Dr. Sara Kitaoji (she/her) lives and works on the unceded lands of the Cammeraygal people of the Eora nation. Born and raised on the lands of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, she later moved to her parents’ homeland, Japan, for her MA and PhD research in comparative culture and literary translation. She taught English and Japanese in Australia and Japan for several years and has spent most of her life studying different languages–Mandarin, German, Russian, Italian, and French. After completing her PhD, Sara became a professional Japanese–English translator and academic editor. She specialises in working with writers from diverse backgrounds, focusing on helping individuals to articulate their own unique voice.
Sara is also passionate about First Nations people’s rights and justice, just as her parents were after moving to Australia in 1969 to work with the Dunghutti community in NSW and the Meriam peoples of Mer (Murray) Island. Having been an active member of various editing and translation associations for many years, she came to appreciate the value of collaborating and sharing insights with Women of Colour, as well as listening to and learning from the lived experience of others. Through volunteering with WoCA, Sara hopes to leverage her multilingual and intercultural communication skills, using language consciously and sensitively to challenge stereotypes and promote inclusion. In her free time, she enjoys tinkering in her vegan kitchen and learning to communicate with nonhuman animals–her regular outdoor office companions are wild lorikeets, currawongs, magpies, mynahs, and kookaburras.
