This year, Japan will play host to major international gatherings, among them the Group of Eight summit in July and the Tokyo International Conference on African Development this week.

These events are being held against a backdrop of waning domestic public interest in international issues. In the face of many difficult problems linked to widening gaps in society and the graying of the population, many people apparently want the government to devote its efforts to solving domestic problems rather than focusing on foreign policy issues.

But it is questionable whether Japan can find fundamental solutions to domestic problems with such an inward-looking mindset alone. If citizens develop new ties with other countries, I believe they can also find ways to break the sense of stagnation looming over Japan.

In addition to environmental problems, citizens and local governments in Europe have a high level of interest in the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations. The program is intended to help developing countries advance. For example, in Norway, some of the funds of the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation are used to promote exchanges between Norwegian citizens and people of developing nations. The government in Oslo firmly supports school exchanges and cooperation activities organized by nongovernmental organizations and local governments.

In Britain, "linking" activities, modeled on sister city initiatives, are gaining momentum. Through linking, local governments, nonprofit organizations, schools, churches and hospitals form partnerships with local communities in developing countries.

This is based on the idea that if citizens take part in exchanges and cooperation with developing countries in everyday life, they will not only support government-led international cooperation but also take the initiative to advance grass-roots cooperation on their own.