The JFS newsletter, issued monthly, summarizes the latest environmental trends and topics in Japan.

To subscribe to this free newsletter, please fill in the registration form here.

Back issues of JFS newsletter articles are categorized as follows:

- New Ideas for the Earth
- Climate Change Measures in Japan
- Energy Issues in Japan
- 3Rs Trends in Japan
- Local Efforts toward Sustainability
- Initiatives by Japanese Industries
- Various Actors / Various Efforts
- Trends / Movements toward Sustainability in Japan
- Movements in Asia

- Philosophers/Leaders
- Series: Environmental Education
- Series: Zero Emissions
- Series: Initiatives and Achievements of Local Governments in Japan
- Series: Unique NGOs in Japan
- Series: Corporations at Work
- JFS activities

Back Issue List

JFS Newsletter No.112 (December 2011)
"Towards a Sustainable Japan -- Corporations at Work" (No. 99)
http://www.nipponkoa.co.jp/english/index.html

Japan experienced an unprecedented earthquake that occurred off the Pacific Coast of Tohoku on March 11, 2011. The Nipponkoa Insurance Company is a major provider of non-life insurance in Japan. Non-life insurance exists because people do not know when, where and how natural disasters will occur. For this article we interviewed two executives of Nipponkoa Insurance Co. about their work experiences at the time of the earthquake: Mr. Shoji Ito, general manager of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) office at the Corporate Planning Department, and Mr. Yukiteru Shimada, manager of the division.

JFS Newsletter No.112 (December 2011)

Japan's experience in the summer of 2011 essentially functioned as a national experiment to see how society could live with a considerably reduced supply of electricity, and JFS has been reporting on the nation's efforts from many different angles in our newsletters. After the summer passed, the Japanese government summarized the results of the "experiment" and released its findings in a report.

The Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, and subsequent accident at the nuclear power plant in Fukushima resulted in a severe decline in the available supply of electricity. Meanwhile, some saw how the Japanese responded as showing the world a way forward, as it might be necessary to start reducing worldwide power consumption to address global warming. With the hope that there are things to learn from Japan's experience, we introduce here an outline of the government's report, titled "Follow-up Results of Electricity Supply-Demand Measures for this Summer," released by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in October 2011.

JFS Newsletter No.112 (December 2011)

Image by RONGYAU. Some Rights Reserved.

The Great East Japan Earthquake that occurred on March 11, 2011, has taught us many lessons. Rather than try to restore Japan to the way it was before the quake, we now need to tackle the many social and economic issues that were revealed in its aftermath, with the aim of creating a real, sustainable society. I believe doing so will help comfort the souls of the victims.

JFS Newsletter No.111 (November 2011)
"Initiatives and Achievements of Local Governments in Japan" (No. 36)

Kanazawa City: Photo by NNE. Some Rights Reserved.

Kanazawa City in Ishikawa, a northwestern prefecture in Japan, has been speeding up a local government initiative to introduce renewable energy and utilize untapped energy. This article introduces Kanazawa's initiative, conducted independently of national energy policies, to promote local renewable energy sources in their own way by making the best use of local experience and resources.

JFS Newsletter No.111 (November 2011)
"JFS's 'Get Inspired by Nature' Project" (No. 3)

Copyright Japan for Sustainability

As part of JFS's "Get Inspired by Nature" Project, we have released series of articles featuring an interview with Professor Emile H. Ishida of Tohoku University's Graduate School of Environmental Studies and Eco-material Design & Process Engineering. This issue of JFS newsletter focuses on Ecollab., one of the main buildings at the Tohoku University research institute where Prof. Ishida works.

JFS Newsletter No.111 (November 2011)

Eight months have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake and subsequent tsunami hit the northeastern part of Japan on March 11, 2011, causing the serious accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant owned by Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO). Some say that the March 11 disaster marked the end of an era, having significantly affected our lifestyles, awareness, and sense of values.

JFS Newsletter No.110 (October 2011)

Image by gomamong. Some Rights Reserved.

Kagawa Prefecture in Shikoku, southwestern Japan, has been working for 19 years on an initiative to reconnect forests and people using acorns. The initiative is called the "Donguri Bank," where people "deposit" acorns ("donguri" in Japanese) just like money. Six months after depositing the acorns, they get seedlings back. As of 2010, over 20,000 people made deposits in the bank, and so far about 41,500 seedlings were returned to depositors. The acorns deposited to the bank are also "loaned" to public greenery businesses. This article explains this unique initiative and how it spread.