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Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 11, 2007

J. League's Onitake optimistic about future

The Japan Times recently visited J. League chairman Kenji Onitake at his office to find out about his vision for the future of the league and soccer in Japan.
COMMENTARY
Jan 12, 2006

Step up positive diplomacy

The year 2005 is likely to be remembered as the year when rivalry between Japan and China over how to create a new international order reached a high point.
COMMENTARY
Dec 22, 2005

Much ado about something?

HONOLULU -- Was the inaugural East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur on Dec. 14 "much ado about nothing," as many critics are already claiming, or the "historic event" its proponents say?
COMMENTARY
Jul 12, 2004

Summits of East Asian unity

East Asia is moving toward regional integration, albeit at a slow pace. In a series of meetings held in Indonesia from late June to early July, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations agreed on a package of measures to expedite economic, financial, political and security integration. This signals...
COMMUNITY
Jan 20, 2002

Tandoori meets takoyaki in Kansai's Little India

KOBE -- The port city of Kobe, with the largest concentration of Americans and Europeans in the Kansai region, a few of whom have lived in Japan since the Taisho Era (1912-1926), has long been known as one of Japan's most Westernized cities.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2001

NPO fosters solar power solution to fix transport problems for aged

KOBE -- The lack of interest in solar power among residents of Kobe's Uozaki district does not discourage Mana Enomoto from giving detailed explanations of the benefits of this clean energy source.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Apr 17, 2023

Dark skies, bright future: Japan looks to the heavens for tourism appeal

With a number of dark sky locations offering unparalleled stargazing opportunities, communities are hoping to capitalize on the draw of the cosmos.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Apr 10, 2023

Already at risk, performing arts in northern Okinawa dealt blow by pandemic

The local culture of the Yanbaru region is rich in variety, ranging from dance and theater to staff fighting and drum dancing, but relies on being handed down from generation to generation.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Nov 2, 2022

Hey Japan, are you happy?

Deep Dive explores whether the Japanese are content or not with the help of Alex K.T. Marin, who has written several features on the polls and surveys of happiness.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Mar 28, 2022

Initiating dialogue on universal values is essential for Japan and China

Fifty years after normalizing ties, the two nations are still only halfway down the road to improving their relationship.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attends a NATO leaders summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, on July 12. The leader's efforts to conduct diplomacy in the face of conflict have drawn comparisons with British wartime leader Winston Churchill.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Jul 20, 2023

Why Zelenskyy's diplomacy is a key factor in Ukraine's efforts to win war

The leader's counteroffensive came at a critical time, sandwiched between two summits — the Group of Seven summit in May and a NATO summit earlier this month.
On July 17, Jiyugaoka in western Tokyo held its summer Bon Odori Festival for the first time in four years. While the pandemic spelled the end of the road for some longstanding local events, others weathered the storm.
CULTURE / Longform
Jul 24, 2023

Fate of the fete: Japan’s matsuri fight to survive

While COVID-19 was the final nail in the coffin for many of the country's smaller festivals, others have clung on and are making a determined comeback this year.
Shinjiro Atae, a J-pop idol who came out publicly as gay during a recent fan event, with his stylist and makeup artist in the afternoon prior to his announcement, in Tokyo on July 25.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 3, 2023

In Japan, LGBTQ celebrities fuel impetus for change

Celebrities coming out as LGBTQ can have a big impact in Japan and fuel change. But such announcements are rarely made easily.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks during a ceremony commemorating the 70th Anniversary of the Korean War Armistice Agreement at Busan Cinema Center in Busan, South Korea, on July 27.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 16, 2023

South Korea leader seeks breakthrough in deterring Kim Jong Un

Yoon expects the summit with Kishida and Biden will lead to agreement on ways to enhance their response to nuclear threats from North Korea.
Kyoko Yafuso and her son Keiju Togei pose in front of their store in the Sunrise Naha shopping street.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Sep 4, 2023

Tired Naha shopping arcade evolves into city’s best dining spot

Until about 10 years ago, the central shopping arcade around the Heiwa-dori street in Naha was deserted, with most stores closed and few visitors.
Gigi Chao, vice chair of Cheuk Nang Holdings, in Hong Kong on July 19
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 31, 2023

More LGBTQ rights could help Asian financial hubs draw global talent

In Japan, the only Group of Seven nation without legal protection for same-sex unions, corporations are seen as a key driver for change.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi address a joint meeting of Congress at the Capitol in Washington in June.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Oct 1, 2023

