Japan

An escalating arms race will not solve the world’s multidimensional problems

Jesús A. Núñez Villaverde: “The issues of security and wellbeing are not antithetical but are the two basic pillars of peace, both within and beyond the borders of all states.”Read the full article

Why informal workers are opposing waste-to-energy technology in South-East Asia

24 October 2022

Why informal workers are opposing waste-to-energy technology in South-East Asia

While some governments, development funders and business groups in South and South-East Asia are pushing for the increased use of incinerators to manage waste, informal workers are making their objections known – not only for environmental reasons but also because of the negative impact on waste [...]Read the full article

30 September 2021

Ahead of the crucial NPT Review Conference, the world must rally together to abolish nuclear weapons

Rikio Kozu: As the national centre of the only country that has suffered from A-bomb attacks, JTUC-RENGO will continue to do its utmost to arouse public opinion toward the abolition of nuclear weapons.Read the full article

The communities striving to “protect life” and create “sustainable societies” in the wake of Japan's 2011 tsunami disaster

11 March 2021

The communities striving to “protect life” and create “sustainable societies” in the wake of Japan’s 2011 tsunami disaster

The tsunami took away loved ones, homes, infrastructure and jobs, as well as the sense of belonging in communities already suffering from depopulation. For the affected villages in rural Japan, rebuilding is a matter of survival.Read the full article

Japan's Indigenous Ainu community don't want a theme park – they want their rights

10 December 2020

Japan’s Indigenous Ainu community don’t want a theme park – they want their rights

Ainu Indigenous leaders are aware that their ancestral knowledge is endangered: “We are being wiped out. In 30 years, we will all be Japanese”.Read the full article

In desperate search of disposal sites for its nuclear waste, Japan offers poisonous grants to two small villages

9 November 2020

In desperate search of disposal sites for its nuclear waste, Japan offers poisonous grants to two small villages

Despite having shut down the majority of its reactors following the fatal accident in Fukushima, Japan’s commitment to nuclear energy remains firm. The government is now being urged to construct a nuclear disposal site and the top contenders for its location are villages with ageing populations [...]Read the full article

The fight to protect one of Japan's last remaining concrete-free beaches

22 June 2020

Environment

The fight to protect one of Japan’s last remaining concrete-free beaches

The fight to protect Katoku Beach in Amami Ōshima, Japan, provides a case study for environmental learning and community-led conservation, and could provide a sign of hope for future generations.Read the full article

Japan's care sector protects quality of life for the country's elderly population

25 May 2020

Japan’s care sector protects quality of life for the country’s elderly population

Japan is celebrating 20 years of a social care system that provides cover in the final stages of life. In health crises like the current one, this policy can make fundamental differences in the quality of life and life expectancy of the [...]Read the full article

Can migrants, robots and retirees help to combat the demographic crisis in an ageing Japan?

28 October 2019

Can migrants, robots and retirees help to combat the demographic crisis in an ageing Japan?

Competition between countries for migrant labour is going to increase, so “simply opening the door is not enough. Laws are urgently needed to build a society in which foreign workers, migrants, can live. It’s in the national interest.”Read the full article

Theatre for Fukushima: voices from the silence

20 May 2019

Culture

Theatre for Fukushima: voices from the silence

Eight years after the Fukushima disaster in Japan, a group of teenagers who were young children at the time, take to the stage to express their feelings.Read the full article

Can a new legal framework for worker coops address growing inequality in Japan?

5 July 2018

Can a new legal framework for worker coops address growing inequality in Japan?

Japan’s cooperative sector is one of the biggest in the world, with over 65 million members – nearly half of Japan’s 127 million-strong population – and over US$145 billion in yearly turnover.Read the full article

Descendants search for lessons in the shameful treatment of Japanese-Latin Americans during WWII

27 April 2018

Descendants search for lessons in the shameful treatment of Japanese-Latin Americans during WWII

“What is done to the least of us, and how we treat the marginalised, reflects how humane we are as a country.”Read the full article

“Many Japanese women still have to choose between having children or having a career”

20 December 2017

“Many Japanese women still have to choose between having children or having a career”

“We have a Gender Equality Act, so by law, women should be given equal opportunities and equal employment. But in reality, this isn’t the result.”Read the full article

20 October 2017

Matagi hunters in danger of extinction

The Matagi, unlike most modern hunters, do not view hunting as a sport or recreational activity. They believe they can hunt because the Deity of the Mountains allows it, and, in return, they have to act with a sense of utmost reverence for the natural [...]Read the full article

20 October 2017

Culture

The Matagi, winter hunters

For the Matagi, the Japanese black bear and the mountains are sacred. Their immense knowledge of the environment makes them fundamental to the conservation of local ecosystems. Although it may seem contradictory, they argue that they play a vital role in maintaining a healthy balance between [...]Read the full article

24 August 2017

Environment

Japan stubbornly sticks to coal

“Japan should be investing in this booming clean energy sector, instead of taking a backwards position on coal.”Read the full article

19 June 2017

North Korea on a dead end road

For Pyongyang, its missiles are its only guarantee of survival.Read the full article

Death penalty highlights wider injustices in Japan's legal system

12 April 2017

Death penalty highlights wider injustices in Japan’s legal system

“There is still the possibility to kill the wrong person in the Japanese death penalty system”Read the full article

How trade unions pulled the brakes on Uber's bid to enter Tokyo

7 March 2017

How trade unions pulled the brakes on Uber’s bid to enter Tokyo

The spread of the gig economy could alter Japan’s relative wage equality and have a huge, adverse impact on taxi drivers.Read the full article

14 June 2016

Japan’s stay-at-home mothers

Japanese mothers usually give up work because of a lack of childcare, poor career prospects or discrimination. And the statistics are worseningRead the full article

Never again: it's time to ban nuclear weapons

6 August 2015

Never again: it’s time to ban nuclear weapons

Beatrice Fihn: As long as nuclear weapons are seen as important and legitimate, it will encourage proliferation and maintenance of current arsenalsRead the full article

8 September 2014