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Recently, Japan designated Hokkaido Prefecture (including its capital, Sapporo), Fukuoka, Tokyo and Osaka as special zones for financial and asset management businesses. Kumamoto Prefecture was also named a national strategic zone for semiconductors.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 14, 2024

International social infrastructure key to Japan’s high-tech future

Across the globe there is an ongoing search for talent, especially in high-tech sectors, and Japan is no different.
A potato field in summer in Hokkaido. The prefecture is a significant source of food and produced 81% of Japan's potatoes in 2022.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Jun 24, 2024

Hokkaido's farmers look for a silver lining to climate change disruption

As the prefecture becomes warmer, it could produce more apples and sweet potatoes, agricultural cooperative officials say.
Pedestrians shelter from the sun in Tokyo's Ginza district on Sunday. On average, the rainy season begins on June 7 in the Kanto region where Tokyo is situated, but as of Thursday, the Meteorological Agency has yet to declare the start of the season in the capital.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jun 20, 2024

Japan’s rainy season is significantly late this year

The rainy season is already two weeks overdue in the Kanto region, which includes Tokyo.
Perhaps being seen in the company of your own children in the right places — playgrounds, schools, etc. — can make you seem more approachable and allow children to say exactly what’s on their mind.
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Jun 24, 2024

‘You’re a spy, then?’ The odd interactions of a non-Japanese father in Japan

Remember to keep your ears open whenever you’re near children and you’re guaranteed to hear something that’ll make you think.
Lawyer and activist Rozkar Ibrahim walks past a headstone marked with the word 'grave of life' in an area reserved for the victims of femicide and honor killings, at the Siwan cemetery in Sulaimaniyah, the autonomous Kurdistan region's second city, on May 17.
WORLD
Jun 27, 2024

Murdered and forgotten: Iraqi victims of gender-based violence

Domestic violence and femicide have long plagued Iraq's conservative society.
Labour Party leader Keir Starmer and Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves tour a Morrisons supermarket during a Labour general election campaign event in Wiltshire, England, on June 19.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 29, 2024

Revolt against Starmer’s Labour by long-time backers puts star candidates at risk

There’s little prospect the trend will cost Labour the election, but some of the party's leading lights could lose their seats.
On Monday, a heatstroke alert was issued in 27 of the nation’s 47 prefectures, including seven in the Kanto region.
JAPAN
Jul 8, 2024

Unseasonal heat in Japan raises prospect of top-level heatstroke alert

The alert is issued when the wet-bulb globe temperature is expected to hit at least 35 degrees Celsius at all monitoring points in a prefecture.
An MUFG Bank employee allegedly leaked insider information to relatives about a client company.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 9, 2024

MUFG bank worker suspected of leaking undisclosed client info

The securities market watchdog suspects the employee of violating financial laws by giving relatives undisclosed information about a client company.
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.
Don't let anyone tell you that when it comes to legitimate Mexican food, Tokyo is a culinary desert.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Top 5
Jul 14, 2024

Tokyo’s top tacos dispel the ‘no good Mexican food’ myth

Whether a casual bite from a counter restaurant or a more elegant affair, Tokyo’s tacos do not skimp on variety.
U.S. President Joe Biden hugs Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter, as he and other prisoners freed from Russia arrive at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland late Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 3, 2024

Prisoner deals stoke fears of perverse ‘incentive’ to grab Americans

Hostile governments like Russia and Iran are often involved, and practical alternatives are hard to come by, experts say.
Children use a mobile shower, provided by the local government, amid extreme heat in metro Manila on May 2.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 6, 2024

From the Philippines to Mali, countries fail to count deaths from extreme heat

A lack of reliable data is undermining efforts to mitigate the risk of extreme heat and provide better protection for the most vulnerable.
Police officers and demonstrators clash during a protest against illegal immigration in Liverpool, Britain, on Aug. 3.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 7, 2024

U.K. PM Starmer: We have police in place to deal with anti-Muslim riots

Riots across a number of towns and cities have erupted following the murder of three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed event in Southport.
Utagawa Hiroshige produced several highly successful series of landscape prints over the course of his career, including “One Hundred Famous Views of Edo” — the largest collection of his career.
CULTURE / Books
Aug 8, 2024

The definitive guide to Utagawa Hiroshige's masterwork is a feast for the eyes

Ukiyo-e expert Andreas Marks' new book is a rare compendium of the Japanese artist’s landscapes, even by local standards.  
Only two other class of persons were treated with anything like the merciless ferocity meted out to lovers: subversives and Christians.
JAPAN / History / The Living Past
Aug 17, 2024

Love was a most subversive affair in Edo Japan

As the shogunate required order in society, love was seen as a threat to rational thinking — something that you might die for.
Emergency responders assist a man who collapsed during lengthy heat wave in Phoenix in July last year.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 24, 2024

Heat kills thousands in the U.S. every year. Why are the deaths so hard to track?

