91²Ö¿â

author

 
Menu
Search
 
April 13, 2026
 

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

Meta

Mara Budgen
Rosie Fordham of Australia competes in the women's 4 x 7.5 kilometer cross-country skiing relay during the Milano Cortina Olympics on Saturday in Lago, Italy.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Feb 15, 2026
Is global warming dooming snow sports and the Winter Olympics?
Since the 1970s, mean snow depth across the Alps has declined by over 8% per decade and the snow season is up to 34 days shorter below 2,000 meters.
Paulina ¡°Jedda¡± Puruntatameri with Antonia Burke and Tiwi fisher Clinton offshore of Melville Island, one of the Tiwi Islands, in Australia's Northern Territory. Together with other Tiwi, Jedda has been campaigning for years to stop Australian company Santos and its backers, including Japanese investors, from drilling for natural gas at the Barossa gas field.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy / OUR PLANET
Sep 21, 2025
As Japan keeps buying gas, Aboriginal Australians pay the price
Japan is Australia¡¯s second-largest export market for energy and natural resources, giving Tokyo a certain political weight when it comes to Australian energy matters.
The Bishu Maru LNG tanker, owned by Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, next to the Freeport LNG terminal in Texas
ENVIRONMENT / Energy / OUR PLANET
Aug 3, 2025
How Trump is gaslighting on climate change ¡ª with Japan¡¯s help
As the U.S. president ramps up high-polluting LNG projects, Japan is among the nations he's pressuring for investments. The economic case for the push, however, is far from clear.
Flaring at the Cameron LNG export terminal in Hackberry, Louisiana. Flaring, a common sight at LNG plants, is a controlled burning of gas for reasons ranging from depressurizing equipment to disposing of gas that can¡¯t be used. The practice is a "waste of money" and negatively impacts climate change and human health, says the International Energy Agency.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET
Aug 11, 2024
Japan fuels U.S. LNG boom even as climate targets and impacts loom
For over half a century, Japan has been a sizable buyer of LNG, and its government, banks and energy companies have played a key role in continued investment.
Containers transporting coal at a dock in Cam Pha, Vietnam. Enthusiasm for Vietnam¡¯s renewables boom is dampened by factors such as its underdeveloped electricity grid and patchy regulatory framework, while the country¡¯s major source of electricity remains coal.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET
Mar 25, 2024
With Japan¡¯s help, is Vietnam headed for a flawed energy transition?
The climate-vulnerable nation is looking to renewables, but also questionable solutions promoted by Tokyo, for its energy needs.
Yasuhiro Otomo and Miku Narisawa during one of Odyssey Nature Japan's educational fishing programs.
PODCAST / deep dive
Feb 22, 2024
A young 3/11 survivor and her vow to protect the ocean
At 12, Miku Narisawa experienced a magnitude 9 earthquake and tsunami that destroyed her home. Now she is working to protect it.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Dec 29, 2023
20 Questions: The best answers of 2023
Our interviewees this year gave a lot of advice for living a good life and paying attention to the things that matter most.
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 7, 2023
Feeling anxious? Wastewater, heat and Japan¡¯s year in climate
In a year that saw Japan release 24,000 tons of wastewater (so far) from Fukushima No. 1 as the planet smashed heat records, it¡¯s no wonder climate anxiety is on the rise. Mara Budgen joins us to break down the year in environment news, where we could see hope, and what we should be worried about....
"The Ones Left Behind" documents the successes and struggles of single mothers in Japan.
PODCAST / deep dive
Nov 2, 2023
Why single mothers in Japan have been left behind
Filmmaker Rionne McAvoy joins us to discuss the hidden poverty present in one of the world¡¯s richest nations.
A surgical center designed by Shigeru Ban Architects for a hospital in Lviv, Ukraine
JAPAN / Society
Sep 24, 2023
Shigeru Ban¡¯s humanitarian architecture reaches Ukraine
Architect Shigeru Ban is working with the mayor of Lviv, in Ukraine, to expand a hospital and serve the growing number of people displaced by the war.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Jul 12, 2023
Japan is about to release 1.3 million tons of Fukushima wastewater. Should we be concerned?
Environmental journalist Mara Budgen joins the podcast to discuss Japan¡¯s plan to discharge millions of tons of wastewater from the Fukushima No. 1 power plant into the ocean.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
