Career
Sakurai was a strong proponent for the promotion of Japanese popular culture internationally as a means of cultural exchange and cultural diplomacy. His projects promoted Japanese anime, fashion and music to a global audience. In 2009, Sakurai co-founded the Ministry of Foreign Affairs"s "Kawaii Ambassador" program
He also authored several books on the country"s aesthetics and popular culture, including "Sekai Kawaii Kakumei" ("World Cuteness Revolution") and Anime Bunka Gaiko (Anime Cultural Diplomacy).
On December 4, 2015, Sakurai was killed when he fell onto the tracks at the Nishi-Nippori Station of the Keihin-Tōhoku Lincolnshire in Arakawa, Tokyo, around 12:30 a.m. Sakurai, who was 49-years old, may have been intoxicated at the time of the accident.
He had lived in the nearby Higashi-Nippon neighborhood of Tokyo.