Search - environment

 
 
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani, British Defense Minister John Healey (center) and British Ambassador to Japan Julia Longbottom walk after the welcome ceremony upon arrival of Britain's Prince of Wales aircraft carrier at Tokyo International Cruise Terminal on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 30, 2025

British defense chief emphasizes close security ties with Japan

British Defense Secretary John Healey has underlined his country's close security ties with Japan amid the changing security environment.
Boxing gloves on the wall of a gym in Tokyo ahead of a training session by American star Floyd Mayweather in September 2022. Intense sparring, drastic weight loss and lax regulation have created a dangerous environment in Japanese boxing, officials say, as the sport in the country reels from the deaths of two fighters.
MORE SPORTS / Boxing
Aug 31, 2025

Attack and never give up: Inside Japan's deadly boxing scene

The twin tragedies sent shockwaves through Japanese boxing, with authorities scrambling to investigate and facing pressure to tighten safety.
Emergency kit product for pets developed by Irish Ohyama
JAPAN
Aug 31, 2025

Japan boosting disaster preparedness for pets

A ministry official said there is no law making it mandatory to accept pets into shelters.
Sukiya plans to cut prices for its beef bowls for the first time since 2014 starting on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 31, 2025

Sukiya to slash beef bowl prices for first time in 11 years

The move, which comes after a hike in March, will effectively bring prices back down to levels below its major rivals Yoshinoya and Matsuya.
Members of the Ground Self-Defense Force take part in an exercise at Camp Naha in Okinawa Prefecture.
JAPAN
Aug 31, 2025

Pacifist Japan struggles to boost troops as China anxiety grows

In 2023, the Self-Defense Forces aimed to hire almost 20,000 people, but recruited just half that number, according to the Defense Ministry.
A Kurdish member of the Dohuk Antiquities Department works on a grave unearthed along the banks of Mosul Dam on an archaeological site in the Khanke sub-district of Dohuk Governorate on Saturday.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 31, 2025

Ancient tombs unearthed in Iraq due to drought

The tombs, believed to be over 2,300 years old, were unearthed at the edges of the Mosul Dam reservoir in the Khanke region of Iraq's Duhok province.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange requires companies exiting the market through management buyouts or acquisitions by controlling shareholders to provide explanations regarding procedures and price fairness.
BUSINESS / Markets
Sep 1, 2025

Tokyo Stock Exchange pressed for more disclosure on management buyouts

The book value of companies has been one area of focus for investors amid the TSE’s yearslong campaign to unlock higher returns to shareholders.
"It's not just about sales. It's about system change," said Marty Pomphrey, general manager of Patagonia Japan, on Aug. 6.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 1, 2025

‘Cool’ Patagonia wants to take used items into the mainstream

The American outdoor brand is looking to make the offering of secondhand goods alongside new products the next step of its evolution.
By the end of August, 8,341 people had been transported by ambulance for heatstroke in Tokyo alone.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 1, 2025

More sweltering days forecast for September after hottest summer on record

Temperatures were more than 2.36 degrees Celsius higher than average across Japan in August, with the heat expected to continue into this month.
Lightship co-founder and CEO Toby Kraus says his company's model of recreational vehicle attracts both hardcore environmentalists and RV veterans who aren’t necessarily concerned about climate change.
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 2, 2025

Road trips are getting cleaner and quieter as RVs go electric

This year, serious alternatives are emerging to the gas-guzzling rigs chugging between national parks.
Royal Navy Commodore James Blackmore, the commander of U.K. CSG 25, said in an interview aboard the Prince of Wales aircraft carrier that the chance to train closely with the Maritime Self-Defense Force was a "golden moment" for military ties between the countries.
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 2, 2025

In Indo-Pacific deployment, U.K. carrier group boosts warfighting capability, says commander

The British warship also saw F-35B fighters — one British and one American — touch down and take off from the deck of the MSDF’s Kaga de facto aircraft carrier.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping attend the BRICS Summit plenary session in Kazan, Russia, on Oct. 23.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 2, 2025

Realism and realpolitik rule Indian foreign policy

A decade from now, there is likely to be heated debate in the United States over “who lost India,” an accounting that may rival the “who lost China?”
Osaka stayed in first place thanks to high scores in the economy and for tourist attractions.
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2025

Osaka rated most powerful Japanese city outside Tokyo for fifth year

Osaka stayed in first thanks to high scores in the economy and for tourist attractions, with the city hosting the World Expo.
MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, which will host the 2026 World Cup Final next year
SOCCER
Sep 4, 2025

FIFA to use dynamic pricing for World Cup ticket sales with seats starting at $60

Fans will have their first chance to secure tickets for next year's World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico during a presale starting Sept. 10.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama attend the LDP’s plenary meeting in Tokyo on Aug. 8. Once dominant, the ruling party is now struggling to maintain control amid calls for Ishiba to step down.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 4, 2025

