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Mark Thompson
Mark Thompson is the managing editor of The Japan Times, where he has worked since the birth of HTML. Once upon a time, he was on the features desk and wrote regularly about culture and technology. He can be found on way too many social platforms, including Mastodon, Post.news, Bluesky and Threads.
For Mark Thompson's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
The undulating structure of the Garden Plaza in Azabudai Hills in Tokyo is designed to showcase diverse greenery as well as act as an antidote to boxlike architecture.
BUSINESS
Nov 24, 2023
In photos: Tokyo’s new 'city within a city'
Mori's new Hills complex aims to challenge the traditional vision of hard-edged city living with beveled curves and green terraces.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 19, 2022
Live updates on Typhoon Nanmadol
Much of Japan is on the alert for severe weather conditions as a slow-moving yet powerful typhoon, known as Typhoon No. 14 in Japan, and elsewhere as Typhoon Nanmadol, makes it way up the archipelago.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 9, 2022
Live updates: Assassination of Shinzo Abe
Shinzo Abe — Japan’s longest-serving prime minister — was assassinated during a stump speech for Sunday’s Upper House election. The shooting shocked the nation and reverberated around the globe. Here are the latest updates surrounding the attack.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Jun 28, 2022
Surviving Russia’s ‘filtration camps’
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Apr 15, 2022
‘We’ll bury them, like humans’: Ukrainian officials identify bodies in Bucha
Following the withdrawal of Russian forces from a Kyiv suburb, officials examined and documented the bodies of those who were killed in the war.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Mar 31, 2022
The fighters who took over a retail store to defend Kyiv
As Russia pledges to scale back operations in Kyiv, soldiers from the 112th Brigade of Ukraine’s Territorial Defense are still preparing for the worst. Our cameras went inside their makeshift base.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Mar 16, 2022
These foreign fighters are joining the battle for Ukraine
Thousands of foreign volunteers u2014 including Americans u2014 are arriving in Ukraine to help defend the country. But an attack on their training camp on Sunday has left some wondering if theyu2019ll ever see the front lines.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Mar 14, 2022
After days of uncertainty, a Ukrainian soldier is laid to rest
Senior Lt. Vasyl Vyshyvanyi was killed by Russian forces on March 3, but heavy combat kept the military from evacuating his body. Six days later, he was buried in his home village outside Lviv.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Mar 11, 2022
‘I must save my mom’: The women returning to Ukraine
As millions seek to escape Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, 200,000 people have gone the other way, toward the fighting. Many are women, risking the dangers of war to rescue relatives or defend their homes.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Mar 11, 2022
‘The worst is behind you’: Ukrainian family reunites in Poland
Polish resident Ksenia Kraft reunited with her cousins and their five children near the border with Ukraine. The families fled the town of Berdychiv in central Ukraine after Russia’s invasion.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Mar 7, 2022
‘We have no choice’: Mothers in Ukraine flee to Poland
At a station in Western Ukraine, mothers and their children boarded evacuation trains to Poland, while many of their husbands stayed to defend the country from advancing Russian forces.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Mar 4, 2022
Hundreds of students are stranded at a university in Ukraine
Medical students at a university in Sumy, Ukraine, saw their school become a war zone overnight. They have no way to travel home and are stranded near the fighting.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Mar 4, 2022
‘There will be a battle’: A family prepares for war in Kyiv
As the war in Ukraine moves closer to the capital, some families are facing a difficult choice: Stay home or take up arms.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Feb 26, 2022
‘I’m ready’: Ukraine’s civilians take up arms
Volunteer fighters armed with assault rifles patrolled central Kyiv on Friday, ready to defend their country.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Feb 25, 2022
After attack on Ukraine, residents flee west
Families fleeing Thursday’s attack in Kyiv were stuck in traffic for miles on the capital’s longest avenue, as they tried to escape the advancement of Russian troops.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Feb 23, 2022
The Joy of Cooking (Insects)
Climate-conscious cooking means getting creative.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Feb 3, 2022
Entering the Beijing Olympics in the pandemic
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Jan 28, 2022
‘We’ve been through this before’: Ukraine city braces for possible Russian invasion
Flanked by rebel combatants and Russian forces to the east and Russian ships to the south, Mariupol is one place where President Vladimir Putin’s forces could attack first, or stage a provocation. We speak to residents and soldiers on the front line in this Ukrainian city.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Jan 20, 2022
We know the real cause of the crisis in our hospitals. It’s greed.
Nurses would like to set the record straight on the hospital staffing crisis.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Jan 6, 2022
Grieving our old normal
How do we mourn everything we’ve lost to COVID-19?

Longform

A statue of "Dragon Ball" character Goku stands outside the offices of Bandai Namco in Tokyo. The figure is now as recognizable as such characters as Mickey Mouse and Spider-Man.
Akira Toriyama's gift to the world