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August 12, 2026
 

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CITIES

Mugi, a female lion at Tama Zoo in Tokyo, has died following a heat wave in July.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 4, 2026
Three lions die at Tokyo¡¯s Tama Zoo amid heat wave
Three other lions are currently ill and unable to stand up.
A view of downtown Sapporo. Hokkaido Gov. Naomichi Suzuki is pushing Sapporo as a candidate for a second capital outside Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 28, 2026
With secondary-capital bill passed, competition between cities heats up
In addition to Osaka, others including Fukuoka, Sapporo and Nagoya have indicated interest in being the fallback if a disaster strikes Tokyo and renders it unable to function.
A large brown cicada. A Japanese research team has found that the species, known as <i>aburazemi,</i> called after dark at urban sites.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 22, 2026
City lights and searing summer heat keep some cicadas singing after dark
New findings from Japanese researchers show how urbanization has affected the routines of some wildlife.
Yasuo Yamazaki, 69, stands next to a protest flag reading, &#039;Do Not Push Forward with the Data Center Construction!&#039;, in the city of Hino, Tokyo, on June 30.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 18, 2026
Opposition to data centers grows in cramped urban Japan
The explosion in resource-hungry data centers ¡ª housing the hardware ¡°brains¡± of artificial intelligence ¡ª is fueling unease worldwide.
China¡¯s new generation of supersized electric vehicles ¡ª some more than 5 meters long and weighing three tons ¡ª is straining the nation¡¯s roads while starving the government of fuel taxes to maintain them.
BUSINESS
Jul 17, 2026
China¡¯s giant EVs are damaging roads without paying for repairs
The vehicles ¡ª some more than 5 meters long and weighing three tons ¡ª are straining roads while starving the government of fuel taxes to maintain them.
For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Â鶹´«Ã½ landscape that they often go unnoticed.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Jul 13, 2026
Why Â鶹´«Ã½ utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon
Burying Â鶹´«Ã½ power lines is far more difficult ¡ª and expensive ¡ª than it looks.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a meeting of the Upper House audit committee in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 7, 2026
Controversial bills threaten to push parliament session into overtime
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is caught between honoring a promise to the Japan Innovation Party and the reality that it will be difficult to pass the bills in the Upper House.
Osaka¡¯s infrastructure earned higher marks than Tokyo¡¯s in the Economist Intelligence Unit¡¯s latest Global Liveability Index.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 7, 2026
Osaka trumps Tokyo as both ranked among world¡¯s top 10 most livable cities
Osaka ranked seventh, while Tokyo, which improved its culture and environment score, moved up three places to reach 10th.
A Louis Vuitton store in Singapore. The city state&#039;s long-held top rank among most expensive cities for luxury spending is said to be driven by high prices of residential property and cars along with the strong Singapore dollar.
BUSINESS
Jul 7, 2026
Singapore, Zurich and Monaco top costliest cities for luxury spending
The cost of maintaining a premium standard of living has risen ¡°significantly¡± over the past 12 months, according to a report by Julius Baer Group.
Myanmar protesters residing in Japan show a placard of detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi during a rally outside Myanmar&#039;s embassy in Tokyo last year.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 3, 2026
Searching for Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar¡¯s capital of confusion
Naypyitaw is a labyrinth of anonymous compounds connected by deserted 20-lane highways through tracts of jungle and paddy.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 23, 2026
Takaichi and JIP agree to pass bill on backup capital this parliamentary session
The Japan Innovation Party has long sought a backup capital plan, agreeing to join the ruling coalition last year in exchange for passing legislation on it.
Employed people walk more than those without jobs, a study from the University of Tokyo found, suggesting factors beyond the environment also shape how much people walk.
JAPAN
Jun 22, 2026
Study finds large gap in daily steps people in Japan take, depending on area
The study from the University of Tokyo found average step counts tended to be higher in municipalities with environments more conducive to walking.
Dubai, the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates, showed huge growth, but its "pulse" appeared to be highly speculative.
BUSINESS
Jun 19, 2026
