Current Programs
Educational
Educational and exchange programs serve to enrich and inspire young Japanese and Americans through exposure to each other’s countries, including through short-term study abroad experiences. The TOMODACHI Initiative aims to enhance existing programs and foster new ones in the United States and Japan that strengthen overall U.S.-Japan relations. Through these programs, participants:
- Develop a better understanding of similarities and differences between Japanese and American cultures, as well as gain exposure to new ideas through student exchanges and homestays;
- Enhance English language skills through study abroad programs and workshops; and
- Build educational partnerships, information exchanges and research collaborations between universities and institutions in the U.S. and throughout Japan.
Strategic Partner Programs
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.
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 NAJAS Grassroots Exchange Program – San Antonio and Kumamoto
This program is a short-term exchange initiative for high school students from San Antonio, Texas, and Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture, which share a sister-city relationship. Through homestays, school visits, and cultural exchanges, the program fosters mutual understanding and aims to develop the next generation of leaders who will serve as a bridge between the U.S. and Japan.
Cultural
Cultural programs in sports, music and the arts provide gateways for Japanese and Americans to learn about and to develop enduring interest in each other’s cultures. The TOMODACHI Initiative collaborates with many long-standing and prestigious cultural exchange programs, as well as with American and Japanese athletes, artists, musicians, and entertainers.
Whether it is teaming up with Major League Baseball to bring the joy and fundamental values of sports to children or helping young performers and artists to share their work, TOMODACHI is devoted to fostering an intercultural conversation between Japan and America.
Strategic Partner Programs
TOMODACHI Goldman Sachs Music Outreach Program
Supported by Goldman Sachs, an American education organization conducts workshops at schools around Tohoku to have Japanese and American youths communicate with each other through music and deepen self and cultural understanding.
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
TOMODACHI Amway Japan Foundation Tohoku Future Leader Program
This program provides opportunities for high school students from the Tohoku region to develop leadership skills to become next generation leaders, and to revitalize the Tohoku region through tourism.
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 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 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 Kibou for Maui Program
This program is designed for high school students affected by the wildfires in Maui, Hawaii. They will visit the Tohoku region, recovering from the Great East Japan Earthquake. Through various experiences, they will learn about leadership mindset, historical understanding, insights into recovery efforts, and sustainable initiatives.
TOMODACHI Women’s Empowerment Program
This program is a leadership program designed to address the pressing gender gap in Japanese society.
Sports
TOMODACHI – U.S. Embassy Go For Gold Sports Leadership Program
The TOMODACHI-U.S. Embassy Go for Gold Leadership Program aims to increase the understanding and knowledge of the sports industry in the United States, with a focus on facility management, community engagement, and business of sports management among Japanese youth. The goal of the program is to encourage participants to be global leaders in their respective fields and utilize their knowledge acquired in the United States to advance the sports industry in Japan and promote the importance of collaboration between the two countries. The program consists of three components: a virtual program, two-week travel to the United States, and a final presentation in Tokyo, Japan.
