The Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR) is a Japanese government-affiliated general incorporated foundation established in 1988 to support the international activities of local governments to strengthen international collaboration, particularly around regional development and revitalisation. Its headquarters are in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

and there are domestic branch offices in each prefecture in Japan, as well as a network of overseas offices in major cities around the world.

The JET Programme

In cooperation with local authorities, the Ministry of Internal Affairs & Communications (MIC), the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

(MOFA) and the

Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology The , also known as MEXT or Monka-shō, is one of the eleven Ministries of Japan that composes part of the executive branch of the Government of Japan. Its goal is to improve the development of Japan in relation with the international community ...

(MEXT), CLAIR manages the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme. JET Programme participants are assigned to be

Assistant Language Teacher An Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) is a foreign national serving as an assistant teacher (paraprofessional educator) in a Japanese classroom, particularly for English. The term was created by the Japanese Ministry of Education at the time of the ...

s (ALTs), who provide language instruction at elementary, junior and senior high schools;

Coordinators for International Relations A , or CIR, is a participant on the JET Programme residing and working in Japan. Although responsibilities for a CIR vary according to his or her contracting organization, the majority of a CIR's time is spent organizing and assisting various proj ...

(CIRs), who engage in local international exchange activities; or Sports Exchange Advisors (SEAs), promoting international exchange through sport. The JET Programme is one of the largest international exchange programmes in the world, acknowledged as an embodiment of

public diplomacy In international relations, public diplomacy or people's diplomacy, broadly speaking, is any of the various government-sponsored efforts aimed at communicating directly with foreign publics to establish a dialogue designed to inform and influen ...

, with more than 65,000 participants since it began in 1987. CLAIR is one of the main sponsors of the JET Alumni Association in its respective territories.

International CLAIR Offices

CLAIR's international offices, located in New York,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, and

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, investigate the latest trends in local development and revitalisation policies, on behalf of Japanese ministries and local authorities, promote the JET Programme and a number of other international exchange programmes, and organise Japan-related seminars and sister city relations. CLAIR participates in such bodies as

United Cities and Local Governments United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) is an umbrella international organisation for cities, local and regional governments, and municipal associations throughout the world that is concerned with representing and defending the interests of ...

and the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...

Intercultural Cities programme. It was also associated with the

Asian Network of Major Cities 21 Asian Network of Major Cities 21 was a body representing the interests of several of Asia's largest capital cities around common themes of importance, including urban planning, sustainability and crisis management. The organization was advocated ...

. CLAIR offices in New York, London and Sydney are known locally as the Japan Local Government Centre.

External links

CLAIR Homepage

Japan Local Government Center New York

Japan Local Government Centre London

Japan Local Government Centre Sydney
{{DEFAULTSORT:Council Of Local Authorities For International Relations 1988 establishments in Japan Organizations established in 1988 Economic development organizations Foreign relations of Japan Government of Japan Local government in Japan Municipal international relations