10:30 AM: Optional Tour of Grace Farms

2:00 PM: Tea Diplomacy Program

Tea Diplomacy in Partnership with Grace Farms (10/17/2026)

Learn about the remarkable role of tea diplomacy to address humanitarian issues at Grace Farms with one of the world’s leading experts in the field, Kent E. Calder.

Calder joins James Kondo, Chairman of the International House of Japan, for a timely conversation about the way tea ceremonies build community and connection across cultures. They will also explore the inspiration behind Calder’s newest book, Chado Gaiko: Japanese Tea Diplomacy in a Global World. As part of the experience, enjoy Grace Farms Tea & Coffee, which reflects Grace Farms’ foundational commitment to sharing tea as a means of fostering grace and peace in the world.

Calder is the Edwin O. Reischauer Professor and Director of the Edwin O. Reischauer Center for East Asian Studies at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.

This program is a collaboration with Grace Farms, the International House of Japan and American Friends of the International House of Japan.

Mets Japanese Heritage Night (7/24/2026)

In collaboration with the New York Mets, nine Japan-related organizations collaborated to offer an incredible networking opportunity for leaders in the U.S.-Japan and Japanese-American communities. AFIHJxIHJ participated for the first time.

Listening across time: creativity, connection, and being human (7/23/26)

Music has the remarkable power to transcend borders, generations, and cultures, reminding us of our shared humanity. Join us for a special cross-Pacific conversation exploring how creativity and the arts foster empathy, resilience, and deeper human connection in an increasingly complex world.

Featuring internationally acclaimed ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro, violinist and Shining Blue Dot founder Eiko Kano, and Tony Mazzocchi, President & CEO of Kaufman Music Center in New York City, this engaging discussion will examine the role of music and cultural exchange in bringing people together across time and place. David Janes of the International House of Japan will moderate the conversation.

This roundtable is part of the IHJ–AFIHJ Cultural Diplomacy Series, a joint initiative designed to advance IHJ’s founding mission: strengthening international understanding, reducing conflict, and building trust through sustained cultural and intellectual exchange.

Origins of a Legacy: The Asia-Related Institutions of John D. Rockefeller 3rd - Book Launch (6/5/2026)

Co-published by the International House of Japan, AFIHJ, and the Rockefeller Archive Center, this new publication offers a rare and deeply researched examination of John D. Rockefeller 3rd’s vision, his extraordinary institution-building across Asia, and the enduring relevance of these efforts in today’s rapidly shifting global landscape. More than a retrospective, it serves as a call to reimagine how these institutions, and those who steward them, can work in concert to address the defining challenges of our time.

IHJ x AFIHJ: Spring Gathering at BasisTech (5/19/2026)

Bringing together entrepreneurs, innovators, creative leaders with IHJ members, friends, and supporters, this event was an our first-ever program in the Boston area.

Sponsored by BasisTech, the evening included Remarks on U.S.-Japan Economic Relations by Shigeru Ariizumi (former Vice Minister for International Affairs of the Financial Services Agency of Japan), a jazz trumpet performance by Tiger Okoshi, an overview of U.S.-Japan relations by Hon. Seiichiro Takahashi, Consul General of Japan in Boston, a multi-course dinner curated by Rodrigo Blanco and Aya Rowe (two amazing culinary leaders from the Cambridge, MA area), and a panel discussion titled “The Entrepreneur’s Journey: Innovation in Japan and the U.S.”

