Search - environment

 
 
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 14, 2023

In Brazil, 'bioeconomy' initiatives offer hope of a less destructive future

Amazon forest has an economic value four times higher than if turned into cattle pasture, if benefits such as its contribution to rainfall, clean air and a stable climate are considered.
JAPAN
Apr 13, 2023

Yellow sand reaches Tokyo for first time in two years

The dust is expected to envelop most of the nation on Thursday afternoon, continuing to cover parts of the country until noon on Friday before receding until early Sunday morning.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 12, 2023

This is how fast humans have changed the ecosystem

A 10,000-year-old grove of aspens in Utah is dying after a hundred years of human meddling. Now only more meddling can save it.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 11, 2023

Could an EU law to save the rainforest destroy palm oil farmers?

The long list of requirements will be hard for small-scale farmers to meet, and could push risk-averse palm oil buyers in Europe to switch to larger plantations with deeper pockets.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 10, 2023

Kenya's community-first climate approach lets locals pick projects

Some climate adaptation efforts create as many problems as they solve, in many cases because of too little community input or ideas being imposed by outside consultants.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 2, 2023

European aviation sector fears CO2 rules could clip its wings

The aviation sector is growing in Asia and the Middle East and companies based there could benefit greatly as they are not subject to Europe's constraints, industry experts say.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 2, 2023

Biden’s landmark climate bill lures China’s clean energy giants

China’s leading renewables firms are joining the rush to open factories in the U.S. after Washington passed a landmark climate bill that supports local clean energy manufacturing.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2023

How do so many endangered creatures end up in Japan’s animal cafes?

Critically endangered species and ones banned from international trade are among the hundreds of types birds, reptiles and mammals that researchers identified at 142 animal cafes.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 28, 2023

Thai beach made famous in movie struggles to balance sharks with tourism

Conservationists say shark numbers are thinning out after authorities in Maya Bay allowed visits to resume, as the beach battles to preserve its ecosystem and and livelihoods.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 25, 2023

How China, the U.S. and others watered down a key U.N. climate document

China, the U.S. and Saudi Arabia are among countries that significantly altered a U.N. document that will shape global climate policy for years to come, a report has said.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 24, 2023

What the World Bank can do about climate change

In addition to financial resources, the World Bank's greatest strength lies in its ability to generate evidence-based solutions, which it should apply to mitigating climate change.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 24, 2023

After cyclones leave many homeless, Vanuatu takes climate plea to world stage

More than 3,000 people are still in evacuation centers three weeks after two category-four cyclones hit Vanuatu, which has a population of 319,000 spread across 80 islands.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 23, 2023

In Japan, cherry blossom forecasting is a big deal. Warming is making it harder.

A robust system of forecasting has built up around Japan’s sakura festivities, but climate change is disrupting the former and threatening the latter.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 23, 2023

China's Mekong dams turn Thai fishing villages into 'ghost towns'

Local fishing communities who live by the river have seen their harvest fall since China built nearly a dozen dams upstream.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 21, 2023

World has less than a decade to stop catastrophic warming, U.N. panel says

A new U.N. report says it is still possible to hold global warming to relatively safe levels, but doing so will require global cooperation, billions of dollars and big changes.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 20, 2023

Asia gears up for rollout of EU carbon border tax

The EU’s move to tax certain carbon-intensive goods poses a particular threat to Asia, as the region's developing economies saw the greatest rise in emissions in 2022.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Mar 20, 2023

Obihiro offers advanced training environment for nurturing top skaters

The city in Hokkaido boasts leading training facilities, including an indoor speedskating center and flat land ideal for cycling as a form of additional conditioning.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Mar 13, 2023

Traditional ama fishing in Mie in danger as diver numbers plunge

The method is practiced primarily by women and is characterized by skin-diving and a hand-catching method that prevents overfishing.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 10, 2023

From blush to crayons, cosmetics recycling on rise in Japan

Although harder to recycle than clothing, retailers and manufacturers are seeking ways to use old cosmetics in ways deemed less harmful to the environment.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2023

In the shadow of the Fukushima disaster, an unusual experiment in rewilding

Wild animals have been thriving and expanding their habitat around the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant since 2011, giving researchers a glimpse of nature’s resilience to radiation.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Feb 28, 2023

At the home of Zara, fast and slow fashion collide

Sustainability is a problem in fashion — the EU throws out around 5.8 million tons of textile products every year, equivalent to 11 kg (24 lb) per person.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 28, 2023

As Philippines scraps jeepney buses, operators struggle with costs

The government has ordered replacement of the beloved but elderly utility vehicles with greener, safer models.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 27, 2023

Carbon credits are a contested tool to fight deforestation

Major corporations are accused of purchasing carbon credits from forest protection projects in areas that are not actually at risk.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Feb 26, 2023

Kanazawa sets an example for badly needed biodiversity policy in Japan

Japan’s cities may be typically clad in concrete, but there is one reliable source of verdant life: shrines and temples.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 25, 2023

African climate activists fight online surveillance

Online climate activism is on the rise in Africa — a continent that draws mining and oil companies to its rich mineral reserves. But so is surveillance.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
Feb 24, 2023

India wants a clean energy transition deal — and its coal too

Simultaneously beefing up both coal and renewables points to a messy energy transition for India, including the risk of job losses if some coal mines are abandoned.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Feb 23, 2023

Wetter storms and deforestation: Manila faces worsening floods

Slash-and-burn farming, illegal logging, open-pit mining and development fueled by population growth have stripped the once-densely forested Philippines of much of its trees.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Feb 20, 2023

Taking lead in solar generation, Fukushima looks to era of panel disposal

Experts point out that a lack of proper recycling or disposal systems could lead to the abandonment and illegal dumping of solar panels.

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami