Nanako Oba, Japan's first ever "birth coordinator," knows what it takes to educate the public about a topic too often avoided in Japanese society: sex.
The 51-year-old mother of five, who runs four businesses, takes a prevention-rather-than-cure approach and believes in pre-empting potential problems regarding sex with education. For Oba, there is no better way to empower girls in society.
Oba, who is also pursuing a master's degree in comprehensive human sciences at the University of Tsukuba, offers classes on sexual and reproductive health that target a wide range of age groups, while running a program to train birth advisers like herself.