Search - 2015

 
 
EDITORIALS
Jan 15, 2015

Cost of putting off reform

The draft government budget for fiscal 2015 paints a positive picture with regard to expectations of more tax revenue but indicates little effort to rein in government spending to restore Japan's financial health.
JAPAN / Politics
May 22, 2018

Abe denies 2015 meeting with Kotaro Kake as opposition pressure mounts over cronyism claims

The prime minister again denied having met with his longtime confidant in February 2015, challenging an account revealed in a newly surfaced document.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Feb 8, 2016

Japan tourism record broken in 2015

A record 19.73 million foreigners visited Japan in 2015, a 47.3 percent increase over the total for 2014.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 10, 2016

The hidden goods of 2015

If we were to judge the state of the world by the news headlines, 2015 was the year of Islamist terror, especially in Paris. But there were two major positive developments as well.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / EXPO MILANO 2015
May 3, 2015

Possible role for 'washoku' culture in healthy global diet

Expo Milano 2015, which is the first expo focusing on food, opens today.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 17, 2014

Toyota ratchets up 'green car' race with 2015 fuel cell vehicle launch

In 1997, Toyota caught its competitors by surprise with the revolutionary Prius, the first commercially successful gasoline-electric hybrid car. Now it is trying to do the same with a technology that seems straight out of science fiction.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EMBASSY AVENUE
Jul 19, 2013

Milan Expo 2015 welcomes Japan's participation

On July 18, the Embassy of Italy held a signing ceremony for Japan's participation in the next scheduled Universal Exposition, which will be held in Milan in 2015.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 16, 2019

Change to labor survey method was conveyed to government spokesman Yoshihide Suga in 2015

The ministry made adjustments for the survey from January 2018, without disclosing them, and year-on-year changes in nominal wages appeared better than they actually were.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 22, 2016

South Korean bank says North's nuclear ambitions squeezed economy in 2015

North Korea's economy last year is estimated to have contracted the most since 2007 as leader Kim Jong Un marshaled resources for nuclear tests and ballistic missile development.
WORLD
Apr 30, 2016

U.S. spy court rejected zero surveillance orders in 2015

The secretive U.S. Foreign Surveillance Intelligence Court did not deny a single government request in 2015 for electronic surveillance orders for foreign intelligence purposes, continuing a long-standing trend, a Justice Department document showed.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Jan 4, 2016

'Onigirazu' chosen as 2015's top dish

'Onigirazu,' an innovative take on the traditional onigiri rice ball, was chosen as 2015's dish of the year after the sandwich-like rice dish became a sensation.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Jan 3, 2016

Battles over history, the media and the message scar 2015

A rundown of the top 10 human rights issues of the past year as they affected non-Japanese residents.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 30, 2015

Transformation to a more sustainable and just world

While bad news often dominated headlines in 2015, it was also a year of progress and breakthroughs.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / STRANGE BOUTIQUE
Dec 27, 2015

The best Japanese indie albums of 2015

While it remains this column's firm conviction that J-pop is trapped in a self-perpetuating dark age, the indie and underground music scenes provide a far livelier picture of Japan's musical landscape. In 2015, there was such a flow of fascinating new releases arriving from all angles that it was difficult...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / EXPO MILANO 2015
May 3, 2015

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu brings 'kawaii' in Italian debut

Japanese pop star Kyary Pamyu Pamyu's image of Italy is of a luxurious country, loaded with world-famous clothing brands and other items. Yet, she said when she travels to the country for the first time in July, she's most excited about the chance to eat lots of Italian food.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 1, 2015

Curtains up on 2015

Innovation adds sparkle to traditional forms
Japan Times
CULTURE
Jan 1, 2015

Activities to ring in year of the sheep

Usually, the New Year holiday season in Japan is a time to spend with family and many people go back to their hometowns, while others stay indoors for television-watching marathons. Therefore, with the exception of some shopping areas, Tokyo is relatively quiet compared with the usual hustle and bustle....
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 5, 2008

Looking at development goals beyond 2015

PARIS — It is now halfway to the target date of 2015 for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) — the ambitious blueprint, backed by the entire development community, for development in the world's poorest countries. In the wake of the global financial crisis, which is about to hit the developing...

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan