Tag - cities

 
 

CITIES

Omoide Yokocho in Shinjuku, Tokyo. According to data recently published by Mercer, Tokyo fell 30 places from 2023 and is now the 49th most expensive city in the world, just ahead of Houston.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 9, 2024
Tokyo is cheaper to live in than San Juan, according to global survey
The capital fell a full 30 places from 2023. It was No. 3 in 2020 and No. 1 as recently as 2012.
The Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2024 Liveability Index gave Tokyo perfect scores for stability and health care.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 28, 2024
Osaka and Tokyo ranked as world’s ninth and 14th most livable cities
The Economist Intelligence Unit scores cities on the basis of education, stability, health care, culture, and the environment and infrastructure.
Foreign visitors learn how to make sushi in a cooking class at Sushi Making Tokyo in the Asakusa district of Tokyo.
JAPAN
Jun 18, 2024
Japan government paper seeks to promote rural areas to foreign visitors
Foreign tourists primarily spend their time and money in Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya, according to the paper.
A government report says the excess concentration of population in Tokyo has not changed over the past decade.
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2024
Overconcentration in Tokyo unchanged over decade, government says
The government reported that the excess concentration of population in Tokyo has not changed over the past decade.
Wang YunHe's residence in Singapore, overlooking the country's premier shopping belt.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jun 1, 2024
Singapore wealth flows face new scrutiny in superhacker case
The case is a reminder of the difficult balancing act faced by Singapore and other financial hubs as they push to attract the world’s ultra rich.
A residential development under construction in Shanghai in February. Problems in the property sector have had a negative impact across broad areas of China's economy.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 31, 2024
China's factory activity unexpectedly dips as property pain persists
The disappointing number adds to a series of recent indicators showing the $18.6 trillion economy is struggling to get back on its feet.
A couple looks out onto the Fukuoka nightscape. Due to its distance from Tokyo and its close proximity to South Korea and China, professor Tomoya Mori believes that Fukuoka is one of the few metropolitan regions of Japan that will see some form of growth in the decades to come.
JAPAN / Society / Perspectives
May 20, 2024
Why half of Japan's cities are at risk of disappearing in 100 years
Professor Tomoya Mori believes depopulation will alter the urban landscape of Japan in an unexpected way.
Visitors walk along the ground-level pathway at the newly expanded Benjakitti Park in central Bangkok, where trees and wetlands now thrive on the site of a former cigarette factory.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
May 17, 2024
Big, smoggy Bangkok gets a badly needed breath of fresh air
In the heart of a megacity, an industrial site has been turned into an oasis for residents, as well as birds, bats and mosquito-eating dragonflies.
Projections consistently show that low-lying Bangkok risks being inundated by the ocean before the end of the century.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
May 16, 2024
Climate change could force Thailand to relocate its capital, official warns
Projections consistently show that low-lying Bangkok risks being inundated by the ocean before the end of the century.
Of 1,729 local municipalities nationwide, 744 have been identified as being at risk of disappearing.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 24, 2024
Over 40% of Japan's municipalities at risk of vanishing, study finds
The Tohoku region takes the top spot in both the number and percentage of municipalities at risk of disappearing due to a sharp population decline.
Yum China, which operates KFC and Pizza Hut, plans to add more than 5,000 outlets by 2026 with more than 50% of them outside megacities.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Apr 23, 2024
China’s small towns thrive as more opt out of demanding megacity life
As an economic downturn in China’s biggest cities prompts layoffs and competition for remaining posts, many are finding a better quality of life elsewhere.
The combination of subsidence and rising sea levels is set to be a defining problem for Chinese cities; last year thousands of residents were evacuated from apartments in Tianjin after nearby streets split apart.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Apr 19, 2024
China’s cities are sinking below sea level, study finds
An estimated 16% of the country’s major cities are losing more than 10 millimeters of elevation per year.
From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
PODCAST / deep dive
Apr 16, 2024
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think
We discuss everything from accessibility in Tokyo to dealing with trains and the country’s shifting attitudes.
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike (left) and Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an hold talks in Taipei on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Feb 7, 2024
Tokyo governor and Taipei mayor agree on urban governance cooperation
China expressed strong opposition to the Tokyo governor's visit to Taipei.
Tokyo's net population inflow rose for the second consecutive year in 2023, reflecting a recovery in the number of people relocating to the capital after pandemic-related restrictions were eased.
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2024
Tokyo's net population inflow rose to 68,000 in 2023
The net population inflow, or the number of people moving into Tokyo minus those moving out, rose for the second consecutive year.
By the end of the decade, nearly 700 cities are likely to have rolled out some version of urban metaverse technologies, including virtual and augmented reality applications, according to ABI Research.
WORLD / Society
Jan 22, 2024
Realities collide as 'augmented cities' emerge around the U.S.
AR can enhance life in cities, particularly for marginalized communities.
A China Railway employee works at the construction site for the Xiongan station of a new railway connecting Beijing to the area in Hebei province, China, in March 2019. In his annual new year speech, Chinese President Xi Jinping trumpeted the city’s progress saying it was "growing fast” and helping to revitalize northeastern China.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Jan 10, 2024
Xi Jinping’s empty dream city shows limits of his power, even in China
The meticulously planned metropolis' slow start underscores the flaws in the Chinese president's plan to tempt people from the capital.
Tokyo is considered a 15-minute city, where many residents live within a short walking or cycling distance from the shops and facilities they need.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 5, 2024
Don't let the culture wars sabotage 15-minute cities
In 15-minute cities, amenities can easily be reached on foot. Why are conspiracy theorists attacking the idea and what nuance is missing from the debate?
A look into what used to be the Koyamacho neighborhood in Tokyo's Minato Ward may reveal what Japan stands to lose from not protecting its recent past.
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Dec 25, 2023
Mita facelift paves over another slice of Tokyo history
The death of Koyamacho shows that Japan needs to begin preserving some parts of its modern history for future generations.
French police evict migrants from a squat in a disused industrial building not far from the Paris 2024 Olympic Village in Ile-Saint-Denis, near Paris, in April.
WORLD / Society
Dec 25, 2023
Asylum-seekers and Roma evicted from Paris squats ahead of Olympics
Advocates and some officials say the evictions appear to be a policy aimed at beautifying the area for the sporting event.

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'