Us-Japan Council

THE U.S.-JAPAN COUNCIL DEVELOPS AND CONNECTS DIVERSE LEADERS TO CREATE A STRONG U.S.-JAPAN RELATIONSHIP. FOUNDED BY JAPANESE AMERICANS, THE COUNCIL BRINGS TOGETHER LEADERS OF THE UNITED STATES AND JAPAN FROM ACROSS BACKGROUNDS, SECTORS AND GENERATIONS TO PARTNER FOR A BETTER FUTURE FOR THE ASIA-PACIFIC REGION AND BEYOND.

USJC'S GENERAL EDUCATION PROGRAM INCLUDES THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE, CLIMATE & SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE, JAPANESE AMERICAN LEADERSHIP DELEGATION (JALD), EMERGING LEADERS PROGRAM, WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP, REGIONAL PROGRAMS IN THE UNITED STATES AND JAPAN, NETWORKING AND OUTREACH ACTIVITIES, AND COMMUNICATIONS.THE U.S.-JAPAN COUNCIL AND THE U.S.-JAPAN COUNCIL (JAPAN) BROUGHT TOGETHER NEARLY 600 MEMBERS, ALUMNI AND OTHER FRIENDS OF THE U.S.-JAPAN RELATIONSHIP FOR ITS TWELFTH ANNUAL CONFERENCE, WHICH TOOK PLACE NOVEMBER 8-10. HELD UNDER THE THEME "BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE, SECURE AND INCLUSIVE FUTURE TOGETHER," THE CONFERENCE'S WASHINGTON, DC LOCATION HELD SPECIAL SIGNIFICANCE THIS YEAR, WHICH OPENED WITH THE JANUARY 2023 BIDEN-KISHIDA JOINT STATEMENT EMPHASIZING THE NEED TO ADDRESS CRITICAL ISSUES IN THE INDO-PACIFIC REGION. LEADERS ACROSS INDUSTRIES, BACKGROUNDS AND GENERATIONS INSTIGATED SOLUTION-FOCUSED DISCUSSIONS ON KEY ISSUES, WITH A SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON SUSTAINABILITY, DIVERSITY AND STRENGTHENING BILATERAL TIES. CLIMATE AND SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE - USJC'S KEY INITIATIVE SPOTLIGHTS THE CLIMATE CRISIS, CONVENING LEADERS AND CHANGE MAKERS TO SHARE STRATEGIES AND TAKE ACTION. IN MARCH, USJC PARTNERED WITH THE U.S. EMBASSY IN TOKYO TO HOST A ROUNDTABLE DIALOGUE ON "MEETING THE TWIN CHALLENGES OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND ENERGY SECURITY THROUGH METHANE MITIGATION." LATER IN MARCH, USJC PARTNERED WITH RICE UNIVERSITY TO HOST AN EVENT TO CONNECT THE YOUNGER GENERATION AND LEARN HOW LOCAL JAPANESE COMPANIES ARE MOVING TOWARD GREENER BUSINESS PRACTICES. IN APRIL, USJC HOSTED A FIRESIDE CHAT IN WASHINGTON, DC WITH SEC COMMISSIONER MARK UYEDA, WHICH TOUCHED ON CLIMATE RULES AMONG OTHER TOPICS. FROM JUNE TO SEPTEMBER, USJC HELD THREE WEBINARS ON JAPAN'S RENEWABLE ENERGY FUTURE, SUSTAINABILITY DISCLOSURES, AND NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS. IN JULY, USJC COLLABORATED WITH THE JAPAN SOCIETY OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA TO HOLD A PANEL AND RECEPTION IN SAN FRANCISCO ON GREEN ENERGY COLLABORATION. IN OCTOBER, USJC COLLABORATED WITH GEODESIC CAPITAL AND MITSUBISHI CORPORATION TO HOLD AN ENERGY TRANSFORMATION STARTUP SHOWCASE IN TOKYO. IN NOVEMBER, USJC CONVENED ANOTHER IN-PERSON SUSTAINABILITY ROUNDTABLE AT ITS ANNUAL CONFERENCE IN WASHINGTON, DC, WHERE DOZENS OF JAPANESE AND AMERICAN LEADERS FROM VARIOUS SECTORS DISCUSSED SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE FINANCING AND DISCLOSURES, AND HYDROGEN HUBS. A NUMBER OF OTHER SESSIONS AT THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE ALSO TOUCHED ON CLIMATE AND SUSTAINABILITY ISSUES.JAPANESE AMERICAN LEADERSHIP DELEGATION PROGRAM (JALD) - TEN JAPANESE AMERICAN LEADERS TRAVELED TO JAPAN FROM MARCH 3 TO 11 FOR THE 2023 JAPANESE AMERICAN LEADERSHIP DELEGATION (JALD) PROGRAM. ORGANIZED BY THE U.S.