On March 22nd, 20 students of Waseda University and 20 students of the University of Tokyo visited Canada on the Kakehashi Project , a program designed to strengthen cultural understanding with Japan and Canada.

The visit commenced with a series of lectures at the Embassy of Japan. Counsellor Yuji Tokita discussed economic and diplomatic relations between Japan and Canada, while Ms. Ai Nakamura, Researcher at the Embassy explained Canadian culture using the iconic “I am Canadian” commercial and her academic research on French Canadians. Counsellor Takashi Futagi also offered a presentation on Japanese-Canadian relations over the past 90 years, referencing the Hiroshima peace garden in Montreal and the redress of the internment of Japanese-Canadians during the Second World War.

In the evening, the Japanese students were joined by Canadian students that had travelled to Japan in December 2016 from the University of Ottawa and Carleton University. Opening remarks were provided by Ambassador Kenjiro Monji, Ms. Christine Nakaura of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, as well as Kakehashi participants Ms. Roxanne Dumoulin and Mr. Kenmaru Suedomi. The former Ambassador of Canada to Japan, Mr. Len Edwards led everyone in a toast, speaking on the value of cultural exchange in light of current international affairs and thanking the Government of Japan for establishing and funding the Kakehashi program.