I was born in Taiwan and raised in Taipei and Vancouver. I am a native speaker of both Mandarin Chinese and English, and fully proficient and fluent in Japanese after spending nearly a quarter of my life living and working there.

I graduated from Simon Fraser University with a degree in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry. I have a strong science background and solid experience in both fundamental and drug-discovery research. As a student I interned at a Canadian pharmaceutical research company and participated in a formal student exchange program to Meiji Gakuin University (Yokohama, Japan). Later, through the Canadian co-op education program who partnered with the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), I was placed as an international intern student at a major consumer goods manufacturer in Japan (Biological Research Institute, Tochigi prefecture). Through my early exposure to the Japanese education system and corporate environment, I have established a strong foundation in the Japanese language and culture. While in Japan, I also participated in a selective volunteer program at the Canadian Embassy assisting with two major science and technology related symposiums. My professional experience in Japan includes two years with a large city government in Kanagawa Prefecture, where I was heavily engaged in translation as well as event coordination, and two years with an American university marketing to and recruiting international students throughout Japan and East Asia. I have worked on numerous freelance translation projects during my time in Japan, including websites, manuals, museum publications, etc.

I passed Level 1 of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (highest level) and received a J1 level in JETRO Business Japanese Proficiency Test (BJT) in 2006.