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August 15, 2024
 

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Eric Johnston

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Eric Johnston
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 4, 2023
Growing pains: Niseko-area town of Kutchan faces questions over sustainable development
With tourism to Japan having fully resumed, developers are once again looking at the Niseko area as a place to invest and build. But can it be done sustainably?
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 21, 2022
Watchdog OKs new rules to allow Japan's nuclear plants to operate beyond 60 years
The move comes as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pushes continued use of older nuclear plants in the years ahead to meet national carbon reduction goals.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Dec 16, 2022
Kishida punts on tax hikes for defense amid backlash from his own party
Kishida, who had been pushing for tax increases in stages, was forced to back off from a specific timetable as opponents press for alternate funding.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 14, 2022
Defense spending debate threatens to divide ruling Liberal Democratic Party
Rather than raising taxes, some LDP lawmakers want the prime minister to issue government bonds.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Dec 12, 2022
Delayed pick for 2030 Winter Olympics host puts Sapporo in a bind
The IOC's announcement could further complicate the city's effort, as bid supporters and opponents face off next year — especially in April's local elections.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Dec 9, 2022
Amid low ratings and scandals, Kishida scores a win with passage of key bills
In a parliamentary session rocked by Cabinet resignations and controversy over the Unification Church, the prime minister was able to eke out some political wins.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 30, 2022
Help wanted: Niseko facing labor crunch as ski season gets underway
Despite hope that winter tourists will return, some in Niseko's service industry may have to make do with limited staff.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 30, 2022
Hokkaido's COVID-19 infections rise, but serious cases remain low
While Hokkaido is facing a strain on total available hospital beds, the percentage of those being used for seriously ill patients is small.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Nov 21, 2022
Kishida's decisiveness in question following resignation of three ministers
While praised for making quick and strong decisions early in his prime ministership, lately Kishida has been criticized for dragging his feet amid scandals.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 20, 2022
Kishida Cabinet loses third minister in less than one month
Terada's exit is likely to further damage the prime minister's public approval ratings and raise questions about his political future.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 11, 2022
Justice minister ousted over death row gaffe in fresh blow to Kishida Cabinet
The minister's departure marks the second Kishida Cabinet member to resign in less than three weeks.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 10, 2022
Justice minister’s death row gaffe marks another blow for Kishida
The minister made remarks widely interpreted as making light of his responsibility to authorize executions of death row inmates.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Nov 1, 2022
Tokyo begins recognition of same-sex partnerships
However, same-sex marriage is prohibited nationwide, meaning various legal protections only afforded to married couples remain unavailable as well.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 1, 2022
Japan asks homes and businesses to conserve electricity as tight supplies loom
The request to cut usage will be in place from Dec. 1 through March 31, but a specific target has not been set.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 30, 2022
Can LDP and Komeito hammer out differences over defense spending?
The coalition partners disagree on issues such as counterstrike capability as well as budget size and allocation.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 25, 2022
Shigeyuki Goto tapped as Japan's new economic revitalization minister
Daishiro Yamagiwa stepped down from the post over his ties with the controversial Unification Church, and the prime minister will be hoping the change eases criticism over the issue.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Explainer
Oct 21, 2022
Tokyo Olympics bribery scandal: Investigation ensnares stuffed-toy maker and ad firms
The case has grown to encompass ADK Holdings — Japan's third-largest advertising firm — and stuffed-toy maker Sun Arrow, among others.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Oct 19, 2022
With one notable exception, Kishida’s climate policy is similar to his predecessors'
Kishida's strategy relies not only on expanding renewable energy and restarting conventional nuclear power plants but also proposed unproven technologies like smaller nuclear reactors.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Oct 14, 2022
Time running out for families of Japanese abducted by North Korea
There is concern that Pyongyang will continue to stall on the issue, and some family members have suggested the Japanese government needs to rethink its approach.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 13, 2022
U.S.-Japan business leaders urge cooperation amid economic security challenges
The war in Ukraine and the COVID-19 pandemic both pose challenges that requires bolstering the private sector's role in the bilateral relationship, business leaders said.
Japan to revise consumption tax exemption for overseas tourists
Tourists walk through Nakamise shopping street near Sensoji Temple in Tokyo in April
Japan's tourism industry hit by cancellations after megaquake alert
A beach closed due to a megaquake alert in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, from Friday to Thursday.
Focus shifts to incoming typhoon as Tropical Storm Maria dissipates
Newly formed Tropical Storm Ampil, which is forecast to approach eastern Japan this weekend, is seen on the left side of this satellite image.
Kishida to step down in September in bid to show ‘LDP has changed’
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
Publisher finds surprise audience after translating history textbooks
Yamakawa Shuppansha president Takeshi Nozawa holds the publisher's textbook on Japanese history — used in high schools across Japan — alongside the new English version in Tokyo on May 23.
Economic security is about strengthening and sustaining growth, former minister says
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi says changes in the international balance of power, along with deepening economic interdependence, have led some countries to attempt to use their economic power to impose their will on others.
Ice bandanas, convenience store breaks: Running under Japan’s summer sun
Blistering heat is becoming a fixture of summer in Japan, but a few tweaks to your routine can make your outdoor runs bearable — if not enjoyable — until cooler temperatures return.
Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?
Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
France brings down the curtain on its Olympic party with Tom Cruise and Leon Marchand
Fireworks are set off during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics at Stade de France in Saint-Denis on Sunday.
Japan fuels U.S. LNG boom even as climate targets and impacts loom
Flaring at the Cameron LNG export terminal in Hackberry, Louisiana. Flaring, a common sight at LNG plants, is a controlled burning of gas for reasons ranging from depressurizing equipment to disposing of gas that can’t be used. The practice is a "waste of money" and negatively impacts climate change and human health, says the International Energy Agency.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even though immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
In search of the ‘Japanese dream’
By Thu-Huong Ha

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’
Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’

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