The ASEAN-Japan Centre (AJC) held the ASEAN-Japan Youth Bridge Builders (AJYBB) Co-Creation Lab 2026 on 29 August and 5 September 2026 at the ASEAN Hall, bringing together young people from the ASEAN Member States living in Japan and Japanese students to turn their ideas for stronger ASEAN-Japan relations into concrete projects.
The two-day programme provided a space for young people from diverse cultural and educational backgrounds to meet, exchange perspectives, and co-create initiatives that they themselves would like to put into action. Thirty participants from eight ASEAN Member States and Japan joined the first day of the programme, including university students, language school students, and four high school students.
Activity Highlights
Day 1
On the first day 29 August, participants began by getting to know one another and sharing their interests and ideas on how young people could contribute to closer ASEAN-Japan relations.
AJC first provided a workshop on how to develop effective project proposals and pitches. Participants then worked in six groups to brainstorm project ideas based on issues and opportunities that mattered to them. Through discussions and the exchange of different perspectives, they refined their ideas and explored possibilities for collaboration across groups.
The discussions continued between the two sessions, and participants returned to AJC on 5 September to further develop their proposals and prepare their final pitches.
Day 2
By the second day, their ideas had evolved into four project proposals:
ASEAN-Japan Festival
A participatory cultural event introducing the diversity of ASEAN and Japan through food and drink, language exchange, traditional games, costumes and other interactive activities.
JASEAN – Beyond Our Identity
An initiative designed to build lasting friendships and encourage participants to look beyond labels such as “foreigner” or “Japanese,” combining online exchanges with in-person activities.
Eco-Anxiety
A project bringing ASEAN and Japanese youth together to explore eco-anxiety through workshops, disaster preparedness activities and community-based storytelling, drawing on different climate-related experiences across the region.
ASEAN-Japan Students Network (AJSN)
A proposal to establish a sustainable network connecting ASEAN student associations and Japanese organizations through student summits, dialogues, surveys and cultural exchanges.
The four teams presented their proposals to a panel of judges, explaining their concepts, expected impact, feasibility, and plans for implementation.
The judging panel included Mr. Alvin C. Malasig, First Secretary and Consul of the Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines and an Executive Board Member of AJC; AJC Secretary General Dr. Hirabayashi; Director of Exchange and Tourism Ms. Ei Ei Khin; and Lead Public Communications Officer Ms. Miyauchi.
The proposals were evaluated based on five criteria: feasibility, originality, ASEAN-Japan value, sustainability and ripple effect, and team readiness. Following the evaluation, ASEAN-Japan Festival and JASEAN – Beyond Our Identity were selected to receive up to JPY 100,000 each from AJC to implement their projects by December 2026.
Key Takeaways
- The Co-Creation Lab showed the value of moving beyond simply bringing ASEAN and Japanese youth together by giving them the opportunity to create something together. Participants brought different cultural backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives to their teams, and the process of discussing, negotiating, combining ideas, and developing a proposal together became an important part of the cross-cultural learning experience.
- Opportunities for young people from different ASEAN Member States to connect with one another appear to be limited, particularly for those who are not involved in student associations. Some participants also shared that they find it difficult to make Japanese friends. This highlighted a potential role for AJC as a connector, providing a space and opportunities for ASEAN and Japanese youth who are interested in meeting new people and building connections.
- Language barriers remained a challenge, even with the use of AI tools to support communication. This highlighted the importance of continuing to explore ways for ASEAN and Japanese youth to communicate, collaborate, and meaningfully engage with one another across language differences.
- Feedback from participants reflected a strong interest in continued engagement. In the Day 2 survey, all respondents said they would participate in a similar programme again. Meeting people from different cultural backgrounds, developing ideas together, and building new friendships and professional connections were among the most valued aspects of the programme.
- The four proposals demonstrated the wide range of issues that young people see as relevant to the future of ASEAN-Japan relations, from cultural exchange and friendship to environmental concerns and long-term youth networks.
Moving Forward
The Co-Creation Lab marked the beginning, rather than the end, of the participants’ projects.
The two selected teams will continue working with AJC over the coming months to refine and implement their ideas. ASEAN-Japan Festival and JASEAN – Beyond Our Identity are expected to be implemented by December 2026, bringing the ideas developed during the Lab to wider communities.
AJC will also continue exploring ways for participants and the other project teams to remain involved in future activities and to build on the connections formed through AJYBB.
Through AJYBB, AJC aims to create opportunities for young people not only to learn about ASEAN-Japan relations, but also to shape those relations themselves by connecting, creating and taking action together.