NAGasaki: in the shadow of the flash - private screening and reception (4/28/2026)

The City of Nagasaki, UN Office for Disarmament Affairs, International House of Japan, American Friends of the International House of Japan, Ohara Construction Co., Ltd, Sky Castle Film, and Japan Society conducted a private screening of Jumpei Matsumoto's Nagasaki: In the Shadow of the Flash followed by a reception. This was a special event for professionals connected to the business, policy, and US-Japan worlds timed around the United Nations' Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

Nagasaki: In the Shadow of the Flash is a dramatic film based on the real memoirs of Japanese Red Cross nurses who provided medical care to atomic bomb survivors in Nagasaki. In 1945, nursing students Sumi Tanaka (Hinako Kikuchi), Atsuko Ohno (Karin Ono), and Misao Iwanaga (Asuka Kawatoko) returned to their hometown of Nagasaki to spend peaceful times with family and friends; however, in an instant, the city is reduced to ruins, and the three rush to provide medical care to the inured. Director Jumpei Matsumoto was born in Nagasaki and is a third-generation atomic bomb survivor. The film was released in Japan in 2025, to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing.

Refugee Pathways to Japan (4/8/2026)

On April 8, the International House of Japan and American Friends of the International House of Japan, in partnership with the Japan ICU Foundation and United States-Japan Foundation convened an invitation-only gathering focused on refugee education, talent pathways to Japan, and the catalytic role of philanthropy.

This convening is part of the roadmap to build the North America–Japan Philanthropy Alliance over the coming year—an initiative designed to strengthen sustained dialogue and collaboration among philanthropic leaders in Japan and North America. The gathering will bring together 50–75 senior leaders from business, finance, philanthropy, higher education, and civil society. Structured in three parts—systems, voices, and philanthropy—the program moves from policy design, to lived experience, to action.

Purpose
As Japan confronts demographic and workforce challenges, structured refugee education and mobility pathways offer meaningful opportunities for displaced individuals to study, work, and contribute to Japanese society. This convening will examine existing models, elevate participant voices, and identify how philanthropy can drive sustainable, long-term impact.

The next era of U.S.-Japan Relations: Leadership for a Changing Global Order (3/30/2026)

For over 80 years, U.S.–Japan relations have been supported not only by security and trade agreements, but by think tanks, foundations, exchange programs, and civic institutions. Today, this infrastructure faces consequential pressures that are often under the radar: challenges facing exchange and academic programs, constrained nonprofit funding, generational leadership transitions, and a global order in flux. This off-the-record talk asks a fundamental question: Who will sustain the next era of U.S.–Japan relations?

CULTURAL DIPLOMACY IN AN ERA OF GEOPOLITICAL UNCERTAINTY: LESSONS FROM THE OLYMPICS (2/26/2026)

VIDEO LINK HERE
Insights report here

The International House of Japan (IHJ) and the American Friends of the International House of Japan (AFIHJ) convened a virtual roundtable exploring the role of the Olympic Games as a platform for global cultural diplomacy at a time of heightened geopolitical uncertainty.

Bringing together experts from diplomacy, sport, culture, soft power, and international exchange, the discussion examined how the Olympics can serve not only as a sporting event, but as a rare moment of shared global attention—capable of fostering dialogue, human connection, and mutual understanding across political and cultural divides. Participants reflected on both the opportunities and limitations of mega-events, offered insights on how soft power works, and underscoreD the need for intentional, values-driven engagement if such moments are to contribute meaningfully to peace and international cooperation.

This roundtable is part of the new IHJ–AFIHJ Cultural Diplomacy Series, a joint initiative designed to advance IHJ’s founding mission: strengthening international understanding, reducing conflict, and building trust through sustained cultural and intellectual exchange. In today’s fragmented international environment, this mission is more vital than ever, as civil society institutions increasingly complement official diplomacy by creating durable channels for dialogue. The roundtable WAS co-sponsored by the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center (JACCC) in Los Angeles, reflecting a shared commitment to deepening U.S.–Japan ties and highlighting the essential role of cultural institutions in shaping a more cooperative and humane global future and given that Los Angeles is the site of the 2028 Olympics.

Lessons from the Hibakusha (1/19/2026)

The International House of Japan in partnership with AFIHJ, the International House Association, and the Nobel Peace Center held a discussion with two leaders from the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nihon Hidankyo.

Co-sponsors: Nobel Peace Center & International House Association