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August 11, 2026
 

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DEPOPULATION

Officials from the municipal government of Tamura, Fukushima Prefecture, take part in a job fair in the city on June 24 to explain their recruitment policies.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Aug 4, 2026
Municipalities in Fukushima struggle to recruit workers
Getting hired by local governments used to be a highly competitive affair, but now municipalities are taking various measures to appeal to potential candidates.
Kerala, in southern India, is struggling to care for its elderly population as fertility rates remains low.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Aug 1, 2026
As youth protests dominate India, one state is grappling with an aging problem
Kerala, in southern India, is struggling to care for its elderly population as fertility rates remains low.
As of Jan. 1, the population of Japanese residents in Japan stood at 119.74 million, down 0.76% from the previous year.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 30, 2026
Japanese population falls below 120 million for first time in decades
The population of Japanese residents has been declining for 17 consecutive years since peaking in 2009.
Neyagawa Mayor Keisuke Hirose speaks to reporters in the city in Osaka Prefecture on Thursday.
JAPAN
Jul 9, 2026
City in Osaka Prefecture to tax vacant houses from fiscal 2029
Annual revenue from the tax is estimated to reach ?139 million, which will be used for measures against crimes and natural disasters.
Parliament passed a bill Wednesday to add six islands to the list of inhabited border islands eligible for state support aimed at promoting settlement and tourism.
JAPAN
Jul 8, 2026
Japan enacts bill to boost settlement on six more border islands
The revised special measures law calls for promoting tourism on listed islands and requiring prefectural governments?to make efforts to address depopulation.
The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Jun 29, 2026
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
Faced with the same demographic pressures confronting other towns, Yokoze is experimenting with a different approach.
Â鶹´«Ã½ population decline continues to accelerate despite some modest positive signs, highlighting the need for broader social, economic and cultural changes to raise the birth rate.
EDITORIALS
Jun 5, 2026
A bleak prognosis for Â鶹´«Ã½ demographic future
The most recent government statistics show fertility rates hitting record lows ¡ª again.
Japan's population saw the largest decline on record in 2025, but Tokyo continued to mark a rise in the number of residents.
JAPAN
May 29, 2026
Â鶹´«Ã½ 2025 census reflects steepest fall in population on record, data shows
Preliminary data shows the nation¡¯s headcount shrank 2.5%, the third straight decline in the nationwide survey conducted every five years.
Hiroya Masuda (center), head of the Forum for the Future We Choose, speaks during a news conference in Tokyo in March.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
May 27, 2026
Deeply entrenched gender roles a key factor in Â鶹´«Ã½ low birthrate
A survey has found that many women in rural areas feel constrained by social norms, which could lead to a demographic crisis if left unaddressed.
Train cars at Toyama Chihou Tetsudou's Etchu-Funahashi Station in Toyama Prefecture
JAPAN
May 14, 2026
Local railway operator offers chances to stream original music
The Toyama company is pushing the project forward as part of local revitalization efforts.
The child population, down 350,000 from a year earlier, again fell to the lowest level since 1950.
JAPAN
May 4, 2026
Â鶹´«Ã½ child population down for 45th straight year
The child population, down 350,000 from a year earlier, again fell to the lowest level since 1950.
The school's flag is returned to the city during a closing ceremony at Shimoibano Elementary School in Osaki, Miyagi Prefecture, on Feb. 14.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Tohoku
May 4, 2026
Shrinking city in Miyagi Prefecture braces for uncertain future
Faced with school closures and declining births, the city of Osaki is struggling to find a way forward.
Shingo Takatsu (left) and Soichi Tojima check a crop surrounded by a fence in Oda, Shimane Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Apr 27, 2026
Shimane farming districts face onslaught from rising monkey population
Japanese macaques have become used to humans, stealing persimmons and daikons even with people standing nearby.
Companies in Japan are working to meet rising demand for quick meal solutions driven by the increase in dual-income households.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 21, 2026
Companies in Japan offer kids¡¯ meals to help ease burden of working households
Working parents are ready to spend more money on food that¡¯s easy to prepare so they can spend more time with their children, a developer at one food company said.
The National Police Agency has issued guidelines calling for resource sharing and more flexibility to address rising specialized and international crimes and police staffing challenges.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 2, 2026
Â鶹´«Ã½ police agency to promote reform to tackle more specialized, global crime
The guidelines call for equipment and personnel to be shared across police departments and for a review of the division of roles between headquarters and stations.
Wakkanai Shinkin Bank¡¯s headquarters in Wakkanai, Hokkaido
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 25, 2026
A tiny bank runs dry of borrowers as Â鶹´«Ã½ population shrinks
Many rural banks are struggling, but for a small credit union in Hokkaido, the situation is extreme.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Mar 23, 2026
¡®Alone in Japan¡¯ travels towns in decline and talks to the people left
While Â鶹´«Ã½ depopulation is a much discussed issue, Tom Feiling¡¯s book ¡°Alone in Japan¡± tackles the topic face to face as he travels to remote parts of Japan.
Over the past 15 years, a spate of restoration projects in Onomichi has emerged due to demographic decline, a surplus of vacant hillside homes and growing interest from visitors drawn to the town¡¯s historic character.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
Mar 23, 2026
In Onomichi, urbanists redesign public life via vacant homes
Since 2019, a volunteer renovation and reconstruction project has been reimagining community and bringing new energies to a seaside town in Hiroshima Prefecture.
The last two students at Yumoto Junior High School attend their graduation ceremony in Ten-ei Village, Fukushima Prefecture, in March 2023.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 19, 2026
We have to stop discussing Â鶹´«Ã½ birthrate like this
Declining Asian fertility is often framed negatively: a backlash against a crushing society. When it happens in the U.S., though, it¡¯s young women taking control over their lives.
Shogo Tsuchiya, the deputy secretary-general of the Futaba Project, provides consultations to people interested in relocating to the town of Futaba, Fukushima Prefecture. Amid a housing shortage, Tsuchiya himself couldn¡¯t find a home in the town.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Mar 16, 2026
Amid housing shortage, migration stalls in disaster-hit Fukushima towns
Approximately 19,000 houses were demolished using state funds as part of reconstruction efforts but construction of new houses has been limited.
America¡¯s cyberforces grapple with cluster of deaths by suicide
The U.S. Cyber Command building (center) stands on the National Security Agency campus at Fort Meade, Maryland.
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.
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's largest summer o-Bon festivals.
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.
¡®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.
¡®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'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't just a background to the brewing process ¡ª it'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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