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August 12, 2026
 

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OKAYAMA

The Rabbit Hole is helping redefine Okayama as a contemporary-art destination.
CULTURE / Art
Aug 4, 2026
Before the art islands, a reason to stop in Okayama
The Rabbit Hole and Fukuoka Shoyu Gallery make Okayama a contemporary-art destination before visitors reach the Seto Inland Sea.
In 2008, Nishiawakura announced a 100-year plan to promote forest health through measures including structured thinning of its artificially planted <i>sugi</i> and <i>hinoki</i> trees. Since then, it has earned nationwide recognition for its innovative forest health management initiatives.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability / OUR PLANET
Jul 27, 2026
The tiny Okayama village providing Japan with a blueprint for forest management
Nishiawakura is prioritizing long-term forest health and biodiversity, while also strengthening the local economy.
A woman offers prayers in Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture, on Monday, mourning people who lost their lives in a devastating rain disaster that hit the area in 2018.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 2026
Victims mourned eight years after western Japan rain disaster
Residents across the Chugoku region on Monday mourned over 300 people who lost their lives in the incident that hit the area in 2018.
The town assembly of Kaisei in Kanagawa Prefecture has been opening its chamber as a study room for students during summer vacation since July 2023.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 2, 2026
Local assembly chambers in Japan open their doors for studying and weddings
As the chambers are only sparingly used when assemblies are not in session, it is hoped allowing residents to make use of the spaces will raise public awareness of the assemblies.
Across Kojima, production facilities handle different stages of denim-making, from sewing and washing to finishing and quality control.
LIFE / Travel
Jun 13, 2026
How Kojima made a destination out of denim
In Okayama Prefecture, an old textile town has turned jeans into a source of craft, identity and tourism.
A research team led by Okayama University professor Sakae Takeuchi has identified the detailed mechanism behind crows¡¯ black coloration, finding that a receptor in the species&#039; pigment cell for producing black pigment is constantly active.
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 14, 2026
Japanese researchers identify scientific mechanism behind crows¡¯ black color
The research team created the pigment cell receptor for large-billed crows in culture and conducted a detailed analysis.
As the oldest member of the upper chamber, Toranosuke Katayama was known for voicing his opinions during parliamentary questioning.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 19, 2025
Former internal affairs minister Katayama dies at 90
Toranosuke Katayama, a native of Okayama Prefecture, was first elected to the House of Councilors in 1989.
Fisheries minister Norikazu Suzuki explains measures to support oyster farmers during a news conference at the ministry on Thursday.
JAPAN
Dec 12, 2025
Japan unveils measures to tackle mass oyster deaths
The measures include financially supporting affected oyster farmers and identifying the cause of the mass deaths.
The Olympia Dream Seto ferry is set to use autonomous navigation technology on a route between the city of Okayama and Shodoshima, an island in Kagawa Prefecture.
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2025
World¡¯s first autonomous passenger ship to start service in Japan
The initiative is aimed at addressing ship crew shortages and reducing accidents caused by human error.
Police have arrested an elementary school teacher in Okayama Prefecture, the seventh and final suspect related to a group of teachers who allegedly shared voyeuristic videos of school girls on social media.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 7, 2025
Final suspect held in case of teachers accused of sharing child sexual abuse images
It was the seventh arrest related to a group of teachers who allegedly shared voyeuristic videos of school girls on social media.
Ryan Gander¡¯s ¡°The Find¡± transforms Okayama into the site of a scavenger hunt for coins that anyone is free to take home.
CULTURE / Art
Oct 5, 2025
Artists turn Okayama into Murakami-esque city of wonder
The fourth edition of the triennial Okayama Art Summit transmutes the sensibility of Haruki Murakami¡¯s ¡°1Q84¡± into an urban art program.
In a region more associated with art, Keirin Hotel 10 takes a decidedly more athletic approach to attracting tourists.
LIFE / Travel
Aug 16, 2025
A seaside hotel built on competitive Japanese cycling
Naoshima is known for art, but this coastal hotel in Tamano, Okayama Prefecture, focuses on Â鶹´«Ã½ competitive cycling scene.
The head office of Chugoku Bank in Okayama
BUSINESS
May 28, 2025
Â鶹´«Ã½ ¡®Middle Country¡¯ bank is puzzling Chinese tourists
When written in Japanese, Chugoku Bank¡¯s name is identical to that of Bank of China.
Masao Omori, mayor of the city of Okayama, the capital of the western prefecture of the same name, announces that a wildfire there had been contained Friday.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 2025
Okayama wildfire contained as Ehime eyes similar declaration
A forest fire in Okayama Prefecture has been contained, officials said, while another wildfire in Ehime Prefecture could also be brought under control early next week.
A wildfire in the city of Okayama on Wednesday evening
JAPAN
Mar 27, 2025
Over 900 hectares destroyed in Ehime and Okayama wildfires
In the Ehime city of Imabari, 417 hectares had been burned as of Wednesday, while the fire in the city of Okayama had swept through some 559 hectares.
Smoke from a wildfire in the city of Okayama on Monday. The fire had subsided by Tuesday while a separate wildfire in Ehime Prefecture continues to spread.
JAPAN
Mar 25, 2025
Ehime wildfire blazes on while Okayama¡¯s begins to burn out
The wildfire in Ehime Prefecture had spread to cover 171 hectares by Tuesday, although no building damage?has been reported.
A photo posted on the X account for the transport ministry's Matsuyama branch in Ehime Prefecture shows a wildfire in the city of Imabari on Sunday night.
JAPAN
Mar 24, 2025
Firefighters and SDF battle wildfires spreading in Okayama and Ehime
This is the second time the country has seen an unusually large wildfire in recent weeks, following one in Iwate Prefecture last month.
The Osaka Prefectural Police headquarters in the city of Osaka
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 12, 2025
Osaka police arrest man for abandoning his wife¡¯s body
His wife was last seen leaving work early at around 2 p.m. on May 26 last year.
Travel officials from the Middle East experience test cutting for Japanese swords in Setouchi, Okayama Prefecture, in January.
JAPAN
Feb 11, 2025
Government touts exchanges with nations participating in Osaka Expo
Local governments expect their plans to boost youth exchanges, accelerate overseas expansion and promote tourism.
A little-used section of the JR Geibi Line, which runs through the Chugoku Mountains in Okayama and Hiroshima prefectures, faces a threat of closure.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Feb 10, 2025
Underutilized Hiroshima-Okayama rail route struggles to survive
While the number of passengers has continued to decline, the Geibi Line has served as a lifeline for some residents.
¡®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.
Severe tropical storm Chan-hom makes landfall near Tokyo
Severe Tropical Storm Chan-hom made landfall around Ibaraki Prefecture, near Tokyo, on Tuesday night.
¡®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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