Satellite observations detect ¡®urban pulse¡¯ of six global cities
Researchers looked at Dubai, Lagos, Mexico City, Mumbai, Seattle and Shenzhen using a new way to document dynamic changes unfolding in each ?of these cities in near real-time.
Hirofumi Yoshimura (left), head of the Japan Innovation Party, and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who is also Liberal Democratic Party president, during a meeting at the Diet in Tokyo on March 17
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 15, 2026
Bills on JIP¡¯s signature policy goals in limbo as parliamentary session nears end
The party, also known as Nippon Ishin no Kai, continues to push for the creation of a secondary capital and a reduction of seats in the Lower House.
Japan&#039;s National Diet Building in Tokyo. Japan has released an online visualization tool that makes it easier to analyze the fiscal conditions of local governments.
JAPAN
Jun 13, 2026
Japan releases tool to visualize local government finances
Users can examine revenues, expenditures and fiscal indicators of local governments through graphs and color-coded maps.
Hebikubo Ginza street ¡ª now Sangen-dori street ¡ª is pictured in the 1930s, when Tokyo was rapidly urbanizing alongside the expansion of rail infrastructure.
JAPAN / History / Greater Shinagawa Area
Jun 2, 2026
The many lives of Shinagawa
A journey through the ancient settlements, ports, railways and redevelopments that shaped Tokyo¡¯s southern gateway.
The Osaka Municipal Assembly passes a proposal on Wednesday to establish a statutory council to discuss what has become known as the Osaka metropolis plan.
JAPAN / Politics
May 28, 2026
Osaka Municipal Assembly approves proposed council to discuss metropolis plan
The council may hold its first meeting as soon as next month if its establishment is greenlit at the prefectural assembly¡¯s plenary meeting next Wednesday.
A policewoman controls traffic in Pyongyang in 2017. North Korea¡¯s capital is experiencing a surge in passenger cars, creating traffic jams for the first time and necessitating new parking lots.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
May 12, 2026
Even in North Korea, someone¡¯s in your parking spot
North Korea¡¯s capital is experiencing a surge in passenger cars, creating traffic jams for the first time and necessitating new parking lots.
Monuments of Vladimir Lenin, the founder of the U.S.S.R., are an awkward reminder of an era that no longer fits with the times in Central Asia.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
May 5, 2026
Soviet architecture vanishes as Central Asia drifts away from Moscow
Over the past decade, the region has shown little interest in preserving its Soviet heritage.
The morning commute in Mumbai, with the Altimus tower in the background.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Apr 17, 2026
Mumbai¡¯s skyline is soaring. So is the pressure on housing.
These days, prices for some apartments are on par with parts of New York, and developers are putting in amenities to make analysts and traders feel at home.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
Yasukuni Shrine introduces ban on military attire and cosplay
People gather in front of thousands of lanterns on display at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on July 15 during the Mitama Matsuri, one of the capital&#039;s largest summer o-Bon festivals.
Many Indonesians named after Japanese anime characters
Some people in Indonesia are named Doraemon, the name of a lead character of the blockbuster anime series with the same title.
Strong wind and heavy rain forecast as tropical storm approaches Japan
Tropical Storm Chan-hom is expected to make landfall in northern Kanto between late Tuesday and early Wednesday.
Where do foreign residents in Japan want to die?
The Yokohama Foreign General Cemetery is one of the few cemeteries in Japan that allows burials, albeit with conditions for the deceased, including foreign nationality and permanent residency in Kanagawa Prefecture.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
As Â鶹´«Ã½ concrete jungles sizzle, urban forestry offers an all-natural fix
People and birds find relief from the sun in Tokyo&#039;s Nakano Ward earlier this month. While experts agree that urban greening is crucial to mitigating the impact of climate change, trees are becoming even more scarce in Japanese cities.
Â鶹´«Ã½ brewers experiment with a secret ingredient: music
At Smoke Craft, a craft beer brewery in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, music isn&#039;t just a background to the brewing process ¡ª it&#039;s an ingredient.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
J. League enters new era as league kicks off first fall-spring campaign
Players from each J. League club pose during a kickoff event on Monday ahead of the start of the 2026-27 campaign.

Podcast

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

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

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