Australia-Japan Student Policy Summit

This March the ANU College of Law and Sophia University (Tokyo) inaugurate an innovative cross-institutional program for undergraduate learning through dialogue and collaborative analysis of regulatory and policy challenges in the Asia-Pacific.

Arranged with the support of the ANU Japan Institute, the Australia-Japan Student Policy Summit is a week-long, interdisciplinary intensive program bringing together students from the two institutions. A credit-bearing undergraduate elective for both ANU and Sophia students, the Summit will help emerging leaders in Australia and Japan connect and collaborate to transform local and global conditions in pursuit of a just and sustainable twenty-first century.

This first Summit will take place in Canberra at the ANU College of Law between 18-22 March, with plans underway for a reciprocal Summit in 2025 at the Sophia University campus in central Tokyo.

Modelled as a bilateral inter-governmental policy conference, the theme for the first Summit is ‘Diversity and Inclusion in Australia and Japan: Harnessing Diverse Perspectives for Change’. Student delegates will engage intimately with the diversity and inclusion landscapes in Australia and Japan as models for the Asia-Pacific region and international efforts towards advancing these goals.

Participating students will be challenged by interdisciplinary cross-institutional tuition from experts in law, politics, development and international relations. They will also self-organise in collectively analysing pressing policy challenges facing the Asia-Pacific and produce detailed instruments which assess the two jurisdictions’ achievements, challenges and opportunities, articulate a shared vision for the future, and identify actionable strategies for change with a particular emphasis on international co-operation.

The ANU College of Law and Sophia University are excited to be leaving participating students with skills and knowledge necessary to drive positive regional change and creatively solve challenges facing Australia, Japan and the wider Asia-Pacific.