What is Cool Japan Award?

The Cool Japan Association aims to help raise awareness of locations and products throughout Japan that are specifically appealing to the global market. To be certified, each applicant undergoes a screening process which ends with a group of 100 foreigners judging each item. Cool Japan Award nominations can be anything from a local specialty product or scenery to activities or cultural traditions. Comments from the judges are provided to each winner to help with their promotion strategies. One of the goals of the award certification is to stimulate economic revitalization, especially in the countryside areas. The Cool Japan Award was established in 2015 by the Cool Japan Association, a non-profit organization supported purely by private sectors.

Cool Japan Award Certification Process

About the Certification Logo

Winners of a Cool Japan Award are allowed to freely use the Cool Japan Award certification logo in their advertisements, promotion, and other business material forever at no cost. The Cool Japan Trademark belongs to the Cool Japan Association.

About the Cool Japan Association

Cool Japan Association discovers locations, products, and other things throughout Japan that may often be overlooked, but may be thought as “cool” by foreigners. Certifying these things as “Cool Japan” helps to develop the domestic industries and culture throughout inbound and international business strategies, as well as spreading information internationally. Our association was established in 2011 as the “Japan-China Animation Industry Association.” After the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, we wanted to “revitalize Japan through spreading its culture and information.” Through this, the “Cool Japan X COOL China” project was held by introducing cool ACG (anime, comics, games) from both countries at film festivals held in each country (Japan: Yubari Film Festival, China: Changsha International Anime & Game Show). In 2013, the association expanded to include a field that included the whole world and the name changed to “Cool Japan Association.” From 2015, the discovery and certification of “Cool Japan” has been taking place through the Cool Japan Awards. 

Name Cool Japan Association
Established 2011.6.16
Address Nishijin Business Incubation Center No.8, Kainokamicho 97, Kamigyo-district, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture 602-8061
Special Adviser Alex Arthur Kerr (Expert on East-Asian culture and art)
Special Adviser Mike Harris (Representative Director of Canyons Co.Ltd)
Chairman, Director, Founder Masato Ohta (Chairman of GETTI group & CEO of GETTI INC.)
Exective Director Julien Giry (Photographer residing in France. Co-Author of Nippon 100)
Vice Exective Director Christopher Pokaier (Professor at Waseda University Business School)
Senior Managing Director Teruhiko Ueda (Director of WIP group, President of WIP Japan)
Managing Director Shinichi Tanaka (President of Nishijin Textile Industry Association)
Director Julia Maeda (Founder of Tokyo Personalised)
Director Lauren Scharf (Inbound business Consultant)
Director Aurelie Roperch (Photographer residing in France. Co-Author of Nippon 100)
Adviser Osamitsu Yamada (Kawasaki Chamber of Commerce and Industry President)
Adviser Hiroshi Fujiwara (Chairman & CEO of BroadBand Tower Co. Ltd., Chief Director of Internet Association Japan)
Adviser Shihiro Touji (Executive partner of Iwata Goto Law Firm)
Adviser Tetsuo Kitani (Professor of Kyoto University)
Adviser Ken Shibusawa (Chairman of Commons Asset Management. Inc)
Adviser Everett Kennedy Brown(Photographer, Writer)
Adviser Shirley Kao (Film Producer)
Adviser Ashley Harvey (Vice director of AVIAREPS Japan)
Adviser Yu Zhiming (Lawyer)
Adviser Quyen To Pham (Vietnamese Journalist)
Adviser Hiroki Owada (Film producer)
Adviser Naotake Maeda (First-class architect / Curator)
Adviser Hiromichi Endo (Chairman of the Kumamoto City Board of Education)
Adviser Hitoshi Sagaseki (Representative of Cool Japan NY Brooklyn K’s Gallery.)
Adviser Kent Yamauchi (President of Glocal Innovation Holdings)
Adviser Shoto Furuya (Representative Director of School to Work)
Business - “Cool Japan (CJ)” council and certification
- Hold the “Cool Japan Awards” to discover and certify CJ
- Manage the CJ trademark and “certification logo”
- Hold trade fairs, events, business meetings, tours, and more, both domestically and internationally for researchers, companies, municipals, organizations, and other groups related to CJ
- Analysis, consultation, and inbound/outbound support using CJ data from the CJA judging process
- Sharing CJ certification information through pamphlets, online, video, and more
Related Company Documentation Click the link below to download a pdf (Japanese only)
一般社団法人クールジャパン協議会 定款