Stories about Japan from June, 2015
Japan's ‘Too Handsome’ Gorilla Is a Social Media Sensation
Some outside Japan wrote the story off as another “Weird Japan” piece, but that didn't sit well with everyone.
Girl Group Goes Head-to-Head With Japanese Prime Minister Over Reinterpreting Constitution
A Japanese girl group's clash with municipal government highlights increasingly vocal opposition to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government.
What Sailor Moon Means to Women All Over the World
Sailor Moon may seem like a cutesy cartoon intended just for anime maniacs, but a closer looks shows that the program includes themes of women's empowerment and independence.
Toyota Exec's Arrest Highlights Japan's Hard Line on Narcotics
An American executive's arrest has highlighted Japan's zero-tolerance attitude towards illegal drugs, including those legal in other countries.
Bicyclists, Hang Up That Phone. Japan’s Traffic Laws Just Got Tougher
The newly revised laws are meant to curb dangerous behaviour, such as riding through stop signs, failing to yield to pedestrians, and riding while drunk or holding an umbrella.
Hope for a Nuclear-Free Taiwan
Many Taiwanese wish to reduce the risks of nuclear power, but if President Ma's administration represses their voices instead of listening, the problems of nuclear waste could be deadlocked.
Japan Expecting a Summer of Weird, Wild Weather
The return of El Nino in 2015 is causing wild weather in Japan, including heavy rains that have so far driven more than 30,000 people from their homes.
Bad Luck Injury a Blemish on ‘Nadeshiko Japan's’ FIFA Women's World Cup Start
Before a star player was injured in the opening game, Japan was the overwhelming favorite to win this year's FIFA Women's World Cup. Can Nadeshiko Japan still pull it off?
Parents Experience Nostalgia as Nintendo Console Enters Textbooks
"For elementary school kids, Famicom is not a toy, but something they have to study in school. What amazing times we live in."
From Media to Manga, How Japan's Pop Culture Changed After Fukushima
Global Voices interviews Dr. BA Wakefield, a lecturer at Leiden University who is organizing a the Safety and Disaster in Japanese Popular Culture after Fukushima workshop on June 5.
Stunning Images of Volcanic Eruption on Japan's Kuchinoerabu-jima Island
A boy manages to capture video shortly after a volcano suddenly erupts on an island in southwestern Japan. For residents of nearby Kagoshima, volcanoes have become a way of life.