May 7, 2023
Bar none: Tokyo's liquor shops are where locals start their weekends
Kaku¡¯uchi ¡ª liquor stores doubling as bars ¡ª are trending again in Tokyo. Mara Budgen provides a guide to some of the capital¡¯s best joints, for all tastes.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Apr 30, 2023
91²Ö¿â ume heartland sows new prospects
If you¡¯ve ever eaten ume, chances are it came from Minabe or Tanabe in Wakayama Prefecture.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Apr 26, 2023
[Rebroadcast] Is it too late to save the Japanese giant salamander?
Check out this podcast from December in which we speak with environment journalist Mara Budgen about the trouble facing the Japanese giant salamander.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Apr 1, 2023
Ainu culture at the heart of Hokkaido¡¯s mindful tourism pivot
As Hokkaido looks to promote responsible, community-based tourism centered on Ainu culture and traditions, questions remain as to who stands to gain.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Mar 26, 2023
Haruo Nishio: ¡®Thatched roofs tell a story of eternity¡¯
The ancient craft of thatching is resisting the pressures of modernity thanks to artisans like Haruo Nishio, who connects to Japan¡¯s historic roots by preserving its original houses.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jan 23, 2023
Why 91²Ö¿â favorite fermented paste may hold the key to a low-carbon diet
The ancient art of fermentation, an essential part of Japanese cuisine, is helping reduce the environmental impact of the food we eat today, and will eat in the future.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / Longform
Jan 16, 2023
The race to save the Japanese giant salamander
River infrastructure is causing the salamander's decline. To stop Japan from losing this rare species, conservationists are calling for an alternative vision of rural development.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Jan 12, 2023
Junji Takasago: ¡®Photographers are a bridge between humans and nature¡¯
In capturing nature's raw and mysterious beauty, Junji Takasago seeks not only to inspire awe but highlight its fragility.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 16, 2022
Is it too late to save the Japanese giant salamander?
Environmental journalist Mara Budgen comes on the show to talk about the Japanese giant salamander, which is well-protected within Japan through various laws but is still at risk of becoming an endangered species.
Japanese researchers look at 800-year-old books and trees for signs of extreme solar events
A drawing of Fujiwara no Teika, known as a courtier, <i>waka</i> poet and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods
Debt-laden Japan should review spending on gender equality, survey finds
A woman holds a handheld fan bearing the image of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi&#039;s wedding photo, during an election campaign event in Tokyo on Feb. 7.
Jehovah's Witnesses followers sue Japanese government
According to court records, the plaintiffs include the Japanese branch of Jehovah&#039;s Witnesses in Ebina, Kanagawa Prefecture.
Chinese payment apps raise questions in Japan
Alipay has been mentioned by legislators in discussions about the use of foreign payment apps in Japan.
At Ueno Station, ¡®Freedom¡¯ restored
¡°Freedom,¡± a mural in JR Ueno Station, created in 1951, has been repaired three times, most recently in 2025.
Where Tokyo goes to sweat and soak
As Tokyo&#039;s public bathhouses age, many are embracing more contemporary aesthetics to stay relevant for a younger class of customer.
At Ueno Station, ¡®Freedom¡¯ restored
¡°Freedom,¡± a mural in JR Ueno Station, created in 1951, has been repaired three times, most recently in 2025.
Inside Iizukatei, a 200-year-old home turned boutique hotel in Tochigi
Recognized as a tangible cultural property in 2003, the former residence of the Iizuka family is now a boutique hotel in Nakagawa, Tochigi Prefecture.
Tokyo¡¯s sake calendar is filled to the brim
The recently concluded Sake Park invited younger brewers to make sake more approachable for attendees in their 20s and 30s.
Japan¡¯s tighter immigration controls yielding results
An immigration control passport stamp issued in Japan. A surge in arrivals from overseas has coincided with a tightening of immigration controls under a government initiative aimed at reducing overstayers.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Projects like the BuddhaBot aim to re-create dialogue once lost to time, raising questions about whether AI can extend the teachings of Buddha or merely simulate them.
Can AI replace a priest? Japan¡¯s temples and shrines are testing the limits.
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER