2025 Fourth Quarter

The ACComPLISHED: Community-based stroke education project engages high school students in the U.S. and Japan as trained Community Health Workers (CHWs). The initiative aims to train over 500 youth to promote stroke awareness and prevention in their local communities. Building on a successful U.S. model, the project utilizes expert-led virtual and in-person training from both countries. CHWs will conduct outreach to educate community members, seeking to reduce stroke disability and mortality. An interactive online platform will also be developed, strengthening U.S.-Japan collaboration on shared public health challenges.

Location: Tokyo, Japan
Grant Awarded: $20,000

This initiative funds a social service professional's participation in the Chicago Sister Cities exchange delegation traveling to Osaka, Japan (September 27th–October 5th). The core objective is to confront gender-based violence (GBV) and learn Japanese best practices in social services, aging, and prevention. Learnings from the 7-day exchange, which includes site visits to organizations like Shion Gakuen and Kamagasaki Support Organization, will inform the funding and design of a new co-located housing and services center for GBV survivors in Chicago.

Location: Chicago, IL
Grant Awarded: $2,595.11

This project produces a book-length monograph analyzing Japan’s emergence as a leader in economic security and its implications for U.S.-Japan relations. It offers the first comparative study of how Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan develop novel economic security policies. The research delves into their economic dependence on China, U.S. security ties, and the evolving economic order amidst U.S.-China competition, providing an in-depth analysis of emerging economic security toolkits.

Location: Washington, D.C.
Grant Awarded: $180,000 over three years

The Japan Institute for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship (JSIE) is organising the 2026 Social Innovation Challenge (WISE program) in Obuse, Nagano, to empower women and young leaders. This three-day residential WISE programme utilises English-language collaboration and U.S.-Japan mentorship to address rural revitalisation and social challenges. Participants work in diverse teams to develop practical community solutions, bridging the gap between grassroots innovation and bilateral relations. The project aims to cultivate inclusive leadership and resilient social enterprises, strengthening enduring ties between Japanese and American civil societies.

Location: Washington, D.C.
Grant Awarded: $25,000

The HALO Trust organized a technology-focused side event at the Ukraine Mine Action Conference in Tokyo in October 2025, supported by the United States-Japan Foundation. The event highlighted humanitarian landmine clearance as an area of shared U.S.-Japan interest, with a focus on technological innovation, operational cooperation, and the role of mine action in advancing human security and post-conflict recovery. By convening practitioners, policymakers, and partners around practical demining challenges and solutions, the side event contributed to dialogue on how the United States and Japan can continue to collaborate in addressing the humanitarian impacts of conflict.

Location: Tokyo, Japan
Grant Awarded: $25,000

The Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE USA) is conducting a year-long initiative throughout 2026 to deepen US Congressional staff engagement in bilateral relations. As part of the project, JCIE will host a series of private and in-person expert briefings in Washington, D.C. for US Congressional staff, including alumni of JCIE’s exchange program. These sessions facilitate direct dialogues with senior Japan experts on critical trade, security, and political issues. By regularly engaging these staffers, the initiative seeks to strengthen professional networks as well as ensure that US policymakers possess the nuanced understanding necessary to sustain the US-Japan alliance and navigate emerging regional and global challenges.

Location: New York, NY
Grant Awarded: $15,000

The East Asia Peace Dialogue (EAPD) is organising Strait Talk Okinawa 2025, a conflict-resolution workshop designed to promote peacebuilding across the Taiwan Strait. This week-long workshop will convene 16 emerging civil society leaders from Taiwan, Mainland China, the United States, and Japan to engage in open dialogue based on the Interactive Conflict Resolution (ICR) method, a problem-solving approach used in diverse conflict-affected societies. Participants will examine their respective perspectives on cross-Strait relations, visit Okinawan peace sites, and jointly develop peaceful and practical solutions to the cross-Strait conflict. By drafting and publicizing a multilingual consensus document on regional exchange, cultural and economic cooperation, and security, the project pioneers an innovative model of regional dialogue in which the next generation of U.S. and Japanese leaders work alongside counterparts across the Taiwan Strait, demonstrating the power of well-designed and carefully facilitated dialogues as a means of ensuring regional security.

