Alumni Events
After completing the GLOPAC Fellowship Program, Visiting Fellows return to their home organizations to apply what they learned during the Program. But the end of the Program does not have to be the end of their connections with GLOPAC. The GLOPAC Secretariat hosts events for Program alumni both in Japan and abroad.
Alumni Forum
The Alumni Forums are arranged by GLOPAC staff as get-togethers for former Visiting Fellows in their home countries or regions. The forums are open to any former participant of one of the GLOPAC Programs and are often attended by diplomatic staff and other guests as well. They are intended to be a place for former Visiting Fellows to connect and strengthen their relationships with each other and with GLOPAC. Often the forums are scheduled in coordination with other events like financial conferences or symposiums.
In 2019, GLOPAC held the first Tokyo-based Alumni Forum in connection with a special seminar conducted by the Program on International Financial Systems (PIFS) in the United States. In the future, the center is planning on hosting more forums both in Japan and abroad.
Homecoming Program
The Homecoming Programs are held during the GLOPAC Fellowship Program terms. Every term, staff at GLOPAC ask a few former Visiting Fellows to come back and give talks to the current cohort of Fellows. The former Visiting Fellows are asked to present on subjects like how to best enjoy their time in Japan, the status of the financial industry in their home country, and on what they have learned since their time at GLOPAC came to an end.
Usually, the former Visiting Fellows who are invited are from countries not represented in the current cohort, giving both groups an opportunity to network with their peers from other countries and organizations. The former Visiting Fellows are also able to meet up with their previous mentors at FSA and strengthen the relationships they made when they were attending the Program.
International Conferences
When the FSA sponsors or participates in an international conference, sometimes the staff will invite former Visiting Fellows to attend and give a presentation as part of the event. Most of these events are run in partnership with the Asia Development Bank Institute (ADBI) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Conferences cover a wide range of topics including consumer financial literacy, FinTech, finance and an aging society, and cross-border anti-money laundering practices.
Although the international conferences attended by GLOPAC have so far been in held in Japan, GLOPAC intends to participate in events around Asia after the Covid-19 pandemic has ended. GLOPAC also hopes to work closely with the ADBI and OECD to strengthen relationships between financial regulators across Asia through conferences and symposiums.
Even after the end of the Program, GLOPAC provides opportunities for its former Visiting Fellows to get involved through events, programs, and conferences designed to help build an international network of financial regulators.