UK-Japan 21st Century Group

The UK-Japan 21st Century Group was launched in 1985 at the joint recommendation of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Japanese Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone. It is a coalition of private sector, public sector, and civil society leaders from both countries that aims to promote dialogue and cooperation between the two countries.

US-Japan Parliamentary Exchange

The US-Japan Parliamentary Exchange Program brings members of the US Congress and Japanese Diet to one another’s countries for a series of intensive dialogues with leaders from a broad range of fields. Participants in the US-Japan Parliamentary Exchange Program have risen to influential positions in their respective countries with an enhanced understanding of the US-Japan relationship.

US-Japan Young Political Leaders Exchange

In 1973, JCIE and the American Council of Young Political Leaders (ACYPL) jointly launched the US-Japan Young Political Leaders Exchange Program, an annual bilateral exchange program designed to expose young leaders of each country to the politics and policymaking processes of the other country and to enhance their understanding of US-Japan relations.

ASEAN-Japan Dialogue

In 1977, JCIE initiated the ASEAN-Japan Dialogue to address salient issues in the ASEAN-Japan bilateral relationship. The project was organized in six phases over the period of fifteen years, and the subjects under study included the roles of trade and investment in the development of ASEAN countries, ASEAN-Japan mutual perceptions, and the concept of a Pacific community.

Asian Community Trust

Founded in 1979, the Asian Community Trust (ACT) was Japan’s first charitable trust based on general fundraising. It is committed to providing support for grassroots, self-help efforts of nongovernmental organizations involved in sustainable social and economic development across Asia.

Europe-Japan Conference

Compared to relations with the United States, Japan’s ties with Europe have been weak and lopsided. Awareness of the need to promote mutual understanding and regular contact between Europeans and Japanese prompted JCIE to launch in 1975 a series of nongovernmental exchange meetings known as the Europe-Japan Conferences, nicknamed the “Hakone Conferences” after the venue of the first meeting.

Exchange with the World Affairs Councils of American (WACA)

From 1986 to 2001, JCIE and WACA jointly carried out the Japan Study Program, consisting of study tours every other year for the leaders of world affairs councils. These tours were aimed at improving the relationship between Japan and the United States, raising the level of interest in and understanding of Japanese society, and creating networks between community leaders.

International Philanthropy Project

JCIE’s International Philanthropy Project was launched in 1974 because of a need JCIE recognized for Japan to develop truly nonprofit and nongovernmental institutions in order to become a constructive member of the international community.

Japan-United States Economic Relations Group (Wisemen’s Group)

This group of eight leading private citizens was charged with the task of examining the factors affecting long-term bilateral economic relations between the United States and Japan. JCIE was asked to serve as the Japanese secretariat, with JCIE Director Tadashi Yamamoto as an executive director of the group.

Shimoda Conference Series

The First Shimoda Conference (then also known as the Japanese-American Assembly) took place in 1967 as a forum for high-level but unofficial discussions of critical issues in US-Japan relations, the first of its kind in the postwar US-Japan relationship. The dialogues were held occasionally through 2011.