Keiko Honda is a scientist, writer, community organizer, and painter. She holds a PhD in international community health from New York University and had a research career at Columbia University, which was interrupted when she suddenly contracted a rare autoimmune disease that confined her to a wheelchair for life. After moving to Vancouver in 2009, Honda began hosting artist salons, for which she was awarded the City of Vancouver's Remarkable Women Award in 2014. Shortly thereafter, she founded the Vancouver Arts Colloquium Society to bridge generations and cultures through the arts and to offer members of marginalized communities opportunities for artistic self-discovery. She teaches the aesthetics of co-creation in the Liberal Arts and 55+ Program at Simon Fraser University.