Japan Bridge Scandinavia
Is The New Name

At the association’s annual meeting on 20 April 2023 it was decided to change name from Japan House Scandinavia to Japan Bridge Scandinavia, mainly to be distinguished from the three Japan Houses established by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and instead emphasize the bridge as a connection between people and countries, not least because the association has its seat in a region where a bridge connects Sweden and Denmark. 

Intelligence Watch, a Swedish think tank, has written the new report “Scandinavia’s Sustainable Tech Banana Beckons Japan” about the existing business, research and political relations between Japan and Scandinavia. It recommends Japan to collaborate more with Europe’s more sustainable version of California’s Silicon Valley, which in the report is called Scandinavia’s Sustainable Tech Banana due […]

Japan-EU Partnership

The Japan-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) entered into force on 1 February 2019, opening a new marketplace home to 635 million inhabitants and almost a third of the world’s GDP. Together with the EU-Japan Strategic Partnership and the EU-Japan Green Alliance
 t brings the people of Japan and Europe closer than ever before.

ESS And
J-PARC

J-Parc (Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex) became the second neutron source in the world in 2008. ESS (European Spallation Source) in Lund, Sweden, is the third. The two facilities exchange technical information and experiences since 2012. In 2017 the Memorandum of Collaboration was renewed in front of Prime Ministers Abe and Löfven and again in 2022 by director Helmut Schober, ESS, and director Takashi Kobayashi, J-PARC.

Ambassador Congratulated

Japan House Scandinavia was established as a non-profit member based association on 22 April 2021 to enhance political, economic and cultural relations between Japan and Scandinavia. Key speaker at the event was the Swedish Ambassador to Japan Pereric Högberg who talked about the Swedish-Japanese relations and congratulated Japan House Scandinavia, welcomed the initiative and promised to support it. ”I like your ambition and your approach. I wish you all the best and let us stay in contact!”, he concluded.
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Our mission is to enhance social, economic and cultural relations between Japan and Sweden/Scandinavia.

By joining Japan Bridge Scandinavia, your organisation will have the opportunity to be part of the process of building deeper relations between Japan and Scandinavia and interact with stakeholders, experts and policymakers in a variety of settings

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Background

On 10 November 2019, the Swedish think tank Intelligence Watch highlighted strong business and research ties between Malmö and Lund in Southern Sweden and Japan. Companies like Axis (a Canon subsidiary) and Sony employ 3,000 people there, while 70% of cars in the local harbor are Japanese. 

Other collaborations include J-Parc and ESS in neutron spallation, and Nippon Foundation’s major funding for the World Maritime University. Moreover, several Japanese firms have their Nordic headquarters in the region, and companies such as Alfa Laval and Tetra Pak consider Japan a key market. In September 2020, a significant meeting led to the agreement to establish Japan House Scandinavia in Malmö.

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