More than 350 participants — including nearly 30 governors, vice governors and mayors — from Hawaiʻi and Japan recently convened the 2026 Hawaiʻi-Japan Sister Summit for dialogue, cultural exchange and policy collaboration aimed at “Creating Our Future.”
This year’s summit, which ended last week, built on the inaugural 2023 event, inviting state and county officials, Sister Prefecture and Sister City representatives as well as experts in economic development, culture, health, security and resilience to focus on transforming long-standing sister relationships into actionable initiatives supporting economic opportunity, shared resilience and deeper cross-cultural engagement.
“Japan remains one of Hawaiʻi’s most important global partners and the summit allowed us to advance practical areas of collaboration for the years ahead,” said Hawaiʻi Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism Director James Kunane Tokioka in a state release about the summit. “From economic development to resilience, education and student exchange, these discussions help shape long-term value for both Hawaiʻi and Japan.”
Japan-America Society of Hawaiʻi President Reyna Kaneko emphasized the importance of these connections.
“Our sister ties foster trust and mutual understanding and this summit helps turn those relationships into meaningful action,” said Kaneko in the release.
Keynote speaker Joshua Walker, president and chief executive officer of New York-based Japan Society, outlined the strategic, economic and cultural importance of the Hawaiʻi-Japan relationship to open the summit.
Breakout sessions covered topics such as One Health, sustainability, Hawaiʻi-Japan economic impacts, disaster preparedness, sports diplomacy and emerging creative and pop culture industries.
Speakers included Hawaiʻi Gov. Josh Green; Fukuoka, Japan, Gov. Seitaro Hattori; and senior representatives from Japan Airlines, American Red Cross and National Institute for Defense Studies, along with leaders in the sports, gaming and creative sectors.
An invitation-only Hawaiʻi-Japan Economic Policy Forum convened at the end of last week at the East-West Center, focusing on trade, investment and the role of government and sister relationships in strengthening long-term economic partnership.
