Funding

Fully Funded

Program dates

Aug 15, 2026 – Dec 20, 2026

Forum / Summit•Japan · Hybrid

ASEAN-Japan Youth Forum “Take Actions for Social Change” (TASC)

The Japan Foundation

Application Deadline

Closed · May 1, 2026

Reopens ~May 2027

Official Page

The ASEAN-Japan Youth Forum, run under the title “Take Actions for Social Change” (TASC), is an annual student exchange organised by the Japan Foundation together with the ASEAN University Network Secretariat and the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Kyoto University. Each edition brings together about 30 undergraduates from ASEAN countries and Japan. Over roughly five months the group studies one shared social theme, travels to a Southeast Asian host country and then to Japan, and works in teams on action plans that are presented at the end of the programme. The 2026 edition ran from August to December on the theme “Live in Harmony with Nature: Reimagining the Biosphere from Asian Perspectives”, with the ASEAN field trip held in Thailand. The working language throughout is English.

Benefits & funding

  • About 30 places per edition, split between students from ASEAN countries and students in Japan.
  • No participation fee — the Japan Foundation’s 2026 call states that taking part is in principle free of charge for selected students.
  • The programme guideline published for the 2023 edition states that the organisers cover international travel, accommodation and meals for the field trips, including round-trip transport from the airport nearest the participant’s home to the venue.
  • Two in-person study trips of seven days and six nights each: one in the ASEAN host country (Thailand for the 2026 edition) and one in Japan.
  • Online seminars and mentoring sessions between the trips, plus a cross-border peer network of students and organisers across ASEAN and Japan.
  • Teams present their action plans at the close of the programme; past cohorts’ reports are published by the Japan Foundation.

Eligibility

  • Undergraduate students enrolled at an ASEAN University Network member university in one of the ten ASEAN countries, or at a university in Japan. Students at other universities cannot apply.
  • No nationality requirement is published. Applicants of any nationality qualify as long as they are enrolled at an eligible university.
  • Ability to take part in English; applicants may submit a TOEIC, TOEFL or IELTS score if they have one.
  • Availability for the full schedule, including both field trips and the online sessions.
  • A recommendation letter from a professor or academic adviser is part of the application.

Can you apply?

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Application process

  1. 1
    Check the current call on the Japan Foundation programme page and on the ASEAN University Network TASC page; each edition opens in the first half of the year.
  2. 2
    Students at AUN member universities apply through the ASEAN University Network Secretariat with an application form, an essay, a professor’s recommendation letter and English test results if available. For the 2026 edition this route closed on 1 May 2026.
  3. 3
    Students at universities in Japan apply to the Japan Foundation instead; the 2026 window there ran from 16 March to 30 April 2026.
  4. 4
    Applications are screened on documents — first-round results came on 18 May 2026 for the Japan route and 29 May 2026 for the AUN route.
  5. 5
    Shortlisted applicants sit an online interview in June, with final results on 23 June 2026 (Japan route) and 10 July 2026 (AUN route).
  6. 6
    Selected students join the orientation and first online seminar in August, then follow the field-trip and seminar schedule to December.

Program timeline

  1. Applications open for students in Japan

    Mar 16, 2026

  2. Deadline, Japan Foundation route

    Apr 30, 2026

  3. Deadline, ASEAN University Network route

    May 1, 2026

  4. First-round results, Japan route

    May 18, 2026

  5. First-round results, AUN route

    May 29, 2026

  6. Online interviews

    Jun 1, 2026 to Jun 26, 2026

  7. Final results, Japan route

    Jun 23, 2026

  8. Final results, AUN route

    Jul 10, 2026

  9. Orientation and first online seminar

    Aug 15, 2026

  10. ASEAN field trip, Thailand

    Aug 30, 2026 to Sep 5, 2026

  11. Online mentoring session

    Oct 31, 2026

  12. Second online seminar

    Nov 14, 2026

  13. Study visit to Japan

    Dec 14, 2026 to Dec 20, 2026