to his gubernatorial responsibilities. Maryland Lt. Governor Aruna Miller also spoke and a toast was given by Maryland Secretary of State Susan Lee.
REPROCELL was one of nearly two dozen businesses and organizations that showcased what Maryland and Japan had to offer in terms of food, technology, and culture. Guests could take pictures with the mascots for the Baltimore Orioles and the Baltimore Ravens (pictured). Offerings of Maryland blue catfish, fried oysters, sushi, seafood yakisoba, sea bream rice, sake, whiskey, and craft beer satisfied the crowd. Northeast Maglev promoted its high-speed rail service while NanoQT promoted its fiber engineering technology for quantum computing and networking.
One of the more interesting booths was for the 2025 World Expo which takes place in Osaka from April to October. The expo’s official mascot, MYAKU-MYAKU (pictured), is truly a sight to behold. According to the expo’s official website, MYAKU-MYAKU is a creature born from the unification of cells and water. It likes sunshine, rainy days, and transforming into different things.
Throughout the evening, we were able to meet and talk with a variety of people. While it would have been nice to meet with Governor Moore, we were able to talk with Japanese Ambassador Yamada (pictured). As a company that has ties to both Maryland and Kanagawa, we were excited to tell the Ambassador what REPROCELL is all about.
And Maryland Deputy Secretary of State Michael Lorre, who visited REPROCELL USA last year, was eager to introduce us to the newly appointed Maryland Secretary of Commerce, Harry Coker Jr. (pictured).
Other notable figures we met with include a member from the Anne Arundel County House of Delegates, a Japanese Finance Minister, a representative from the Prince George’s County Economic Development Corporation, and representatives from Japan’s Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA). By forging relationships with those in the scientific community as well as politics, REPROCELL potentially will have access to resources that will allow us to maintain our success for years to come. Japan-Maryland Night has been nothing but positive and hopefully we will be invited to attend next year.
