The Ship for World Youth Leaders program is a Japanese Government funded program that seeks to empower and connect youth of the world, with the aims of promoting youth leadership and cross-cultural exchange. Each year the Japanese Government invite around 300 youth from 14 different countries to spend time both in Japan on a short home-stay, and then travel on a ship, to various ports of call across the world. This is wholly sponsored by the government and is not affiliated with any political or religious groups. During the time on-board, there are workshops and forums facilitated by leaders and experts in a variety of speciality areas. You can read more about this truly life changing program here: http://www.shipforworldyouth.org/. Of note, Australia is one of the countries that has been invited to attend frequently. Young leaders who have participated in this program are now sharing their knowledge in a variety of fields, including the United Nations, Education, Business, Community Development, the Environment, Politics and the Arts.
2016 program details:
Participating countries:
Australia
Kingdom of Bahrain
Republic of Chile
India
Japan
United Mexican States
New Zealand
Russian Federation
Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
United Republic of Tanzania
United Arab Emirates
Tentative schedule in 2016:
Jan. 14/ Arrival of the OPYs
Jan. 15/ Orientation and welcome reception
Jan. 16 – 19/ Local program (homestay + local experience for OPYs)
Jan. 20 – 26/ Onshore Training Session
Jan. 27 – Feb. 29/ Onboard Training Session
(Feb. 9-12: Port Of Call in India / Feb. 14-17: Port Of Call in Sri Lanka)
Ship For World Youth Leaders 