Modi’s Hindu nationalism stokes tension in Indian diaspora

Canadian and U.S. universities have become battlegrounds for critics and defenders of Hindu nationalism, punctuated by threats of violence and even death.
A woman walks past newly unveiled lettering that references the Oct. 29 Itaewon crush in Seoul. A more fully developed memorial was later built to commemorate the event and the more than 150 people who lost their lives.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society / Longform
Oct 27, 2023

One year on, Itaewon's scars remain

A year on from the Itaewon crush, foot traffic in the Seoul neighborhood is picking back up. But what the future of the area is still in doubt.
The midway in Springfield, Massachusetts, lit up at night. Framingham, Massachusetts mayor Charlie Sisitsky said its geothermal pilot project could more than halve emissions and cut energy consumption for some properties by up to 70%.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Nov 2, 2023

U.S. cities expand geothermal energy to whole neighborhoods

The U.S. federal government is to back 11 pilot geothermal projects.
Drag queens (from left) Trinity the Tuck, Manila Luzon and Kylie Sonique Love headlined the most recent edition of Opulence, Tokyo's fast-growing drag performance extravaganza.
CULTURE / Stage
Dec 10, 2023

The opulence of Manila Luzon

The Asian American drag queen who rose to stardom after a stint on "RuPaul's Drag Race" pays things forward with her Philippines-based show "Drag Den."
A view of the city of Ayodhya, India
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Dec 18, 2023

Temple promised by BJP transforming Indian city but some miss out

Laborers are finalizing a $6 billion infrastructure facelift in Ayodhya that is igniting an economic boom and driving up land prices.
LGBTQ activists take part in a protest in Moscow.
WORLD / Society
Dec 21, 2023

LGBTQ+ Russians ask: Should I stay or should I go?

Rights activists fear the ruling could open the door to arrests and prosecutions.
Hideo Shimoju points to a possible site that his fellow neighbors may relocate to. Such relocations have happened before, but not preemptively.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / Longform
Feb 24, 2024

In disaster-prone Japan, some communities consider major moves

Rural communities are considering collective relocation as a means to deal with worsening climate disasters.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says the international community is currently experiencing "gridlock" and suffering "colossal global dysfunction.”
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 28, 2024

No one wins in a lose-lose world

Fragmentation of the world economy could derail growth, especially in low-income countries, turning zero-sum thinking into a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Motoki Taniguchi (left) and one of his clients, Maurice Shelton, hope their lawsuit can change alleged police practices involving stop-and-search.
PODCAST / deep dive
Mar 8, 2024

A lawsuit puts alleged racial profiling by police on trial in Japan

Three residents with foreign roots have filed a lawsuit claiming Japanese police target visible minorities. We discuss what they hope to achieve.
The Monrovia NSU Challenger bulk carrier transits the expanded canal through the Cocoli Locks of the Panama Canal in April 2023.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Mar 22, 2024

'We all need water': Panama's canal, and people, thirst for more

A severe drought last year caused water levels in Gatun Lake, which provides drinking water and is the main reservoir for the canal, to fall.
Smoke rises from Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, on March 17. Ending the wars in Gaza and Ukraine and deterring conflicts in the Indo-Pacific region is a key global goal.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Mar 31, 2024

How should Japan deal with Ukraine, Gaza and the Indo-Pacific region?

The power, institutions and values that underpin the international security order are being compromised worldwide.
Christian villagers walk inside a church on Feb. 28, 16 years after it was destroyed by a mob following the murder of a Hindu priest, in the village of Irpiguda in the Kandhamal district of India's Odisha state. With India's election on the horizon and Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi widely expected to win, many Christians fear they may once again become targets.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 26, 2024

Christians in India fearful as election looms, recalling past violence

In 2008, mobs targeted churches, prayer halls and Christian homes, killing over 100 people, sexually assaulting women and forcing thousands to flee.
High school students visit seawalls in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, on Thursday during a weeklong tour of areas hit by the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami in the prefecture.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 26, 2024

Students from wildfire-struck Hawaii learn about disaster recovery in Miyagi

The students visited four municipalities in Miyagi Prefecture to study their efforts to rebuild following the 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami.
Mikuni Minato is not a town that has recently fallen on hard times — it's been that way for a century.
LIFE / Travel
May 7, 2024

48 hours in Mikuni Minato, Japan’s port town that time forgot

A trip to Mikuni Minato may not appeal to the average tourist, but well-traveled residents will find it fascinating.

Longform

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