Search - community

 
 
JAPAN
Aug 13, 1997

Community cheers as Osaka's name announced

OSAKA -- Some 600 people including politicians, businesspeople and citizens gathered at the Osaka Municipal Central Public Hall to watch the live broadcast of the Japanese Olympic Committee's announcement that Osaka has been named as a candidate to host the 2008 Olympic Games.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Feb 23, 2023

A year after war broke out, Ukrainian evacuees take life in Japan one step at a time

Forced to abandon careers, education plans and other opportunities at home, those who made the 8,000 kilometer journey to East Asia have had their lives put on hold.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 22, 2021

As e-money gains ground in Japan, so do local digital currencies

Regional virtual currencies such as Setagaya Pay can be used in a specific city or ward and are intended to stimulate local economies that have been battered by the pandemic.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 27, 2017

Xi aims for a 'new era' of international influence and power

Many analysts have written about the arrival of Xi's 'New Era.' Few have explored the foreign policy implications.
David Inoue, the executive director of the Japanese American Citizens League, in Farragut Square, near the building that used to house the War Relocation Authority, in Washington. Inoue says his group has been more divided than it has been in decades on how it should respond to the Israel-Hamas war.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 20, 2024

War in the Gaza Strip causes surprising rift within Japanese American group

A new generation is pushing one of the largest Asian American civil rights groups to sever ties with prominent Jewish American organizations.
Yasuhiro Otomo and Miku Narisawa during one of Odyssey Nature Japan's educational fishing programs.
PODCAST / deep dive
Feb 22, 2024

A young 3/11 survivor and her vow to protect the ocean

At 12, Miku Narisawa experienced a magnitude 9 earthquake and tsunami that destroyed her home. Now she is working to protect it.
A banner at the entrance to Shibuya’s Center Street makes it clear this is no place for a party.
PODCAST / deep dive
Oct 26, 2023

The specter of Itaewon has Shibuya spooked

One year on, Elizabeth Beattie joins us to discuss where Itaewon stands after its Halloween disaster, and what its legacy means for celebrations in Japan.
Cars drive past a damaged road, in the aftermath of an earthquake, in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture.
PODCAST / deep dive
Jan 18, 2024

Japan rings in 2024 with an unwelcome disaster

Join us for the first episode of 2024 as we recap the massive New Year’s Day earthquake and its impact on the people of Ishikawa Prefecture.
The Tomakomai carbon, capture and storage test site in Tomakomai, Hokkaido, in March 2018. The true benefits of carbon removal won’t be realized until we get close to net zero emissions.
COMMENTARY
Oct 10, 2024

Geoengineering can save the planet — if we demystify it

The percentage of Americans who say they trust scientists on the environment has declined to 67% this year from 75% in 2020.
At the Warhammer Store & Cafe in Tokyo's Akihabara neighborhood, fans of the tabletop franchise have room to paint, discuss lore and, of course, battle it out on spacious tables.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Nov 11, 2023

At new Tokyo hub, Warhammer fans bond over dice rolls and paint

“A few months ago, me and a lot of the guys I’m now playing with didn’t even know what Warhammer really was," says one fan from a new Akihabara store.
Leaders of intelligence agencies testify before a congressional committee about worldwide threats in Washington on March 11.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 15, 2024

Campaign puts Trump and the spy agencies on a collision course

Some former officials fear that Trump, if elected again, would try to weaken intelligence agencies or undermine their independence.
Houseboats of the indigenous seaborne Bajau Laut community anchor in the waters of Semporna, Malaysia, on Aug. 20.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Oct 14, 2024

Malaysia's eviction of sea nomads casts light on precarious lives

Many face impoverished, precarious lives and are denied access to health, education or financial services due to a lack of basic paperwork.
The U.S. has 8,000 km of carbon dioxide pipelines, but will need at least 50,000 to hit climate goals, according to a carbon transport engineer at the U.S. Department of Energy.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 21, 2023

U.S. Midwest is ground zero in the fight over carbon capture

The U.S. wants to greatly expand carbon capture and storage infrastructure, including pipelines, but many projects face opposition in the Midwest.
Ryo and Kaho Nagata greet a regular customer from the second floor of their cafe in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Nov 6, 2023

Young migrants bring vitality to rural Hiroshima

Some new residents found a place where they could try something new, as well as having cheaper rents for stores and homes compared to Tokyo.
Toshiya Ikehata (center) helps prepare rice balls at a community kitchen in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Jan. 7. Ikehata runs a fine-dining restaurant in the city, which was among the hardest-hit areas in the Noto Peninsula earthquake.
JAPAN
Jan 23, 2024

