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David Fickling
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 20, 2021
Turning the tide on two centuries of emissions
Climate and energy plans presented in China's 14th Five Year Plan this month represent the most important policies in determining the fate of the planet.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 7, 2021
China’s weaponization of rare earths is bound to backfire
There was a time when China could cause the world to tremble by threatening its supply of rare earths. It's long in the past.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 23, 2020
We’re never going to mine the asteroid belt
One factor rules out most space mining at the outset: gravity. It guarantees that most of the solar system's best mineral resources are to be found under our feet on Earth.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 25, 2020
Beyond Meat takes on tough rival in China: tofu
Beyond Meat Inc., the U.S. maker of plant-based burgers and sausages, announced a new product designed to crack China, the world's biggest meat market: imitation ground pork.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 28, 2020
Zero hour is coming for emissions. Believe it.
Any targets laid out by politicians will find themselves up against institutional inertia, unintended consequences and political pushback.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 25, 2020
Australia's money laundering detectives have been out at the pub
Unlike cash laundering, which involves a relatively small number of casinos and businesses, invoice-based laundering can take place between almost any two companies.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 21, 2020
Capitalism caused climate change; it must also be the solution
The coronavirus pandemic has caused the the biggest drop in emissions in history and the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 21, 2020
Jacinda Ardern landslide is a vote for COVID-19 competence
Shutting down New Zealand's economy at a time when there'd been just 102 cases was a political gamble, but one that's paid off.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 14, 2020
New Zealand gives U.S. a lesson in pandemic democracy
The U.S., a nation founded on the principle that all people are created equal and endowed with inalienable rights, would do well to heed the example given by New Zealand.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 5, 2020
Australia's miners carve themselves an ugly heritage
Digging iron ore out of the ground and carrying it to port inevitably involves conflicts between miners and the Aboriginal traditional owners.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 23, 2020
Coal’s last refuge crumbles with China’s renewables plan
If Asia — and in particular China, which accounts for about half the world's coal consumption — can't break the habit, devastating climate change will be unavoidable.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 21, 2020
The 737 MAX debacle won’t be the end of Boeing
Is Boeing Co. capable of making commercial aircraft at all?
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 6, 2020
Beijing may be more addicted to coal than oil
PetroChina's announcement in its half-year results last week that it would seek a 'near-zero” target for emissions by 2050 was unexpected.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 10, 2020
Blocking TikTok opens a can of worms for Facebook and Google
Trump reminds the world of the importance of foreign ownership of media. Big Tech would rather you forget.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 3, 2020
Hong Kong brokers are already reading from Beijing’s script
Some worry that the national security law will compromise analysts' credibility. It's a bit late for that.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 27, 2020
Our phones can serve as a virus tool
Justified civil liberties concerns shouldn't prevent us from using technology to combat a pandemic that could kill millions.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 22, 2020
COVID-19 could very well slow by summer
Evidence suggests that warmer temperatures and higher humidity could indeed affect the disease's spread.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 3, 2020
The coronavirus end game
The disease will eventually become an endemic nuisance rather than a terror.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 26, 2020
COVID-19 complacency is worse than panic
A degree of fear isn't out of place if it encourages people to adopt behaviors that will limit the outbreak.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 23, 2020
Big data won't save you from COVID-19
In an era where everything seems quantifiable, it's unsettling that the information we've got on this deadly outbreak is approximate at best.

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Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?