Japan Local Government Centre
The Japan Local Government Centre (CLAIR, Sydney) is one of the seven overseas offices of the Council of Local Authorities for International Relations, otherwise known as CLAIR.
CLAIR is a Japanese government-affiliated general incorporated foundation established in 1988 as a special government body under the authority of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. It is funded and administered by the governments of all 47 prefectures and 20 designated cities to support the internationalisation of local areas throughout Japan.
Headquartered in Tokyo, CLAIR has a domestic network of 67 offices across Japan and an international network of offices in Beijing, London, New York, Paris, Seoul, Singapore and Sydney.
One of CLAIR’s key projects is the administration of the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme. Under the Programme, young people from around the world are selected and placed to work within local governments or educational institutions to facilitate international exchange and foreign language education across Japan.
The CLAIR Sydney office was established in 1994 to liaise primarily between local governments and other relevant organisations in Australia/New Zealand and Japan.
Our key functions include:
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- Research into Australian and New Zealand government policies and practices
- Administer the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme in Australia and New Zealand
- Support the affiliations of sister/friendship cities and facilitate international exchange between local governments
- Support the implementation of school, cultural and economic exchange activities and events
- Organise visits and provide on the ground support for visiting Japanese government delegations to Australia and New Zealand
- Organise and run the Local Government Exchange & Cooperation Seminar for officials and experts from Australian and New Zealand governments and educational institutions
- Research into multicultural policies and services in Australia and New Zealand
- Organise and run the annual Multicultural Seminar for staff of Japanese local governments and public organisations
- Publish material in Japanese and English on current trends in regional and local administration
- Collaborate with government organisations and educational institutions in Australia and New Zealand
- Stage an annual one-day forum to promote the exchange of ideas between Japanese and Australian local government employees and experts
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