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Masayo Ishimaru, the head of volunteer group Tanpopo no Sato, cuddles cats rescued from a pet hoarder, in the city of Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, in September.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 4, 2024
Local governments tighten rules on pet ownership as hoarding persists
Municipalities are introducing mandatory reporting requirements for owners of large numbers of pets as well as fines for non-compliance.
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike says she will continue to review work styles flexibly to ensure that women do not have to sacrifice their careers due to life events.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 4, 2024
Tokyo government to introduce four-day workweek to empower women
The capital is joining a growing number of local governments introducing similar measures to improve working conditions amid a labor shortage.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba announces measures to counter the spread of "forever chemicals" in drinking water in the Upper House of parliament in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 3, 2024
Japan eyes new PFAS regulations for drinking water by spring
Water suppliers nationwide must upgrade their safety standards to counter the spread of "forever chemicals."
Chinese people's sentiment toward Japan is believed to be impacted by their use of social media platforms such as Weibo and Douyin, as well as whether they have visited Japan.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 3, 2024
Nearly 90% in Japan and China have negative views of other
The proportion of Japanese respondents who said they had a negative view of China stood at 89.0%, down 3.2 percentage points from a year before.
Sadao Abe, who played the role of a time-traveling Showa Era teacher transported to present day in a popular TV drama, receives the 2024 buzzword of the year award for the word "futehodo," the nickname of the series.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 2, 2024
ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½ 2024 buzzword of the year urges a reevaluation of past norms
¡°¹ó³Ü³Ù±ð³ó´Ç»å´Ç¡± ¡ª a nickname for a TV drama that depicts the generational gap between the Showa and Reiwa eras ¡ª has been crowned the most trending word of 2024.
The average price of osechi traditional food for the 2025 New Year stood at ?27,826 ($185), a 1.3% increase ¡ª or ?360 ¡ª compared with that for the 2024 New Year.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 2, 2024
Osechi ry¨­ri prices climb for a third consecutive year
The latest increase, at ?360 ($2.40), is the smallest in three years, at less than half the increase for the 2024 New Year.
A brown bear in Hokkaido. In the city of Akita, a bear that attacked a supermarket employee over the weekend was captured in a box trap on Monday morning.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 2, 2024
Bear that attacked Akita supermarket employee captured
The animal, which attacked a 47-year-old male employee on Saturday morning, was captured in a box trap on Monday morning.

Longform

People in cities across Japan will pop into their local convenience store for any number of products they believe will help them with a night of drinking.
Hangover cures are everywhere in Japan ¡ª but do they work?

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