Search - 2025

 
 
"In My Closet" by the artist Noumra is on display at Tokyu Plaza Harajuku's Harakado space until June 18.
CULTURE / Art
Jun 14, 2025

At Tokyo Pride’s first queer art exhibition, intimacy and resistance share the wall

A vibrant, community-sourced exhibition in Harajuku showcases queer art that spans the political, absurd and deeply personal.
An Upper House plenary session earlier this month. The Upper House election is likely to take place on July 20.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2025

Upper House election likely to take place July 20

Whether the CDP will submit a no-confidence motion against the Ishiba Cabinet is set to be the main focus in the closing days of the current parliamentary session.
Eating locally grown food could be part of a decokatsu lifestyle that's both good for the planet and your wallet.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability / OUR PLANET
Jun 15, 2025

Decokatsu could save you money and help the planet. But you probably haven't heard of it.

The ambitious government program aims to get people to live in ways that are healthier for the planet without being restrictive about it.
Rio Takeda banked roughly ¥265.7 million during the 2024 season in prize money on the back of a tour-high eight wins.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
Jun 15, 2025

What gender pay gap? In Japanese golf, women are on par with men

Fan and sponsorship growth has players in the JLPGA making just as much as their male counterparts, a rarity in the male-dominated world of sports.
The skyline of Astana, Kazakhstan. Chinese President Xi Jinping is visiting Kazakhstan for the third time since 2020, making the country of 20 million people one of his favorite destinations in the years after the COVID-19 pandemic curtailed his global travels.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 16, 2025

Xi visits Kazakhstan for talks with Central Asian leaders

The summit in the Kazakh capital Astana is taking place in parallel to the Group of Seven's event in Canada.
A social media influencer photographs her meal for her followers.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jun 16, 2025

Influencers take bigger bite of ad pie as economic turmoil tightens budgets

Brands increased investment in influencer partnerships by 49% in 2024 and content creators topped social media marketing budgets, taking up a quarter of total annual spending.
A woman weeps as she holds a poster of TikTok star Sana Yousaf during a protest to condemn violence against women, after Yousaf was killed for rejecting a man's proposal in Islamabad.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Jun 16, 2025

'This is a culture': TikTok murder highlights Pakistan's unease with women online

TikTok is wildly popular in the nation, and women have found both audience and income. But as views have surged, so have efforts to police the platform.
Africa’s "blue economy" (oceans and waterways) is vital for global trade, climate resilience and food security, and remains deeply underfunded despite its multibillion-dollar potential.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 16, 2025

Scaling investment for Africa’s sustainable 'blue economy'

Spanning more than 30,000 kilometers of coastline, Africa’s "blue economy" does $300 billion worth of business each year.
Agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi talks to rice farmers in Fukushima Prefecture on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 16, 2025

Agriculture ministry aims to stop publishing rice index amid accuracy concerns

A gap between the rice crop situation index and farmers’ testimonies about actual yields occurred because the agriculture ministry was using outdated sampling numbers.
The Neuralink device, called Blindsight, stimulated areas of a monkey’s brain associated with vision, said engineer Joseph O’Doherty.
WORLD / Science & Health
Jun 16, 2025

Neuralink device helps monkey see something that’s not there

The device, called Blindsight, stimulated areas of a monkey’s brain associated with vision.
U.S. President Donald Trump (left) speaks with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at the Group of Seven summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 17, 2025

No breakthrough on tariffs at Ishiba-Trump meeting in Canada

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and U.S. President Donald Trump met for 30 minutes on Monday during the annual Group of Seven gathering in Alberta.
A staff member at the Osaka Expo wears clothing featuring a cooling fan powered by electricity generated by perovskite solar cells.
JAPAN
Jun 17, 2025

Wearable perovskite solar cells tested at Osaka Expo

The cells, jointly developed by Toyoda Gosei and a startup company, weigh just 10 grams each.
Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the Democratic Party for the People (center right), and others on Tuesday at the Diet building after announcing their campaign promises for the upcoming House of Councilors election.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 17, 2025

Japan's opposition DPP pledges lower taxes and higher take-home pay

The Democratic Party for the People also emphasized support for young people and the working generation, proposing to double the budget for child-rearing and education.
Arsenal players and fans celebrate outside Emirates Stadium in London after winning the Women's Champions League  on May 26.
SOCCER
Jun 17, 2025

Nielsen projects women's soccer to become top-five most popular sport

Women's soccer is already one of the top 10 most followed sports globally, and momentum appears to be building.
Agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 17, 2025

Farm ministry says farmers 'misunderstand' rice statistics

The farm ministry's position lacks accountability, an expert from the University of Tokyo has said.
People shop at a covered market in Suva, Fiji, on Sept. 5.
BUSINESS
Jun 17, 2025

