Our Story
In the aftermath of WWII, visionaries in Japan and the United States came together to build a university in Japan that would educate global citizens who serve God and humanity. The Japan ICU Foundation was incorporated in New York in 1949 to support this endeavor, and International Christian University (ICU) was founded the same year. ICU has since grown into a leading university that remains a symbol of peace and reconciliation.
Today, the world is more interconnected than ever and we face daunting challenges from climate change to the refugee crisis. With our eyes on the future, JICUF’s mission is to work with ICU to nurture global citizens who contribute to the well-being of humanity. We fulfill this mission by focusing on three themes: Sustainability, DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion), and Peacebuilding. The Foundation considers these themes core responsibilities of global citizens and key to the common good. The Foundation envisions a community of global citizens who actively contribute to a peaceful and sustainable future for humanity. Our efforts are dedicated to making this vision a reality.
Most Recent Articles
Japan ICU Foundation Launches Global Citizen Fellowship – Announcement from JICUF President & CEO Paul Hastings
I believe deeply in the importance of global learning. Growing up biculturally between Japan and the United States, studying abroad in Sri Lanka during college and living and working in India have deeply impacted me. These experiences helped me crystalize my values and inspired me to work in international education. At the Japan ICU Foundation, we believe in the power and importance of global learning experiences, and we are so excited to share the launch of the Global Citizen Fellowship (GCF). GCF is a yearlong cohort-based program for undergraduate students at ICU. Based on the three pillars of global citizenship: awareness, responsibility and participation, GCF is designed to allow participants […]
JICUF Student Ambassadors Interview Grant Recipients: Part 2
To commemorate the opening of our Japan office on the ICU campus, JICUF held a series of opening events in mid-May. One of the events was a showcase of JICUF grant projects. We asked our student ambassadors to interview the participants. Please enjoy below the interviews conducted by Chiemi Linda Saito. Chiemi Linda Saito (Photo by Naoki Beppu) 1.“Compost Project” Yumiko Maruyama (Undergraduate Student) Undergraduate students and members of the ICU Compost club, Nanako Watanabe and Kanami Suzuki, who participated in the field trip, were interviewed for this article. Chiemi: Where did you visit on your field trip to Kyushu? Nanako: First, we visited a farmer who worked with high […]
Introducing the 2024-2025 Photography Interns
JICUF recently hired three new photography interns, Yosuke Kobayashi, Yu Goto, and Kyoka Horiuchi. They are undergraduate students at ICU and will regularly post on our Instagram and Facebook accounts, taking photographs and short movies for our publications. Please follow us on social media to check out their posts!
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