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Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jan 30, 2017

'Unpopular' Nagoya on hunt for catchphrase, logo to pitch its appeal to tourists

In an effort to become a travel destination instead of a mere transit point, Nagoya is asking the public to help create a slogan or catchphrase the city can use for tourism posters and websites to improve its appeal.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 28, 2017

Singapore Biennale takes a good hard look in the mirror

Malaysian artist Azizan Paiman tells me that to lose weight, all I have to do is make sure that the calories I expend are more than the calories I consume. I already know that, but he's done it, and I haven't. He also tells the small group assembled in his temporary cafe that we need to love each other,...
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 26, 2017

Abe warms to bilateral trade deal with U.S. but vows to still protect farmers

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday gave the clearest indication yet that Tokyo may accept Washington's departure from the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade pact.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / GAUGING TRUMP
Jan 25, 2017

Books on Trump prove tough sell in Japan — so far

Dozens of books bearing U.S. President Donald Trump’s face on their covers have been piling up at bookstores across the nation since his stunning victory in November.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jan 23, 2017

Aichi nursing school teaches students how to feign senility to improve care for dementia patients

The School of Nursing and Health at Aichi Prefectural University has developed a course that trains students how to act like people with dementia.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2017

Historians lead charge as abdication talk raises slew of Imperial issues

A panel of experts is expected to indicate a preference for a special law allowing Emperor Akihito to retire, but many questions are still to be answered.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 20, 2017

Confidant says Emperor told him he wants abdication option codified for future monarchs

Mototsugu Akashi, an 83-year-old retiree in Tokyo, received a call at around 10 p.m. on July 21 at home from the most unexpected, unlikely caller: Emperor Akihito.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 17, 2017

Is Davos man ready for a Xi change?

China's president is the star attraction, but selling the Beijing consensus to the Davos elite won't be easy.
BUSINESS / DAVOS SPECIAL 2017
Jan 17, 2017

Uncertain future fed by growing populism, protectionism

The year 2017 started with a significant level of uncertainties in global politics and economies — certainly true for the world economies over the last decade since the global financial crisis in 2007 — after the surprising outcome of the U.S. presidential election in November.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jan 16, 2017

Renovated Toyota museum puts visitors in driver's seat of automotive history

The Toyota Automobile Museum in Nagakute, Aichi Prefecture, has fully renovated the permanent exhibition in its main hall for the first time since it opened in 1989.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FUKUSHIMA FILE
Jan 15, 2017

Fukushima to play direct role in pitching its produce in Tokyo-area supermarkets

To fight harmful rumors about Fukushima farm produce and to revive sales, the prefectural government plans to set up permanent sales spaces for susceptible products in major supermarkets in the Tokyo metropolitan area this summer.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / OKINAWA BEAT
Jan 13, 2017

Okinawa prepares for new effort to block Henoko base by rallying local opposition

Okinawa Prefecture is scrambling to plot its next move in the wake of a recent Supreme Court ruling siding with the central government's effort to relocate the operations of a U.S. military base within the prefecture despite fierce local opposition.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 12, 2017

Trump through Chinese eyes

Since winning the U.S. presidential election, Donald Trump's popularity in China has plummeted, owing to his statements on contentious issues like Taiwan and the South China Sea.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 10, 2017

Group drawing on long-term foreign residents to help newcomers navigate life in Japan

Foreign residents in Japan may be at a disadvantage in some ways, but they are by no means powerless nor on their own, says Tokyo-based nonprofit organization Asian People's Friendship Society (APFS).
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jan 9, 2017

Gifu college to restore Nagoya's treasured 1935 Benz fire engine

Nagoya has contracted Nakanihon Automotive College in Sakahogi, Gifu Prefecture, to repair a Mercedes-Benz firetruck from 1935 in its possession.
JAPAN / GEARING UP FOR THE GAMES
Jan 6, 2017

Japan aims to overcome language and cultural barriers before 2020 Games

Last of six parts
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 4, 2017

Tillerson to cede control of $240 million in Exxon as Trump pick

Rex Tillerson, former Exxon Mobil Corp. chief executive and President-elect Donald Trump's pick for U.S. secretary of state, will relinquish control of about $240 million in company shares if confirmed as he severs ties to comply with conflict-of-interest requirements.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Dec 26, 2016

Aichi holds dubious distinction as nation's burglar capital

Aichi Prefecture is once again ranked at the top of a dubious category, but this time it isn't related to traffic fatalities.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 25, 2016

PISA confirms excellence of a handful of nations

The obsession with rankings on international student assessment tests may be counterproductive.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Dec 19, 2016

Aichi volunteers carve wooden tribute to first Toyota Corolla

A group of volunteers in Aichi Prefecture has made a life-sized replica of the first-generation Toyota Corolla using thinned wood sourced from Toyota Motor Corp.'s namesake city.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 19, 2016

Leaders gather in Ashgabat to discus issue pivotal to prosperity

The issue of transport lies at the very heart of human prosperity, productivity and well-being.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FUKUSHIMA FILE
Dec 18, 2016

Namie's high recovery hopes haunted by dwindling coffers, fears of losing vital state dole

A robot testing facility, a robotics research center, a base for renewable energy and a memorial park — these are some of the plans the irradiated town of Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, has in mind for rebuilding after the triple reactor meltdown at the nearby Fukushima No. 1 power plant in March 2011....
Japan Times
SOCCER
Dec 17, 2016

FIFA boss backs bigger World Cup

FIFA president Gianni Infantino on Saturday claimed there are "no down sides" to expanding the World Cup to 48 teams and "no taboos" in discussing changes to soccer's flagship competition.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Dec 12, 2016

Finn finds niche as Kyoto's first foreign jinrikisha driver

As the season for viewing autumn leaves comes to an end in Kyoto's Arashiyama district, a tall young blond rickshaw driver is drawing attention.
Japan Times
JAPAN / OKINAWA BEAT
Dec 9, 2016

Cruise liner influx overwhelming Miyakojima's economy

Amid rising hopes for economic growth, Japan's tourism boom has exposed the need for regional authorities to develop infrastructure and help secure the manpower needed to deal with the influx of foreign tourists.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Dec 7, 2016

So you want to write about Japan?: the 10 essential tips

Having taken the daring — not reckless or avoidant — step of leaving your home country, you now have a million stories to tell.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 5, 2016

'Tis the season for 'tegami' — and for facing your Japanese letter-writing fears

There are elements of etiquette involved in letter-writing that can make students of Japanese stop before they even start.

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