National Aug 12, 2021
Peace Boat goes virtual with A-bomb survivors' stories amid pandemic
by Donican Lam
COVID-19 distancing measures have allowed the group to hold online events, with hibakusha telling their stories to people around the world.
Business May 3, 2021
NGOs call on Asian Development Bank to end fossil fuel loans
The international lender holds its annual meeting this week with a focus on a green economic recovery.
National / Social Issues Jun 23, 2019
With Olympics on way, activist group's next campaign targets human trafficking in Tokyo
As the next Olympic host, Japan has become the focus of a global campaign against child prostitution and exploitation linked to sports, with activists working to shed light on "hidden crimes" they say have a symbiotic relationship with mega-events. Major sporting events attract troves of ...
National / Social Issues | GENERATIONAL CHANGE Apr 10, 2019
Japanese group ACE works to end child labor and foster education across developing world
by Eric Johnston
In 1998, a march to protest child labor involving people in 107 countries made Yuka Iwatsuki realize that the issue, which she had been interested in since college, was a global movement. She also realized that there were no organizations in Japan leading the ...
People | WHY DID YOU LEAVE JAPAN? Dec 1, 2018
Developing a coffee break for the Philippines
by Louise George Kittaka
Katuhisa Ota's drive for social development led to a grassroots coffee venture in Mindanao that aims to help locals and promote fair trade.
National Sep 12, 2017
by Daisuke Kikuchi
A group of lawyers claimed Tuesday that a female asylum seeker was asked inappropriate questions by a counselor during questioning earlier this year. Asserting that similar cases have taken place in the past, members of the Japan Lawyers Network for Refugees filed a complaint against ...
World May 11, 2017
Libya coast guard returns 300 migrants to Tripoli after altercation with NGO ship
Libya's coast guard intercepted about 300 migrants packed onto a wooden boat and returned them to Tripoli on Wednesday after warning off a ship that was preparing to pick them up for passage to Europe. Footage filmed by Sea-Watch, a nongovernmental organization, showed a Libyan ...
National / Politics May 26, 2016
NGOs pressure G-7 to take action on Paris climate deal
by Tomohiro Osaki
Nongovernmental organizations fighting climate change on Thursday urged leaders of the Group of Seven countries to swiftly implement the ambitious pledges they made in Paris in December and criticized Japan for thwarting efforts to reduce fossil fuels. On the sidelines of the G-7 summit in ...
National / Politics May 24, 2016
Citizens' summit ponders whether Obama should apologize over Okinawa slaying
by Eric Johnston
Questions about whether U.S. President Barack Obama should apologize over the alleged brutal murder of an Okinawa woman by an American base worker were raised Tuesday on the final day of the Citizens' Ise Shima Summit in Mie Prefecture. Speaking on a global peace and ...
National May 23, 2016
Japanese activist groups call on Abe to boost support for Syrian refugees
by Eric Johnston
The decision by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to accept 150 Syrians over the next five years is both praised and criticized.
National | 3/11 FIVE YEARS ON Mar 3, 2016
Nepalese teens learn how Tohoku sprang back from disaster
by May Masangkay
Nepalese teenagers who survived devastating earthquakes in the mountain kingdom last year are drawing inspiration from how Tohoku has sprung back in the past five years, conveying ideas about disaster preparedness to their compatriots back home. As work to rebuild homes, government buildings and businesses ...
National Jan 8, 2016
Toyama NGO brings gift of goats to quake-hit Nepalese villages
by Kentaro Sawada
A nongovernmental organization in the city of Toyama has donated goats to a Nepalese village as part of the recovery effort from last April's devastating earthquake. A member of the NGO said goats were valuable because they were easy to raise and are in demand ...