Okinawa Memories Initiative (OMI)
A community history and dialogue project focusing on Okinawa and all the ways that its people, culture, and crises are central to understanding the world today.
What is OMI?
The Okinawa Memories Initiative (OMI) is a public history and transnational dialogue organization focusing on Okinawa, Japan and the ways its people, culture, and crises help us understand the world today. OMI launched in 2013 at UCSC as an experiential learning project for undergraduate students through the gift of a set of photographs taken by an American serviceman in Okinawa in 1953. Today, OMI is a collaboration between CSU Monterey Bay, CSU East Bay, and UCSC. Students are mentored by faculty, oral historians, collections professionals and artists, with opportunities to conduct field research using the photos in Okinawa and with diasporic organizations in the United States and abroad. Learn more about OMI
Dustin Wright
Dr. Dustin Wright leads CSUMB participation in the OMI and is Associate Professor of Japanese Culture and Language in the School of World Languages and Cultures.
Updates and Events
During summer 2025, CSUMB student-participants Azriel Winchester and Eric Fondriest prepared with Dr. Dustin Wright for their summer 2025 research project in Okinawa, Japan, as part of the Okinawa Memories Initiative (OMI) research project. The students engaged in undergraduate research projects contributing to OMI, an international community history and dialogue project focused on Okinawa and the ways its people, culture, and crises are central to understanding the world today. OMI is a collaboration between UC Santa Cruz, The Humanities Institute, CSU Monterey Bay, CSU East Bay, ERAU, and the University of the Ryukyus.
In spring 2024, OMI members met with former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta to learn his thoughts on the large U.S. military presence in Okinawa.