Current Programs
Leadership
The TOMODACHI Initiative promotes programs that help the next generation of young leaders gain the skills and expertise necessary to guide them towards success and help them make a positive difference in their communities, for their countries, and for the entire world.
Through these programs, participants develop leadership skills that can be used throughout their lives, regardless of their profession. They will also learn to work and thrive in an entrepreneurial environment, creating new ideas and enterprises that spur economic growth and social progress.
Strategic Partner Programs
Building the TOMODACHI Generation: Morgan Stanley Ambassadors Program
This intensive, two-week program is designed for Japanese and American students with an interest in leadership training, cross-cultural exchange, and entrepreneurial approaches to addressing social challenges.
TOMODACHI Boeing Entrepreneurship Seminar
This program provides high school and university students with the opportunity to learn about and cultivate skills related to entrepreneurship. Through this program, paricipants learn avout “entrepreneurship” from entrepreneurs and industry experts from both Japan and the U.S.
TOMODACHI-Dow Women’s STEM Leadership and Research Program
Hosted by Rice University in Texas, this program is a five-week research internship for 10 Japanese female undergraduate students majoring in science and engineering.
TOMODACHI MUFG Sustainable Entrepreneurship Program
This program provides twenty outstanding young American and Japanese professionals from the business and government sectors to participate in a unique delegation exchange that broadens their perspectives in their professional fields.
TOMODACHI SMBC Shaka-kachi Leadership Program
This program aims to nurture the next generation of leaders who are passionate about addressing social issues and taking action, targeting university students from across Japan. Over approximately six months, participants will receive ongoing support from professionals—including those in the SMBC Group’s social value creation fields—while engaging in leadership training, social value creation workshops, training in the United States, and a final presentation session. Through these experiences, students will develop the ability to envision and implement concrete actions to address social challenges.
TOMODACHI Sumitomo Corporation Scholarship Program
The TOMODACHI Sumitomo Corporation Scholarship Program provides assistance to high-achieving university students with financial need to enable them to study abroad for one year.
TOMODACHI Tanaka Sangyo Agricultural Exchange Initiative: Climate and Food System Awareness Program
This program is is a leadership development program, designed to address the pressing global challenges of climate change and its intertwined relationship with agriculture.
TOMODACHI Toshizo Watanabe Leadership Program
This program for high school students aims to promote understanding between Japan and the U.S. and to develop the next generation of Japanese and U.S. leaders with globally applicable skills.
General Fund Programs
TOMODACHI KAKEHASHI Inouye Scholars Program
This program provides American and Japanese university students with a unique ten-day exchange program. These exchanges are part of the broader Government of Japan’s KAKEHASHI Project.
TOMODACHI Story Jam for Youth with Disabilities
This program is an online initiative spanning approximately eight weeks, where participants learn about storytelling and leadership. Japanese and American university students and young professionals with disabilities explore their own experiences through storytelling techniques, engaging with fellow program participants.
TOMODACHI Women’s Empowerment Program
This program is a leadership program designed to address the pressing gender gap in Japanese society.