Dragging on the LDP’s political drama does little for Japan

From dominance to doubt, the ruling party struggles to maintain control.
Pakistani soldiers ferry flood-affected villagers evacuated by boat from the Muzaffargarh district in the country's Punjab province on Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Sep 4, 2025

Pakistan's latest floods compound grim reality of climate finance shortfall

Less-developed countries that contribute minimally to climate change bear the brunt of its impacts as funding pledges by advanced, higher-emitting countries fail to be fulfilled.
East Asia’s fertility plunge is driven not just by financial costs but by perfectionist cultural expectations that burden parents with intense educational and social demands.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 5, 2025

‘Confugenics’ and East Asia's demographic crisis

The numbers are staggering when you dig into them. Parents in Japan covered half of higher education costs in 2024 — more than double the OECD average.
Scorched land following a wildfire in the village of San Vicente de Leira, in Galicia, Spain, on Aug. 21
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Sep 5, 2025

How Europe lost an area the size of Cyprus to wildfires this year

Climate change is playing a major role in Europe, the world's fastest-warming continent, as searing heat and drought fueled this summer’s blazes.
Members of the Japanese team for the World Athletics Championships pose for photos at Meiji Kinenkan on Thursday.
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Sep 5, 2025

Team Japan seeks ‘passionate support’ at World Athletics Championships

The World Athletics Championships kick off at Tokyo’s National Stadium on Sept. 13.
Itochu has raised ¥15.2 billion ($103 million) from a sale of Japan’s first so-called orange bonds to fund gender equality projects.
BASEBALL
Sep 5, 2025

Itochu sells Japan’s first orange bonds for gender equality

The Japanese trading house raised ¥15.2 billion ($103 million) from the debt sale, more than the initial plan for a ¥10 billion offering.
U.S. President Donald Trump visits the USS Wasp aircraft carrier in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, in May 2019 during his first term as president. Trump is expected to demand that Japan boost its host-nation support spending for U.S. military when the current plan expires in March 2027.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 7, 2025

Japan braces for Trump push on U.S. troop funding

The financial support covers the salaries of workers at U.S. military bases, utilities costs and facility maintenance expenses.
NASA says its satellite imagery shows the Earth is becoming drier — at least the parts where most people live.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 7, 2025

The Earth is drying out and we need to act urgently

Measurements from NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment satellites suggest the continents have been losing fresh water at an alarming rate since 2002.
Yoshihiko Noda, head of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, in Yokohama on Saturday
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 8, 2025

Opposition heads rap political stagnation after Ishiba's decision to resign

One key point following the prime minister's decision to resign is whether any of the opposition parties would be ready to join the LDP-Komeito ruling coalition.
Professionals from diverse fields debate development issues.
ESG CONSORTIUM
Sep 8, 2025

Digital transformation reshapes urban planning involving public

The Land Readjustment and Urban Development Forum held in Tokyo last October brought together professionals from municipalities, academia and the private sector to examine digital transformation in community development. Themed “Land Readjustment and Digital Transformation From Disaster Prevention...
Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani (left) and South Korean defense chief Ahn Gyu-back inspect an honor guard before their meeting in Seoul on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 8, 2025

Japan and South Korea defense chiefs agree to regular visits and tech cooperation

The agreement emerged during a visit by Defense Minister Gen Nakatani to South Korea, the first by a Japanese defense chief in a decade.
Demonstrators gather outside Nepal's Parliament during a protest condemning social media prohibitions and corruption by the government in Kathmandu on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 9, 2025

Nepal's ban on major social media sites lifted after protesters killed

All major social media apps were said to be working as the government ordered a probe into the violence that saw police launch a deadly crackdown.
ASEAN leaders take a group photo at the bloc's summit in Kuala Lumpur on May 26. The association, set to expand to 11 members, aims to protect its autonomy and unity through deeper integration, sustainable growth and broader partnerships.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 5, 2025

ASEAN balances autonomy and unity in a shifting geopolitical landscape

ASEAN, set to expand to 11 members, aims to protect its autonomy and unity through deeper integration, sustainable growth and broader partnerships.
A water-based solar farm operated by the China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group on the outskirts of Jiaxing, China, in 2018
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Sep 9, 2025

China’s green push may cut global fossil use by 2030, says think tank

"China’s surge in renewables and whole-economy electrification is rapidly reshaping energy choices for the rest of the world," Ember said.
The Sau Reservoir in Vilanova de Sau in Catalonia, an area of Spain that has been suffering from drought, on Aug. 25
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Sep 9, 2025

Drought hit over half of Europe in mid-August, EU data shows

More than three quarters of Portugal was affected by drought, with the country also experiencing devastating wildfires.
A Brahmos missile system is displayed during a rehearsal for a military parade in New Delhi in January. The Philippines will soon receive its second batch of the supersonic cruise missiles from India.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Sep 9, 2025

As Manila modernizes its military, new opportunities emerge for Tokyo

Japan has been assisting the Philippines in several ways, including by providing security equipment and training — and could soon offer up used warships.

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