Nao Kabashima

Nao Kabashima is the co-founder and Executive Director of Karen Organization of San Diego (KOSD). She is originally from Japan and first came to the U.S. as a graduate student. After she earned her Master’s degree in Political Science at California State University, Chico, in 2008, she began volunteering for the Refugee Resettlement Program at Jewish Family Service of San Diego and started to meet with many Karen and Karenni refugee families.

In 2009, she co-founded KOSD with Karen community leaders to meet the urgent needs of refugees from Burma in San Diego. She served as the Secretary and Chair of the San Diego Refugee Forum in 2012-2013 and currently sits at the San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria’s AAPI Advisory Board. She is one of the awardees for the City of San Diego’s Women of Distinction in 2024.

Nao Kabashima is on a panel of speakers from the San Diego Refugee Communities Coalition (SDRCC). She and the team will highlight the evolution, impact, and replicable community‑led model of the SDRCC. Presenters will share how SDRCC’s collaborative structure supports refugee communities through coordinated services, trusted messengers, data ownership, and an innovative funding model that strengthens both community partners and funders. The session will emphasize real‑world examples, statewide partnerships, frontline experiences, and sustainable program design, while also outlining practical solutions to common challenges such as funding sustainability, system fragmentation, and inequitable access. Solutions highlighted will include strategies for building long‑term community capacity that improve both service delivery and organizational resilience.