Rare white stork likely hatched in wild, conservation group says
An organization promoting the revival of the Oriental White Stork, which went extinct in Japan almost half a century ago, said at least one egg laid by a nesting female has apparently hatched in Naruto, Tokushima Prefecture. The hatching would be the first outside a ...
Millennial movers revive Japanese mountain towns amid depopulation
High-speed broadband. An award-winning brewpub built with recycled materials as part of a "zero waste" mission. An artist-in-residence program. Organic pizza from a wood-fired oven. There is new life in the mountains of Tokushima Prefecture, in the neighboring towns of Kamiyama and Kamikatsu, even as ...
Japan turns to drones to help elderly hunters combat crop-damaging pests
In another downside to rapidly graying Japan, the nation's active hunters — in decline and aging — are having a hard time keeping up with their hunting dogs that dash after their prey. That's a big headache for prefectural governments nationwide that need hunters to ...
A small town in western Japan has been attracting foreign visitors after its efforts to reduce waste to zero by 2020 have become widely known via YouTube. The documentary video, titled "How This Town Produces No Trash," with English narration and captions, explains how the ...
Staff at five Shikoku prison facilities punished for wrongly dispensing medicine
Officers at five prisons and juvenile detention facilities in Shikoku have been reprimanded over errors in administering medicine to inmates, it was learned Tuesday. An information disclosure request to the Takamatsu correctional bureau of the Justice Ministry has found that, between January 2012 and September ...
Tokushima woman becomes first Japanese fatality linked to 'Pokemon Go'
A woman run over by a distracted driver in Tokushima Prefecture is believed to be Japan's first death related to "Pokemon Go," police have announced. The suspect, 39-year-old farmer Keiji Goo, told police he was playing the immersive smartphone game while driving in the city ...
Kochi voters feel neglected after redrawing of electoral boundaries
Campaigning is at fever pitch ahead of Sunday's Upper House election, with candidates pounding the pavement, holding rallies and calling out their names and slogans for hours on end via loudspeakers. Not so in Kochi Prefecture, where things are quiet this year thanks to a ...
Senior officials of the Consumer Affairs Agency are carrying out a trial in which they are working remotely from a facility in Tokushima Prefecture. The test, which began Monday in Kamiyama, Tokushima Prefecture, is part of Tokyo's efforts to decentralize some of its functions, spreading ...
Ministry, Mikawaya21 test drone to deliver food to rural Tokushima elderly
The transport ministry tested a drone in Tokushima Prefecture on Wednesday to deliver parcels containing food items to elderly households in sparsely populated areas. The test was mainly targeted at elderly residents who have difficulties going shopping, and was conducted jointly with Mikawaya21, a Tokyo-based ...
Tokushima group trains abandoned dogs for rescue roles
Local authorities across Japan are struggling to reduce the number of abandoned pets they put down. But a program by Tokushima Prefecture aims to improve the situation by turning unwanted dogs into rescue and therapy animals. Tokushima Prefectural Animal Welfare Center will attempt to train ...
Government eyes transfer of two agencies' functions to prefectures
Some functions within the Cultural Affairs Agency and Consumer Affairs Agency could be relocated to Kyoto and Tokushima prefectures, respectively, under a government plan to be finalized in March, sources said. Officials representing both agencies and local governments will discuss details later this month, including ...
Facing depopulation, rural towns turn to online cram schools
One of the biggest concerns for families living in depopulated areas may be a lack of educational opportunities for their children that larger cities can offer. In an effort to discourage families from moving out of those rural towns and villages, local governments are offering ...