As heat waves become more frequent and intense, researchers and activists say the lack of effective tracking is leading to needless deaths.
Typhoon Shanshan is expected to become more powerful and hit western Japan on Tuesday, after which it is forecast to make its way north throughout the week.
JAPAN
Aug 26, 2024

Typhoon Shanshan to hit western Japan on Tuesday

By Wednesday, the maximum wind speed is expected to reach up to 162 kilometers per hour around Amami Oshima island and southern Kyushu.
Police officers stand guard during a campaign speech by a candidate in the Lower House by-election in Tokyo in April.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Aug 26, 2024

Tight security eyed for LDP election speeches after Trump attack

Security measures at speech venues are expected to include the use of metal detectors and the installation of bulletproof shields around speakers.
Yoko Ogawa’s latest novel to be translated into English, “Mina’s Matchbox,” is like a playground for the author’s interest in particular details: the subtleties of striking matches, playing volleyball and searching for typos, to name a few.
CULTURE / Books
Sep 1, 2024

Yoko Ogawa's 'Mina’s Matchbox' sparkles with quiet intimacy

The latest novel in translation from one of Japan's most eclectic writers leans toward magical realism while reveling in the minutiae of an affluent family's life.
People walk in front of closed ticket gates for the Tokaido Shinkansen in Tokyo Station as train operations between Tokyo and Nagoya remain suspended due to Tropical Storm Shanshan on Saturday.
JAPAN
Aug 31, 2024

Tropical Storm Shanshan soaks Japan as flood and landslide risks rise

Shanshan was moving slowly south-southwest of Wakayama Prefecture on Saturday afternoon, bringing widespread torrential rain to much of the country.
Hiromi Kawakami’s “Under the Eye of the Big Bird” takes place in a future where humans have developed genetic mutations that allow them to read minds and have powers of prescience.
CULTURE / Books
Sep 3, 2024

'Under the Eye of the Big Bird': Hiromi Kawakami's speculative future sets civilization adrift

The author reimagines sexual reproduction, family ties and societal roles in a passionless world that is neither a dystopia nor an improvement on reality.
When it comes to a career in cuisine, chef Andreas Fuchs thinks newcomers will know within three months whether they want to commit to it or not.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Sep 12, 2024

Andreas Fuchs: ‘I love that no two days are the same’

As the Grand Hyatt Tokyo’s executive chef, Andreas Fuchs is responsible for overseeing extensive menus across multiple venues.
A self-proclaimed lover of great cocktails, YouTuber Chris Broad says his new Shibuya watering hole is more a place to get yourself a solid drink than it is anything related to his social media career.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Sep 15, 2024

Chris Broad's new bar puts cocktails first, YouTube second

Elements of Lost hint at Broad's prolific content creation career, but it also wants to thrive on its merits as a place to find a decent drink.
The student lounge in the senior school building at the GEMS World Academy in Dubai
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 16, 2024

Expats paying $33,000 school fees fuel rise of Dubai billionaire

Founded by Indian-born Sunny Varkey, GEMS Education caters to every price point, starting at as little as $3,900 a year.
The first season of 'Shogun' wraps up just prior to the 1600 Battle of Sekigahara, where Tokugawa Ieyasu (Yoshii Toranaga in the TV show) faced off against Ishida Mitsunari (Ishido Kazunari) to determine the new ruler of Japan.
LIFE / Travel
Sep 17, 2024

The real-world inspirations behind 'Shogun' are a shinkansen away

“Shogun” has cleaned up at the Emmys, so why not pack a bag and see the real history behind the award-winning show?
The Milky Way, known as "ama no gawa" in Japanese, is seen above Mount Fuji.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Sep 18, 2024

Comets and constellations: The language of stargazing

Whether it's telling someone to look at a shooting star or describing the difference between stars and planets, the vocabulary of space is vast and interesting.
A drone view of damages caused by flooding in Stronie Slaskie, Poland, on Tuesday
WORLD
Sep 19, 2024

European cities brace for peak of floods as cleanup starts

Europe is the fastest warming continent, with temperatures rising at around twice the global rate, making it particularly vulnerable to extreme weather events.
Soya Inomata finished with the silver medal in the men's skateboard vert final at X Games Chiba at Makuhari Messe on Saturday.
MORE SPORTS / Action sports
Sep 21, 2024

Keyaki Ike grabs gold as skateboarders take center stage at X Games Chiba

Ike beat out U.S. great Nyjah Huston and the rest of the field for gold at X Games Chiba.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to kill thousands of barred owls in California, Oregon and Washington to protect the endangered spotted owl.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 23, 2024

If killing one species might save another, should we do it?

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to kill thousands of barred owls in California, Oregon and Washington to protect the endangered spotted owl.
The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Waesche and crew transit the San Francisco Bay en route to Base Alameda, California, on Aug. 11 following a 120-day Indo-Pacific patrol.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 27, 2024

U.S. Coast Guard advising Manila as it seeks bigger Indo-Pacific footprint

It has also been assisting Manila in its missions to resupply the Philippine garrison at Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea, the agency's Pacific area chief says.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes