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July 03, 2026
 

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3/11

Residents evacuated from areas within around 20 kilometers of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant take shelter at an evacuation center in Koriyama, Fukushima Prefecture, on March 31, 2011. Residents who faced long-term evacuation after the disaster suffered severe psychological and physical strain.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 10, 2026
Japan still struggles with disaster-related deaths 15 years later
Fifteen years have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake, but the government’s declared goal of reducing indirect deaths to zero still appears far from being achieved.
An industrial park in Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture. Over 10 drone- and aerospace-related startups have moved into the park after the Fukushima Robot Test Field opened nearby in 2018.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 10, 2026
Fukushima industrial parks show successes and struggles 15 years on
The 21 sites were built in coastal municipalities to revitalize the region, with the government offering lavish incentives.
Ohtani on the field at Hanamaki Higashi High School on Sept. 18, 2012, the day he signed his application to turn pro.
BASEBALL
Mar 10, 2026
How one of Japan’s deadliest disasters shaped Shohei Ohtani’s life
A global baseball icon opens up about his upbringing in Iwate and how a cataclysmic disaster shaped both his youth and future.
Members of the Self-Defense Forces search for missing people in the wake of the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami in Higashimatsushima City, Miyagi Prefecture.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 10, 2026
Lessons from the Great East Japan Earthquake
The long-term consequences of disasters are often understudied once media attention shifts to newer crises elsewhere.
Miyagi Prefectural Police officers in charge of searching for missing people, in Sendai in February
JAPAN
Mar 9, 2026
2,519 still unaccounted for 15 years after quake and tsunami
The death toll from the disaster came to 15,901 in 12 prefectures.
In a survey from the Japanese Red Cross Society, 80.3% of respondents said the Great East Japan Earthquake should not be forgotten when considering disaster preparedness measures and awareness.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 9, 2026
Over 80% in Japan believe a major disaster is coming in the near future
Many admit to being unprepared for one, however.
Workers at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture
JAPAN
Mar 9, 2026
Japan’s Fukushima cleanup offers a blueprint for nuclear recovery
The tsunami-devastated plant is taking a pioneering approach to the critical next phase of the world’s most complex cleanup operation.
Haruna Kambayashi stands by her newly purchased home on a street now lined with mostly empty lots.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Mar 9, 2026
15 years after the Tohoku quake, the road home remains uncertain for many
In once-abandoned communities, life is cautiously returning as policymakers confront the staggering price of future recoveries.
Kirara Takahashi, who will become an elementary school teacher in April, visits the former Kadonowaki Elementary School in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, in January. The school has been preserved as an earthquake and tsunami memorial following the March 2011 disaster.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 8, 2026
Childhood vow with late friend inspires woman to become teacher
Kirara Takahashi was in first grade when the tsunami crashed into Ishinomaki. Now 22, she’s honoring her friend who didn’t make it.
Reactor buildings at the tsunami-crippled Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant in the town of Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, on Jan. 22
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2026
Fukushima nuclear power plant discharging final round of treated water for FY2025
The operation, scheduled to run until March 24, will result in the release of about 7,800 tons of treated water containing tritium.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant, one of the world's largest nuclear facilities, in Niigata Prefecture in December
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 6, 2026
Japan’s nuclear comeback slow, steady and seen as necessary
A stable source of emission-free power is needed if the country is to meet its energy goals
Suguru Kikuchi, an employee of the Yamamoto town government in Miyagi Prefecture, on Jan. 13
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2026
Using experience from 3/11 to help Noto reconstruction
Suguru Kikuchi had long hoped to repay the assistance his hometown received after the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami.
A Filipina anthropologist (Gabby Padilla, right) and her Japanese half-sister (Arisa Nakano) are brought together following the sudden death of their father in Jaime Pacena II’s “This Place.”
CULTURE / Film
Mar 6, 2026
‘This Place’: Estrangement and renewal set against a city’s recovery
Set in Rikuzentakata, Jaime Pacena II’s crosscultural drama pairs a city’s slow recovery with two sisters struggling to rebuild trust.
Fukushima First Bible Baptist Church in the town of Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture
JAPAN / Society
Mar 5, 2026
Fukushima church rebuilds ties with its community 15 years after earthquake
The church’s mission has expanded beyond Sunday worship and into things such as tea gatherings and English classes to become an anchor for residents.
The BLT Cafe hamburger shop in the city of Fukushima introduced tickets that customers could pay for in advance on behalf of future customers.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Mar 5, 2026
Paying it forward in Fukushima and beyond
An initiative based on reciprocal kindness that began in the city after the March 2011 disasters is gaining popularity both at home and abroad.
Yumi Sakurai (second from left in the background) performs on a piano damaged in the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami and later restored, at Sendai Airport in Miyagi Prefecture, on Saturday.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2026
Sendai Airport fills with music from piano once damaged in 2011 tsunami
After being made playable again, the piano has been placed at the airport for a limited period every year since 2021 to encourage people to reflect on the disaster.
The Yamatsumi Shrine festival is held once again in the village of Iitate, Fukushima Prefecture, in December.
JAPAN
Mar 2, 2026
Major shrine festival back in Fukushima village
It had not been unusual for Yamatsumi Shrine, one of rare Shinto shrines dedicated to wolves, to be flooded with people and stalls during its annual festival before 3/11.
Soil collected during decontamination work at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant is moved for use in flower beds at the industry ministry in Tokyo in September.
JAPAN
Mar 2, 2026
Japan aims to expand use of soil from Fukushima decontamination
The Environment Ministry is seeking to reuse soil with low levels of radioactive contamination, collected from areas polluted due to the 2011 meltdown.
Koichi Tanigawa, head of the Futaba Medical Center, says "there is clearly a shortage of hospitals" in the Futaba region in Fukushima Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Mar 2, 2026
Medical care key to evacuees’ return to Fukushima 15 years on
In Fukushima Prefecture, the number of medical institutions has plunged from 132 to 47 since the disaster.
Eams Robotics President Eiji Sotani speaks in Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture, in February.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 1, 2026
Fukushima company working to realize drone logistics
Eams Robotics, based in the Fukushima city of Minamisoma, produces and sells industrial drones.
Japan triples departure tax in push to combat overtourism
Tourists in Yanaka Ginza, Tokyo, on Wednesday. Japan tripled its International Tourist Tax (departure tax) to ¥3,000 from ¥1,000 on Wednesday for all travelers leaving Japan, regardless of nationality.
‘My dream is broken’: Japan visa rules push out foreign residents
A man orders from a kebab shop in the Okubo district in Tokyo.
More facilities in Japan placing sanitary bins in men’s restrooms
A sanitary bin with an awareness sticker placed in a men's restroom in the Nagasaki Municipal Government building
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
Japanese-language education is at a turning point
The country is gradually transforming Japanese-language education from a volunteer-driven system into a professional, government-supported network to better serve its growing foreign population. 
Six of the best: rikishi of note in each sumo division
Kazuma (right) faces off against future <i>yokozuna</i> Onosato during the All Japan Amateur Sumo Championships at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo in December 2020.
Some startups see opportunity in an aging Japan
Yasmin Baba, CTO of Amilis, wins the Grand Prize at the Pitch2Tokyo Grand Final on Feb. 19.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

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