-JAPAN COUNCIL AND SPONSORED BY JAPAN'S MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, THE JALD PROGRAM AIMS TO STRENGTHEN THE U.S.-JAPAN RELATIONSHIP BY FACILITATING PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN PROMINENT JAPANESE AMERICAN AND JAPANESE LEADERS. THIS YEAR'S TRIP, WHICH MARKED THE 20TH DELEGATION SINCE THE PROGRAM'S INCEPTION IN 2000, BROUGHT DELEGATES TO TOKYO AND SHIZUOKA TO MEET WITH TOP GOVERNMENT, BUSINESS, NON-PROFIT AND OTHER NOTABLE JAPANESE LEADERS. EMERGING LEADERS PROGRAM (ELP) - ELP IDENTIFIES, CULTIVATES AND EMPOWERS A NEW GENERATION OF JAPANESE AMERICAN LEADERS. IN ITS 14TH YEAR, THE 2023 PROGRAM BROUGHT TOGETHER 11 JAPANESE AMERICAN YOUNG PROFESSIONALS AT THE USJC ANNUAL CONFERENCE IN WASHINGTON, DC. THE COHORT EXPLORED ISSUES OF LEADERSHIP AND IDENTITY WHILE MAKING VALUABLE CONNECTIONS AND FULLY EXPERIENCING THE CONFERENCE. NEARLY 60 PROGRAM ALUMNI ALSO ATTENDED AND WELCOMED THE NEW CLASS. THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, ALUMNI, LED BY THE ELP STEERING COMMITTEE, CREATED OPPORTUNITIES FOR MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY TO CONNECT WITH EACH OTHER, INCLUDING THE KAIWA PROGRAM SERIES ON NON-PROFIT SUSTAINABILITY.WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP - USJC ORGANIZED SEVERAL VIRTUAL PROGRAMS TO SUPPORT ADVANCEMENT OF WOMEN'S LEADERSHIP IN THE UNITED STATES AND JAPAN.MEMBERSHIP ACTIVITIES - THE USJC CONVENED ACTIVITIES IN 12 REGIONS THAT PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR JAPANESE AND AMERICANS TO COME TOGETHER FOR NETWORKING AND EDUCATIONAL EVENTS THAT INCLUDED SPEAKERS ON VARIOUS TOPICS. REGIONAL NETWORKS ALSO PROVIDE POTENTIAL COLLABORATION WITHIN AND BETWEEN 12 REGIONS LOCATED IN THE UNITED STATES AND JAPAN. IN 2023, USJC REGIONS HOSTED 130 MEETINGS AND EVENTS AND THE COUNCIL CONVENED A NUMBER OF AFFINITY GROUP GATHERINGS. THE IN-PERSON MEMBERS FORUM IN WASHINGTON DC ON NOVEMBER 2023 HOSTED NEARLY 300 MEMBERS AND SUPPORTERS. THE COUNCIL CURRENTLY HAS 896 MEMBERS. GOVERNMENT BRIEFINGS - USJC HOLDS SEVERAL GOVERNMENT BRIEFINGS EACH YEAR FOR TOP TIER SPONSORS AND INVITED GUESTS. THE IN-PERSON AND HYBRID EVENTS FEATURE KEY POLICY MAKERS IN AN INTIMATE FIRESIDE CHAT FORMAT DISCUSSING WHAT WENT ON BEHIND THE HEADLINES IMPACTING U.S.-JAPAN RELATIONS. PAST SPEAKERS INCLUDE DEPUTY TREASURY SECRETARY WALLY ADEYEMO, U.S. REP. MARK TAKANO AND JILL TOKUDA, THEN NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL EAST ASIA DIRECTOR CHRISTOPHER JOHNSTONE AND SEC COMMISSIONER MARK UYEDA. COMMUNICATIONS - USJC MAINTAINS AN INFORMATIVE WEBSITE AND SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE IN ENGLISH AND JAPANESE PROVIDING INFORMATION ON PROGRAMS, MEMBER NEWS, CURRENT EVENTS AND IMPORTANT U.S.-JAPAN TOPICS. USJC PUTS OUT A NEWSLETTER THAT INFORMS SPONSORS ABOUT THE KEY POINTS MADE BY SPEAKERS IN ITS GOVERNMENT BRIEFING SERIES. USJC ALSO PUBLISHES A BI-WEEKLY ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTER AND ISSUES REGULAR PRESS RELEASES ABOUT PROGRAMS AND EVENTS IN JAPAN AND THE SILICON VALLEY.

