Cristina Merino Ishizuka

Deputy CEO & Melbourne Representative, AJBCC

Cristina Merino Ishizuka is the Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Melbourne Representative of the Australia-Japan Business Cooperation Committee (AJBCC), a non-profit organisation dedicated to fostering and expanding business opportunities between Australia and Japan. In this role, which commenced in February 2025, she leads the development and execution of strategic programs and events, cultivates member relationships, and builds strategic alliances to strengthen Australia-Japan relations.

Ms Merino brings extensive experience in program development, client and stakeholder management to her position. Prior to joining the AJBCC in March 2024, she worked at STH Japan where she led the commercial and customer experience teams responsible for the end-to-end delivery of official travel and hospitality programs for some of the biggest sporting events in the world, including Rugby World Cup 2019 and 2023, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix and the Australian Open.

Ms. Merino’s expertise in Australia-Japan relations was developed through her Japan-based roles at the Australian Olympic Committee Advisory Team (2019-2021); the Australia-Japan Youth Dialogue (2018-2019); the Australian and New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Japan (ANZCCJ) (2015-2017); Australia Business Asia (2015-2016); Meat & Livestock Australia (2012-2015), and the Australian Embassy Tokyo (2010-2012).

Ms. Merino is a Monbukagakusho Scholarship recipient, holds a Master of Intercultural Communication from Kyushu University and a degree in International Business from Queensland University of Technology. She is fluent in English, Japanese, and Spanish.