TBS reported on Sunday on a study abroad event hosted by the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo on Saturday, during which the Ambassador called on Japanese high school and university students to study in the U.S. The network quoted the Ambassador as saying: “I hope that studying abroad will be the beginning of a journey that will change your life, and you will come back from the U.S. and tell everyone else what a great experience you had, and be ambassadors for Japan.” The network said artist Frankie Cihi also talked about her experience studying art at a university in New York and stressed the importance of meeting people while studying abroad.

The network said since the number of Japanese studying in the U.S. has been on the decline since 1997, the governments of the U.S. and Japan are aiming to double the number of students studying in each other’s country by 2020, adding that the Ambassador has been working hard toward that end. TV Asahi aired similar reports on Saturday, saying that the Ambassador called on young Japanese to study abroad by saying that it is “an investment in the future.” Jiji carried a similar story, saying that the Ambassador stressed the importance of understanding the cultures of other nations in order to work together to address various global challenges. She also reportedly talked about how her own experience studying abroad gave her the courage to try new things.