Temple students, staff, faculty, and members of Tokyo’s TCVB pose for a group photo following the special lecture hosted by TCVB.
Students in Temple University, Japan Campus’ (TUJ) Emerging Leaders Program (ELP) had a valuable opportunity to visit the Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau (TCVB) and learn how the city welcomes tens of million foreign tourists each year. The visit offered insight into Tokyo’s ongoing efforts to position itself as the world’s top travel destination.
As one of the most visited cities in the world, Tokyo faces both successes and challenges. During the visit, students heard directly from officials about the strategies behind Tokyo’s tourism achievements, as well as how the city manages issues such as overtourism and works to bridge the growing gap in expectations between visitors and local Tokyo residents.
Students were warmly welcomed by members of TCVB, a Tokyo public foundation, on November 19, 2025. The event began with a lecture by senior officials who introduced the bureau’s activities and outlined their strategies for promoting Tokyo to international visitors. After the lecture, students visited the tourist information center, toured the Tokyo government, and concluded the day by watching a projection-mapping show displayed against the 48-story building.
Bridging Communities and Visitors
During the lecture, Masaru Suzuki, executive director of TCVB, explained how the bureau, affiliated with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, supports local communities in enhancing tourism and welcoming foreign visitors, all with the goal of making the city more appealing. He said TCVB’s ongoing effort to strengthen industry partnership and network to further enhance Tokyo as a leading destination for both tourism and business events.
Suzuki said that his role is to be “a leader like an orchestra conductor, ensuring every instrument comes together in harmony.” He encouraged TUJ students to reflect on how they, as future global leaders, can contribute to Tokyo’s ongoing globalization.
He emphasized that fostering mutual understanding between foreign travelers and local residents is essential, noting that tourism plays a powerful role in driving internationalization. Suzuki urged TUJ students to serve as bridges between Japanese communities and people from abroad, helping to strengthen Tokyo’s global connections.
Students asked a series of questions, including concerns about the rise in inbound tourism and the overtourism issues becoming increasingly visible in Tokyo and other popular destinations across Japan. Acknowledging these challenges, Suzuki and TCVB staff noted that Temple students, who come from diverse cultural backgrounds and understand both Japanese and international perspectives, can play a meaningful role in addressing the issues Japan faces as it works to balance tourism growth with community well-being.
Temple’s Emerging Leaders Program
Among the ELP students, several were majoring in Tourism, Hospitality and Event Management. For them, this visit was a particularly valuable opportunity to hear directly from senior officials of a major government-backed organization and gain firsthand insight into the industry.
TUJ’s Emerging Leaders Program is an innovative initiative designed to give a select group of incoming undergraduate students an intensive, immersive, and hands-on leadership training experience. Its goal is to cultivate the next generation of student leaders at TUJ, individuals who will graduate fully prepared to thrive on the global stage.
Students chosen as Emerging Leaders arrive on campus ahead of their classmates each fall to begin the program, which is built around three core components: a three-credit course covering fundamental leadership theories; a series of small-group meetings with influential figures across Tokyo, spanning fields from business to government; and practical opportunities to apply what they learn in real-world settings. The program culminates in a final project in which each Emerging Leader plans and leads activities for TUJ’s annual Spirit Week celebrations held every November.
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