THE SILICON VALLEY JAPAN PLATFORM (SVJP) IS AN INITIATIVE OF THE US-JAPAN COUNCIL AND THE INTERNATIONAL HOUSE OF JAPAN. SVJP AIMS TO CONNECT THE TECHNOLOGICAL DYNAMISM OF SILICON VALLEY WITH THE CURRENT AND FUTURE NEEDS OF DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION IN JAPAN THROUGH TRUSTING, COLLABORATIVE RELATIONSHIPS. THE SVJP ENGAGES CURRENT AND FUTURE CORPORATE MEMBERS AND THE SVJP COMMUNITY THROUGH ONLINE, IN-PERSON AND HYBRID PROGRAMMING. IN 2023, TWO MAIN EVENTS WERE HELD IN APRIL AND SEPTEMBER RESPECTIVELY, THE JAPAN RETREAT IN KYOTO AND THE ANNUAL CORPORATE MEMBERS' RETREAT IN HALF MOON BAY, CALIFORNIA. ONE BIG ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGE WAS THE DEPARTURE OF SVJP'S PRESIDENT IN FEBRUARY 2023.

THE TOMODACHI BOEING KEIO SFC ENTREPRENEURSHIP SEMINAR 2022 FOR HIGH SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY STUDENTS INCLUDED A RANGE OF SEMINARS, GROUP ACTIVITIES, PRESENTATIONS AND TRAVEL TO THE U.S. TO FURTHER EXPLORE ENTREPRENEURSHIP AROUND THE THEME OF WELLNESS.TOMODACHI TOSHIZO WATANABE LEADERSHIP PROGRAM - USJC RECEIVED A $10M ENDOWMENT TO ESTABLISH THIS PROGRAM. IN AUGUST 2023, FOURTEEN JAPANESE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS FROM ALL OVER JAPAN VISITED CALIFORNIA AS PART OF THE INAUGURAL TOMODACHI TOSHIZO WATANABE LEADERSHIP PROGRAM. THE PROGRAM, WHICH AIMS TO CREATE THE NEXT GENERATION OF LEADERS, ALLOWED PARTICIPANTS TO EXPLORE A WIDE RANGE OF TOPICS INCLUDING DIFFERENT LEADERSHIP STYLES, THE HISTORY OF DISCRIMINATION, AND THE ROLE OF A COMMUNITY. THE PROGRAM INCLUDED A VISIT TO INSTITUTIONS SUCH AS THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES (UCLA), THE TERASAKI INSTITUTE, CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, JAPANESE AMERICAN NATIONAL MUSEUM (JANM), AND HOLOCAUST MUSEUM LA, AMONG MANY OTHER PLACES.WATANABE ENDOWED SCHOLARSHIPS - THE PROGRAM PROVIDES FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO UNDERGRADUATE AND GRADUATE STUDENTS FOR A SEMESTER OR YEAR-LONG STUDY ABROAD PROGRAM. DUE TO THE PANDEMIC, SOME OF THE SCHOLARSHIPS WERE UNABLE TO BE REALIZED OR WERE DEFERRED. ON-LINE LEADERSHIP PROGRAMMING WAS MADE AVAILABLE TO THE SCHOLARS TO SUPPLEMENT THEIR SCHOOLING.