Young Strategists Forum

The Young Strategists Forum is an initiative of The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) that seeks to develop a new generation of strategic thinkers for an age of constrained resources and mounting international challenges. We are happy to announce that the ninth Young Strategists Forum, organized in partnership with the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, will convene in January or February 2023, in Tokyo, Japan. It will include a seminar, a unique grand strategy simulation, and a study tour that will expose participants to Japan’s leading policymakers. This call for applications is open to emerging leaders—academics, journalists, policymakers, business professionals, and military officers—between the ages of 25 and 40, from the United States, Europe, Japan, and other likeminded countries in the Indo-Pacific.

The 2023 Young Strategists Forum will begin with a half-day, interactive seminar led by Bonnie Glaser, director of the GMF Asia Program. The seminar will help participants to understand strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific. This will be followed by a 36-hour grand strategy simulation led by Zack Cooper, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and co-director of the Alliance for Securing Democracy at GMF. Participants will take on the roles of the United States and other major regional powers as they pursue long-term goals and carefully allocate military, diplomatic, and economic resources while navigating a series of crises. At the end of the exercise, participants will be debriefed on lessons learned. The simulation will be followed by a two-day study tour focused on the US-Japan alliance. Participants will have an opportunity to visit a major military facility and to interact with Japanese experts, politicians, business leaders, and government officials to gain a high-level perspective on Japanese strategic thinking.

A draft program itinerary of the forum includes:

Day 1 – Arrival in Tokyo, Japan

Day 2 – Opening Seminar and Grand Strategy Simulation, Part 1

Day 3 – Grand Strategy Simulation, Part 2

Day 4 – Meetings with Japanese Officials, Politicians, and Business Leaders

Day 5 – Visit to Military Facility, Meetings with Japanese Security Experts

Day 6 – Departure

To give participants an opportunity to share their perspectives on key military, political, and economic issues, GMF will publish a series of papers by Young Strategists Forum participants after the conclusion of the program.

International airfare, domestic travel, meals, accommodation, and ground transportation during YSF will be covered by the organizers.