Tag - disaster-preparedness

 
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November 23, 2025
 

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DISASTER PREPAREDNESS

A truck transports timber across an Amazonian field during a Greenpeace flyover amid the U.N. Climate Change Conference, near Cachoeira do Piria, state of Para, Brazil, on Nov. 13.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Nov 18, 2025
With more heat and storms, can COP30 boost front-line resilience?
The question of how to make vulnerable communities more resilient in a hotter world is a key debate in the vast compound hosting the COP30 talks.
The Japan Innovation Party has long sought to get Osaka designated as Japan's backup capital.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Nov 13, 2025
What would a ‘backup capital’ look like for Japan?
The concept faces tough questions on its substance and whether its true purpose is to realize the Japan Innovation Party's goal of making its Osaka base the natural choice.
Tokyo police plan to introduce a system that uses generative artificial intelligence to automatically transcribe consultation audio and generate summaries so they can more swiftly respond to stalking cases that may escalate into serious crimes.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 6, 2025
Tokyo police to use AI to strengthen anti-stalking measures
The police will introduce a system that uses generative AI to automatically transcribe consultation audio and generate summaries to help improve operational efficiency.
Lawson is looking to upgrade 100 stores nationwide to turn them into key community hubs in the event of a disaster.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 17, 2025
Lawson looks to create network of 'disaster relief convenience stores'
It hopes to upgrade 100 stores nationwide so that they are able to serve as key community hubs in the event of a calamity.
Nippon Ishin leader Hirofumi Yoshimura speaks to reporters at party headquarters in Osaka on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 30, 2025
Nippon Ishin draws up outline for secondary capital plan
The team defined the secondary capital as an economic center comparable to the Tokyo area that can function as the capital in the event that Tokyo becomes unable to do so.
The Tokyo government revised its flood prevention guidelines to implement preventive measures for underground spaces that are considered to be at the highest risk of flooding, such as subway stations.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 29, 2025
Tokyo revises flood guidelines amid recent years’ abnormal weather
The revision, the first since 2008, incorporates the use of artificial intelligence for risk assessments and updates flood prevention measures.
A newspaper headline in Japanese about a possible Nankai Trough earthquake. In a report issued Friday, the government's Earthquake Research Committee widened the probability range for a magnitude 8 to 9 earthquake occurring off the country's Pacific coast within the next 30 years from "around 80%" to 60% to 94.5% or higher.
JAPAN
Sep 27, 2025
Japan revises 30-year probability rate of Nankai Trough megaquake
A government panel has said that it now thinks a huge earthquake will occur along the Nankai Trough with a probability of 60% to 94.5% or higher within the next 30 years.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi speaks during an interview on Sept. 20 at parliament.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2025
LDP presidential candidate Hayashi sees need for backup of Tokyo
The idea has been championed by opposition Nippon Ishin no Kai, which is seeking to turn Osaka into a backup capital.
Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito (front second from right) and other participants announce the "Hyogo Declaration" during the creative reconstruction summit on Saturday in the city of Kobe.
JAPAN
Sep 21, 2025
'Creative Reconstruction Summit' held in Kobe 30 years after major quake
The meeting introduced reconstruction efforts in areas damaged by large-scale disasters throughout Japan.
Princess Aiko (center) attends the 10th national conference on disaster management held in the city of Niigata on Sunday.
JAPAN
Sep 8, 2025
In imperial family first, Princess Aiko attends disaster-related conference
Princess Aiko joined two sessions, both of which were related to the January 2024 major earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula.
A portable gas stove in flames after using an old gas canister
JAPAN / Society
Sep 1, 2025
Be careful with gas canisters and portable generators, safety watchdog warns
While they are useful especially in times of disasters, their misuse or mishandling have led to many accidents, some even causing deaths, between 2020 and 2024.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks during a disaster drill at the Prime Minister's Office on Monday.
JAPAN
Sep 1, 2025
Government holds disaster drill for Nankai Trough megaquake
In the drill, an emergency disaster response headquarters headed by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba was established.
According to a survey by the Japanese Red Cross Society, over 25% of respondents in Japan saw or heard false news or information during natural disasters.
JAPAN
Aug 31, 2025
Over 25% in Japan encountered false information during disasters