Location: Okinawa, Japan
Grant Awarded: ¥1,150,000

The American Friends of the International House of Japan (AFIHJ), in partnership with the International House of Japan, is currently in the initial planning and design phase of establishing the North America-Japan Philanthropy Alliance, an initiative intended to foster sustained cross-border collaboration among philanthropic leaders. The Alliance seeks to address a critical gap in high-trust engagement among foundations and philanthropic institutions in Japan, the United States, and Canada by creating a structured platform for dialogue, collaboration, and professional learning. Through a combination of virtual roundtables, peer working groups, and a proposed fellows program, the initiative aims to strengthen U.S.-Japan cooperation and lay the groundwork for scalable, long-term approaches to complex social challenges shared by both societies.

Location: New York, NY
Grant Awarded: $75,000

Led by NPO Kosodate Village in partnership with Ellis Early Learning in Boston, Bias-Free Beginnings is a two-year project (2026-2027) that aims to address unconscious bias in early childhood education. The project adapts and implements a U.S.-based DEI curriculum for the Japanese context, supporting Japanese educators in practicing inclusive education through joint research and professional exchanges. In addition, a bilingual platform will promote interaction between children in Tokyo and Boston, deepening U.S.-Japan educational ties at the grassroots level.

Location: Tokyo, Japan
Grant Awarded: $60,000 over two years

The Japan ICU Foundation (JICUF) is leading the “Advancing Refugee Education through US-Japan Collaboration” initiative to support educational opportunities in Japan for Afghan youths affected by the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. In close collaboration with Tokyo-based organization Pathways Japan and a network of Japanese language schools, the project provides scholarships to mostly female students who have completely lost access to higher education under Taliban rule. Participants receive two years of intensive language training, facilitating their transition into higher education or employment. This effort leverages the U.S.-Japan partnership to address humanitarian crises and promote educational inclusion.

Location: New York, NY
Grant Awarded: $160,000 over two years

Globalize DC is launching the Japan in DC School-Year Program to provide underserved high school students with an immersive global education. Through site visits and interviews, career exposure, and cultural experiences, participants explore Japan’s presence in Washington, DC, focusing on the 80th anniversary of World War II and the evolution of the U.S.-Japan alliance. Students will develop web resources, student-led tours, and K-12 curricula to share insights with the wider community. This initiative bridges local and global divides while cultivating a diverse next generation of U.S.-Japan specialists.

Location: Washington, D.C.
Grant Awarded: $20,000

Certified NPO ReBit is launching the U.S.-Japan LGBTQ Exchange and Leadership Program (2026-2029) in response to the increasingly complex social discourse surrounding diversity. The initiative establishes a cross-sector Ally Leadership Network connecting NPOs, corporations, and government agencies to share best practices. A central component of the initiative is the youth-centered leadership development program in Japan, offering participants mentorship and engagement with role models from both Japan and the U.S. Through community and university advocacy, these emerging leaders will drive social change and strengthen the resilient foundation for bilateral collaboration. 

Location: Tokyo, Japan
Grant Awarded: $180,805 over three years

BEYOND Tomorrow is conducting the 2026 U.S. Summer Program to empower university students who have overcome significant adversity, such as foster care or poverty. During an eight-day residency in Silicon Valley, participants will explore the theme “AI & Digital Disparity.” Through tech company visits, fieldwork on social inequality, and peer dialogues, students examine how innovation intersects with human values. The project culminates in a documentary film and digital storybook, amplifying voices of resilience to foster a more inclusive U.S.-Japan partnership and inspire future changemakers.

Location: Tokyo, Japan
Grant Awarded: $15,473

The Japan NGO Center for International Cooperation (JANIC) is launching a project to strengthen civil society's role during the 2026 G20 Summit. This initiative focuses on reforming international financial structures and establishing innovative funding mechanisms, such as solidarity taxes, to address massive global funding gaps. Through joint research, policy drafting, and high-level roundtables with U.S. and Japanese officials, the project integrates diverse voices into global governance to build a lasting cross-border advocacy alliance.

Location: Tokyo, Japan
Grant Awarded: ¥10,000,000

The International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL) is launching an initiative to support local efforts to strengthen Japan's regulatory environment for civil society. In partnership with the Japan NGO Center for International Cooperation (JANIC), ICNL will host a high-level workshop in Tokyo to strategize improvements to non-profit laws, focusing on tax structures and philanthropic activity. This project convenes diverse stakeholders to transform research into actionable reform plans. By building coalitions, the initiative seeks to foster a dynamic civic space and strengthen bilateral philanthropic ties with the United States.

Location: Washington, D.C.
Grant Awarded: $9,393