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On August 1, 2026, JUSSIN (Japan-U.S. Social Innovation Network) held its first in-person U.S. gathering, an Impact Salon in San Francisco, bringing together 24 leaders from the social impact, business, and philanthropy sectors across the United States and Japan. JUSSIN is fiscally sponsored by ETIC (Entrepreneurial Training for Innovative Communities), which the United States-Japan Foundation (USJF) has provided grants to in 2025 and 2026.
JUSSIN is a bilateral initiative connecting social sector leaders from both countries to address shared challenges. Through bilingual learning sessions, in-person convenings, and thematic working groups, the project aims to build leadership capacity and foster sustained cross-border collaboration, with the goal of creating a durable platform where leaders can co-design scalable solutions for both countries' social innovation ecosystems.
Attendees took part in small-group and full-group discussions before moving into five thematic table conversations:
- Sustaining community resilience through uncertainty
- Engaging the next generation
- Building connections across the Pacific
- Reimagining executive leadership
- Funding the future
Discussions were hosted in part by Haruto Okabe and Jake Schlesinger of USJF, alongside Cosmo Fujiyama Ghaznavi, Co-founder of JUSSIN, Naho Kawashima, Global Partnership Coordinator at ETIC and Director in Japan at JUSSIN, and Christine Lai, Partner at Together Institute. The conversations drew out common ground between the U.S. and Japan on questions of leadership, trust, and long-term organizational resilience amid ongoing uncertainty.
JUSSIN also recently launched its new website, jussin.jp. If you are interested in supporting the initiative, please contact them directly through their Contact Us page: https://jussin.jp/contact-us.The network's next convening is planned for Tokyo in October, with applications now closed, and a further gathering will follow in Los Angeles in 2027.