Nearly half of all respondents, 47.4%, were aware of Disaster Prevention Day. But 74.3% said they had never participated in local disaster response drills.
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.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba addresses a ministerial meeting on nuclear power policy held at the Prime Minister's Office on Friday.
JAPAN
Aug 29, 2025
Japan to give aid to more municipalities near nuclear plants
The move will make around 150 municipalities in 22 prefectures eligible for the aid.
A building that collapsed after the Noto Peninsula earthquakes in January 2024. The government plans to support residents of areas at high risk of fire who buy earthquake-sensitive breakers to prevent blazes caused by short circuits, sources say.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 28, 2025
Japan to fund purchase of quake-sensitive breakers
The financial support is in view of a large-scale fire in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, after a massive quake hit the region's Noto Peninsula in January 2024.
Under an envisaged agreement, Tokyo and Canberra will vow to share information during an emergency and coordinate their evacuation plans during peacetime.
JAPAN
Aug 27, 2025
Japan and Australia to agree on evacuations from a third country
In the event of an evacuation, Japan and Australia are expected to accept each other's citizens to fill vacant seats on their respective chartered aircraft and buses.
Shinjiro Koizumi, flanked by Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama, greets rice farmers during a discussion in the city of Kirishima, Kagoshima Prefecture, on Monday.
JAPAN
Aug 26, 2025
Farm minister promises 'necessary measures' to counter extreme weather events
Shinjiro Koizumi underlines the government's plan for creating agricultural infrastructure that is more resistant to disasters and climate change.
A screenshot from an AI-generated video showing what could happen to Tokyo if Mount Fuji erupted
JAPAN
Aug 25, 2025
Tokyo releases AI-generated video of Mount Fuji erupting
With Mount Fuji 100 kilometers away, the video from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government aims to inform Tokyoites about how an eruption could still seriously impact their lives.
Evacuated people rest at a green house converted into an evacuation center in the aftermath of an earthquake in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Jan. 2, 2024.
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2025
Japan corrects number of potential megaquake evacuees
The overall number was updated to about 516,000, from an initial estimate of more than 520,000, after figures for Oita Prefecture were corrected.
Japanese court orders Cloudflare to pay ¥500 million over manga piracy
Cloudflare has been ordered to pay ¥500 million after four major publishing firms accused the firm of copyright infringement for its role in hosting sites that distribute pirated copies of manga titles.
Japan plans higher visa fees for foreign residents
Along with planned higher fees for foreign residents to stay, Japan is looking to raise the ¥3,000 single-entry visa fee for inbound tourists to Western standards in the next fiscal year.
Two men suspected of smuggling 1 ton of gold into Japan from South Korea
U.K. gold bullion bars and coins are displayed at Baird & Co. in Hatton Garden in London.
Takaichi rejects China's demand to retract Taiwan remarks
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has rejected China's demands for her to retract her comments on Taiwan, saying Tokyo's stance on a major regional security crisis remains unchanged.
Japan set to lean on U.S., allies for support if China escalates
U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in Tokyo, on Oct. 28.
Japan plans higher visa fees for foreign residents
Along with planned higher fees for foreign residents to stay, Japan is looking to raise the ¥3,000 single-entry visa fee for inbound tourists to Western standards in the next fiscal year.
First foreign president of Hosei University looks abroad for change
Hosei University President Diana Khor, who herself was an international student, aims to encourage students to look outward and cultivate a global mindset.
Japanese companies advised to change mindset about investment in Africa
Bernard Laurendeau, chief of Enkopa Lab Japan, in Tokyo last month
Munetaka Murakami headlines quartet looking to move to MLB via posting system
The Swallows' Munetaka Murakami has 246 career home runs in eight NPB seasons.
The reality of human trafficking in Japan
A view of Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward at night. Last year in Japan, 66 people were put in protective custody as victims of human trafficking. Among them, 58 — including all 41 minors — were Japanese nationals. International pressure to act on human trafficking led Japan to make efforts to crack down on the crime, such as a tightening of conditions in 2005 for entertainer visas.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Juzo Itami’s “Tampopo” was released Nov. 23, 1985, and though it wasn’t a hit at the time, it has gained a cult following in the years since.
Eat, slurp, love: 'Tampopo' turns 40
By Weiwen Lin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

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Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo

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