Pacific Islands should boost women's participation in work, says World Bank

Six countries did not have paid parental leave, often forcing women to leave the labor force when they started families, a report said.
A Ukrainian mother sits with her children near a refugee center in Sumy, Ukraine, on June 12.
WORLD
Jun 17, 2025

Stay or go? Ukrainian visa programs in U.K. leave refugees in limbo

Many Ukrainians who came to Britain on special visas from 2022 are running out of time.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (right) meets with Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu (left) at the headquarters of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 18, 2025

North Korea to send thousands of troops to Russia to help rebuild Kursk

Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu announced the move following two meetings in as many weeks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
A dead sea star in 2015. About 5 billion sea stars died from a disease outbreak, likely including this one.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jun 18, 2025

Marine heat waves are spreading around the world

Some unusual ocean events have become so intense that scientists have coined a new term: super marine heat waves.
The Leonardo da Vinci International Airport in Fiumicino, near Rome, in 2024
BUSINESS
Jun 18, 2025

Airfares from Western Europe to United States drop amid pullback in U.S. travel

In March, travel to the United States from Western Europe fell 17% year-over-year, according to U.S. data
Drone warfare in Ukraine has exposed the obsolescence of traditional military systems, the need for rapid, adaptive innovation and the terrifying potential of AI-driven autonomous weapons in future conflicts.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 18, 2025

The age of AI drone warfare is here and changing the rules

Drone technology, weapons and tactics now evolve at a blinding pace. A new drone will be useful for only two to six months.
The AUKUS submarine deal was flawed from the start, and its possible collapse offers Australia a chance to rethink its defense strategy, reclaim sovereignty and pursue more practical, cost-effective alternatives.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 18, 2025

Cross your fingers, Australia, and hope the AUKUS deal collapses

Some analysts assume that the U.S. Defense Department review is just another Trumpian extortion exercise designed to extract an even bigger financial commitment from Australia.
The first five months of 2025 saw 18,140,100 visitors enter Japan, up from 14,641,780 in the same period last year.
JAPAN
Jun 19, 2025

Foreign visitors to Japan at record high for May

The increase in visitors during May was driven by travelers from China, Taiwan and the United States, who visited for holidays and on cruise ship port calls.
Many Japanese firms are delisting their shares from the Tokyo Stock Exchange under the  bourse’s broad push to make the market more appealing for foreign investors by ensuring that listed companies offer high shareholder returns.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 19, 2025

Japan firms exit Tokyo exchange at record pace in delisting rush

If firms continue to exit the TSE at this pace, the figure for 2025 will exceed last year’s annual record of 94 companies.
Nelly Korda reacts after finishing the final round of the U.S. Women's Open on in Erin, Wisconsin, on June 1.
MORE SPORTS
Jun 19, 2025

Nelly Korda uses close call at U.S. Open as motivation for Women's PGA

Korda arrived in Texas this week still chasing her first title of 2025 after a dominant season last year that included seven wins.
WhatsApp interactions involving 11 industry executives from ad agencies operating in India form part of a confidential dossier compiled by India's antitrust watchdog that chronicles how global advertising companies coordinated to rig prices in the world's most populous nation.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 19, 2025

Dossier of WhatsApp chats shows how ad agencies aligned to fix prices in India

Firms agreed to cooperate on pricing, including not to undercut each other, colluded to deny business to agencies that didn't comply, and discussed financial terms.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un attend a state reception in Pyongyang on June 19, 2024.
WORLD
Jun 19, 2025

Russian ties do little for Iran while boosting North Korea

Iran has little to show for its relationship with Moscow as it continues to be pummeled by waves of Israeli attacks.
The public approval rate for Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's Cabinet in June was up 6.1 percentage points from the previous month, likely reflecting measures that were taken to combat soaring rice prices under new agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 19, 2025

Ishiba Cabinet approval rate improves to 27%, poll shows

The increase likely reflects measures that were taken to combat soaring rice prices under new agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi.
The Liberal Democratic Party’s pledges ahead of the Upper House election are in sharp contrast to those of the opposition parties, which have all promised tax cuts in various degrees.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 19, 2025

LDP pledges cash handouts and a better economy ahead of Upper House vote

“Driving Japan forward, enriching lives” will be the ruling party’s campaign slogan as it prepares for the upcoming Upper House election.
Consumer prices excluding fresh food quickened for a third month to 3.7% from a year earlier in May.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 20, 2025

Japan’s prices climb by most in two years ahead of Upper House election

Consumer prices excluding fresh food quickened for a third month to 3.7% from a year earlier in May, according to an internal affairs ministry's release Friday.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji