The Government of Japan is launching a short-term youth exchange programme involving 150 graduate students from major universities in Europe and Central Asia, studying in the areas of politics, international relations, economics, Asian studies. The programme is names “MIRAI”, the Japanese word “Mirai” means “future”.
MIRAI stands for Mutual understanding, Intellectual Relations and Academic Exchange Initiative. Aim of the programme is to foster a solid foundation of Japan-Europe relations in the future by promoting mutual understanding, enhancing intellectual discussions and building networks among future leaders of Japan and Europe.
To manage and implement the programme, the Government of Japan has appointed secretariats in Japan (AFS Japan) and Europe (EFIL).
A targeted call for participants will be distributed in September/October by Japanese Embassies across Europe and Central Asia. The visit to Japan is planned for December. While AFS Japan will be in charge of the screening of participants and the local coordination, EFIL will do the financial management and most of the reporting.
Participants will follow a training course in Intercultural Learning, facilitated by EFIL. The Training in Intercultural Learning that we offer is based on the licensed “Global Competence Certificate” course from Sentio/Itero. This course is a combination of self-guided online learning and in-person training. It is designed to meet key learning goals, helping learners develop intercultural competence. It provides flexibility as learners complete online sessions at their own pace. These online modules have been designed specifically for an 18+ audience, and will help each participant to reflect on their own cultural identity and support them as they learn about others.
EFIL is honoured to be chosen by the Government of Japan to be the European partner in the programme, and we thank AFS Japan for recommending us. EFIL also wants to thank Sentio/Itero for cooperating with us on this programme. We are looking forward to working with AFS Japan, Sentio, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Japan (in Tokyo), and the Mission of Japan to the European Union (in Brussels).
