Japan’s Population is Plunging, so Where are the Babies?
Sally Herships analyzes the cultural factors that are contributing for population decline in Japan.
No TPP Trade Deal? Some Japanese Farmers Say All the Better for Them
Rice farmer Takao Terada isn’t following the U.S. presidential election too closely. But there’s one issue that both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton seem to agree on — that the U.S. should not ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact — and that’s music to his ears.
As Japan’s Population Shrinks, Bears and Boars Roam Where Schools and Shrines Once Thrived
In Hara-izumi, there’s no worry about an influx of foreigners. There are no immigrants here, nor the prospect of any. A bigger issue now is wildlife: The village’s population has become so sparse that wild bears, boars and deer are roaming the streets with increasing frequency.
Citizen Science Takes on Japan’s Nuclear Establishment
As other Tokyo office workers poured into restaurants and bars at quitting time one recent evening, Kohei Matsushita went to the eighth floor of a high-rise for an unusual after-hours activity: learning how to assemble his own Geiger counter from a kit.
Flush, then Fill Up: Japan Taps Sewage to Fuel Hydrogen-Powered Cars
When Mutsuro Yuji, chief of the central sewage plant in Fukuoka, first heard about the idea of making hydrogen from biogas — the combination of methane and carbon dioxide produced by the breakdown of stinky matter — he was skeptical. But now, drivers are able to roll up to the sewage plant and power up their hydrogen fuel cell cars at what you might call the world’s first toilet-to-tank filling station.
How Japan Is Dealing with Impacts of Supporting the Oldest Population in the World
Japan has the oldest population in the world. Nearly 27 percent of the people there are 65 or older. NPR’s Ina Jaffe shares her stories on how Japan is changing as its population grows older.
Beyond Slurpees: Many Japanese Mini-Marts Now Cater to Elders
In Japanese cities, space is at a premium. So convenience stores that cram everything from Kleenex to rice balls into a few square yards are everywhere. But they’re not just a place for Slurpees and snacks. Nearly 27 percent of Japan’s population is 65 or older, and convenience stores are changing to serve this growing market.
Japanese City Takes Community Approach to Dealing with Dementia
No government plan can keep people with dementia from wandering. But health officials in Japan hope there eventually will be entire communities prepared to help keep them safe, if and when they do. Through community training, thousands of Japanese citizens have been taught how to effectively communicate with people who display signs of dementia.
93,000 People Voluntarily Left Japan for North Korea After World War II. Or Did They?
In April 1960, not yet finished with high school, 17-year-old Eiko Kawasaki boarded a Soviet ship called the Kryl’ion in the Japanese port of Niigata and set sail on the journey of a lifetime, to a place she was told was paradise: North Korea.
For Some Older Adults in Japan, a Chance to Stay in the Workforce
Hiromi Yamamuro is doing something that’s relatively rare in Japan. At age 67, he’s still working in the corporate world, where traditionally, the mandatory retirement age has been 60. But Yamamuro keeps going, because he loves his job — which he’s been doing for 18 years — selling environmentally friendly products at Tokyo-based Sato Holdings.
