In Ambassador Kennedy’s first major address in Tokyo, she endorses CULCON and the Education Task Force goal of doubling the number of U.S. -Japan study abroad students by 2020 Here is the full text of her address: Ambassador Caroline Kennedy Address to ACCJ and the America-Japan Society, November 27, 2013 AMBASSADOR KENNEDY: Thank you. Thank you […]

CULCON, the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission and the U.S. – Japan Bridging Foundation mourn the loss of Speaker and Ambassador Thomas S. Foley. Ambassador Foley was a dedicated public servant who had close ties to Japan and the Japanese people. In addition to his service as United States Ambassador to Japan, he played a special role […]

The following was entered into the Congressional Record to honor the six-year service of Mr. Thierry Porté as Chairman of the U.S. CULCON Panel as well as the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission and as Vice Chair of the U.S.-Japan Bridging Foundation.  Thierry’s term ends at the end of this calendar year and we will miss him! […]

CULCON convened its third summit of U.S.-Japan related organizations on Friday, August 16 in Washington, DC. The focus of the meeting was to share and discuss the Recommendations and Report recently released by the CULCON Education Task Force (ETF) and to brainstorm about how to move forward with implementation of the recommendations. In the past […]

News from Mark Davidson, a member of the CULCON Education Task Force: Mark Davidson, the Minister Counselor for Public Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo, recently helped to plant 40 Friendship Blossom Trees in Minamisanriku-cho. Minamisanriku-cho was greatly affected by the tsunami of March 2011 and many of its citizens are still living in […]

On June 26, U.S. CULCON, together with the U.S.-Japan Council, convened the third summit of organizations involved in U.S.-Japan legislative exchange.  The purpose of the meeting was to share information about upcoming exchanges, develop a strategy to increase the number of U.S. congressional members participating in legislative exchange and to strengthen U.S. congressional interest in […]

CULCON’s Higher Education Task Force establishes a goal of doubling the number of study abroad students in each country by 2020.
Washington DC, June 13, 2013 — CULCON co-chairmen Thierry Porté and Minoru Makihara today presented a report in Tokyo to Prime Minister Abe that detailed recommendations for improving intellectual exchange between Japan and the United States. The same report was presented to Undersecretary Tara Sonenshine by CULCON panelists Deputy Assistant Secretary Susan Stevenson and Dr. Edward Lincoln. This Report is the result of a binational Educational Task Force which, under the leadership of former Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and Secretary Norman Mineta, convened to examine an alarming decrease in the number of Japanese students in the United States and to make recommendations to leaders in both nations towards an ambitious goal: to double the number of study abroad students in each country by 2020.
“Study abroad and international exchange are crucial for nurturing the bonds between Japan and the United States,” says Secretary Norman Mineta. “The language proficiency, communication and problem-solving skills our young people gain when they are introduced to other cultures are invaluable and prepare them well for the globalized marketplace.”

The U.S. CULCON Panel today announced that five Japan specialists and scholars will become new members of the bi-national panel.  They are:  Dr. Edward Lincoln, Professorial Lecturer, George Washington University; Dr. Patricia Maclachlan, Associate Professor of Government and Asian Studies, University of Texas; Dr. Deanna Marcum, Managing Director, Ithaka; Dr. Leonard J. Schoppa, Jr., Woodrow Wilson Department of […]