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Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Aug 18, 2014

Challenges can't compare to the rewards of cross-cultural adoption in Japan

Five years ago, my Japanese husband and I adopted a 3-year-old boy who had been placed in an orphanage when he was a month old. His birth mother, too young to care for him, had likely decided that giving him up was his only chance for a better life. After we first took him home, he would barely acknowledge...
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 18, 2014

Building economic society driven by human values

The world is groping for a new growth structure to replace the economic society led by financial activities. A new model should be driven by the pursuit of human values.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society / CHILDREN LEFT BEHIND
Aug 8, 2014

Once state support ends, life is difficult to navigate

The main reason youths are placed in children's institutions is abuse and neglect, but experts say society knows little about the situations these children face.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Jul 30, 2014

Massive graft, rivalry behind purge of China's oil mandarins

Oil executive Jiang Jiemin rose to power in communist China in time-honored fashion: by hitching his star to a mighty mentor.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jul 28, 2014

Pushing locals aside, Russians take top rebel posts in east Ukraine

As Ukrainian troops gained ground in eastern Ukraine in early July, separatist leader, Aleksander Borodai, a Russian national, left for Moscow for political consultations.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Jul 23, 2014

Retirees swell national debt treating clinics as clubs

Kaoru Ishiyama gets to an orthopedic clinic in Kawasaki early so he can chat with about 20 other retirees while they wait outside for it to open, each sitting on folding chairs brought from home.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / TELLING LIVES
Jul 20, 2014

NPO chief builds a barrier-free world for the disabled and disadvantaged

The founder of two nonprofit organizations in Japan working across Asia, Michiyo Yoshida has become an expert on international philanthropy, teaching courses on NPOs at universities in Sapporo and traveling all over the nation to counsel others.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2014

Popularity of 'kendama' abroad spurs trend at home

The traditional cup-and-ball game "kendama" is back, thanks to a new "cool" image mostly nurtured overseas and imported back to Japan.
Reader Mail
Jun 4, 2014

A coup from a different view

Regarding the May 29 AP article "Thai troops detain Cabinet minister who blasted coup": Over the past week I found myself in the midst of the second coup since I came to Thailand, and the news, as reported by the Western media, has appeared fundamentally flawed. I am hoping that the lack of understanding...
Japan Times
WORLD
May 25, 2014

'Fort Kill the Jews': Spanish village votes on fate of controversial name

At 4 p.m. Friday, it's eerily quiet in this tiny Spanish village. The blinds on the stone houses are drawn and there's not a person to be seen wandering the few streets that make up Castrillo Matajudios.
EDITORIALS
May 24, 2014

Giving the disabled a chance to work

For the fourth straight year, a record high number of people with mental or physical disabilities find employment through public job placement offices in Japan.
EDITORIALS
May 21, 2014

Caring for dementia sufferers

Steps must be taken to minimize hazards for the nation's growing number of elderly people with dementia and to ease the burden on their families.
EDITORIALS
May 8, 2014

The changing face of society

It is important that Japan reform its employment systems and social security programs so that it can better cope with the shrinking labor supply and the needs of the 65-and-over crowd, now more than one-quarter of the population.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 4, 2014

Polish immigrants find their footing in Britain

Ten years after Tomasz Dyl left his small hometown near Krakow as a 13-year-old to start a new life in Southampton on England's south coast, his personal trajectory has become emblematic of the story of Polish migration to the U.K.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Apr 30, 2014

Tackling the 'empathy deficit' toward non-Japanese

Sympathy is not the same as empathy, and that is one reason why discrimination against foreigners and minorities is so hard to combat in Japan. Japanese society is good at sympathy, but empathy? Less so.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / TELLING LIVES
Mar 28, 2014

TV personality Haruka Christine wants youth to get politically savvy

Regular viewers of Japanese TV may remember young Haruka Christine's first appearances on the variety-show circuit in early 2010, when she had her fellow entertainers and audiences in stitches.
Japan Times
JAPAN / ADVANCES IN PROGRESS
Mar 9, 2014

Honda's robotics tech headed for homes of the future

As technology evolves, every household is predicted to have at least one robot in the future, just as many of today's consumers feel incomplete without Internet access or a mobile phone.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
Feb 27, 2014

What we can learn from cats and dogs

Chikao Muratani is a veterinarian and owner of Anima Animal Hospital in Tokyo's Chuo Ward. Having worked in the United States for years, Dr. Muratani is fully bilingual and his spotless and beautifully designed clinic is known as a neighborhood hangout. People with pets are encouraged to pop by weekly...
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 24, 2014

Pope warns of hazards in browsing 'God's gift'

Pope Francis rightly warns that although the variety of opinions being aired over the Web can be seen as helpful, it also enables people to barricade themselves behind sources of information that only confirm their own ideas.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Feb 11, 2014

Tourists offered a rare glimpse of the Japanese dining table

For visitors to Japan, a ride on the subway or the high-speed shinkansen can take you to almost any corner of the country. But those who want to learn about the daily lives of the Japanese rather than look at temples may find it difficult to gain access to the sanctuary of a Japanese home.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 10, 2014

Tamogami finds some support in younger generation

He may have lost the Tokyo gubernatorial election Sunday, but Toshio Tamogami appears to have won over younger voters who favored the hawkish former Air Self-Defense Force general more than middle-aged and elderly voters did, according to media exit polls.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 19, 2014

Want a one-way ticket to the red planet?

Since its announcement in May 2012, the Mars One project hasn't had an easy ride. Critics have questioned all aspects, from the technical feasibility to its funding model. But recent developments from the project seem to be bringing the goal of starting a human colony on Mars by 2025 a little closer....
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / TELLING LIVES
Jan 3, 2014

Drawing out the demons and dreams of Fukushima

Artist Geoff Read is currently focused on helping Fukushima's children articulate their hopes and fears. As he explains, 'In my Strong Children Japan Project, the most important thing the pictures can do is to help these children have a safer childhood.'
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 31, 2013

Tokyo prepares to get schooled in the art of beats

Although the major spectacle looming on Tokyo's horizon is undoubtedly the 2020 Olympics, there is one event this year that will be eagerly anticipated by anyone who spends longer on their gym playlist than their workout: The Red Bull Music Academy (RBMA) is set to take place here in October.
EDITORIALS
Dec 31, 2013

A year to become politically active

In 2014 the Japanese people risk having their rights to freedoms of the press, thought expression curtailed as a result of the state secrets protection bill that the Abe administration rushed through the Diet in December.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Dec 29, 2013

British fears of migrant influx mirrored in Sofia

There are no anti-immigrant militia forces roaming the streets of Britain, but Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev sees clear parallels with the U.K. — indeed, in states across Europe — and he is deeply worried.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 25, 2013

Snowden declares his mission accomplished

In a candid interview, NSA leaker Edward Snowden breaks his silence on surveillance, democracy and the meaning of the top-secret documents he exposed, and says his mission is 'already accomplished.'
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Dec 24, 2013

Why world's newest country is nearing civil war

It was considered one of the world's great successes when South Sudan became an independent nation on July 9, 2011. After many unhappy years as a region of Sudan, the new country declared its independence with crucial support from the outside world, particularly the United States.

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