Shattered lives, unbroken spirits: Chefs step up to serve Noto communities

Fine-dining chefs rise to the challenge of feeding disaster victims in the hardest-hit areas of Ishikawa Prefecture.
Naoko Motooka began hunting 10 years ago. Her hobby is one way Hokkaido hopes to curb a current boom in the deer population.
PODCAST / deep dive
Feb 15, 2024

Hunting in Hokkaido; Taylor Swift comes to Tokyo

You probably don’t think of guns when you think of Japan, but Hokkaido’s hunters do.
A Sustainable Smart City Partner Program forum in Kitajima
ESG CONSORTIUM
Feb 27, 2024

NTT tool Sugatami reflects cities’ extensive possibilities

With the use of digital technology to solve rural social problems now promoted as a national policy, some places have begun trying to use data to analyze their current situation, identify problems and find solutions.
A woman passes an "akichi" (vacant lot) in Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo. The capital is littered with such small lots in part because of Japan's aging and shrinking population.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Sep 21, 2024

Dealing with rising land vacancies as Japan shrinks

"Akichi," or vacant plots of land, are nothing new to the urban landscape. As the population decreases, however, the challenge is how to handle their steady increase.
Kurara Okuno first encountered mermaiding in 2020, not long before she jumped into the deep end of the aquatic subculture.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Aug 19, 2023

Move over Ariel: Meet Japan’s professional merpeople

While mermaiding is still a niche activity in Japan, it is possible to slip on a tail and dive in.
Shinobu Yamanaka, a mom of three sons and director of a day care facility in Konan, Kochi Prefecture, serves up to eight "members" six days a week.
JAPAN / Science & Health / FOCUS
Aug 22, 2023

Kochi dementia care center aims to set new paradigm in Japan

A new generation of people with Alzheimer’s in Japan are trying to change not only dementia care but also social attitudes toward patients.
Kabul is diverse and culturally rich, like the rest of Afghanistan. Yet the country has struggled with political inclusivity.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 15, 2023

Japan can help pave the way for an inclusive Afghanistan

A new generation of Afghan leaders wants to be included in the country's future. Japan is well-positioned to facilitate dialogue with the Taliban.
Tourists enjoy the sunset at Bali's Canggu beach in 2021.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Oct 19, 2023

In Bali, 'sea-sun-sand' tourists threaten ancient rainforest

The island seeks to limit visitors without scaring off too many job-creating visitors with exorbitant taxes.
"The Ones Left Behind" documents the successes and struggles of single mothers in Japan.
PODCAST / deep dive
Nov 2, 2023

Why single mothers in Japan have been left behind

Filmmaker Rionne McAvoy joins us to discuss the hidden poverty present in one of the world’s richest nations.
Mika and Jesse say their landlady prefers a hands-off style of property management, leaving all matters, including maintenence and repairs, to the renting couple.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Nov 18, 2023

Renting akiya: A backdoor into Japan's abandoned homes

“If the choice is between leaving (an akiya) empty or renting it out, please rent it out.”
The Tokyo Kiki Lounge is a queer pageant, dance competition and party, known in the ball culture as a “kiki ball.”
CULTURE / Stage
Feb 1, 2024

You're free to be yourself at the Tokyo Kiki Lounge

The pageant, dance competition and party is a thriving safe space for Japan's queer community.
Many young people who feel neglected at home flock to the Toyoko area to find a community where they can fit in.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Feb 5, 2024

Toyoko Kids: The lonely street children of Tokyo

Bound together by shared neglect and marginalization, the group have formed a distinct, social media-linked youth subculture on the streets of Shinjuku.
Countries in Southeast Asia have implemented a range of counterterrorism policies and measures, each with their strengths and challenges. However, the effectiveness of such policies remains a subject of debate.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 18, 2024

Southeast Asia needs to step up its counterterrorism game

While Islamic State and al-Qaeda have lost ground in the region, they are still capable of recruiting and inspiring local groups to join extremist causes.
Traditional boat parties on the Sumida River in Tokyo are popular for informal gatherings among professionals that deal in Japanese government bonds.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 9, 2024

Tokyo’s exclusive circle of government bond traders in demand amid policy shift

The world’s top hedge funds are shaking up the closed community that was, for a time, a sleepy backwater of global finance.
One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
PODCAST / deep dive
Jul 22, 2024

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Homeless influencers, fantasy boyfriends and bubble-era bars — Kabukicho seems to have it all.

Longform

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