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Green Japan

Beautiful Japanese commercial for the Touch Wood cell phone by NTT DoCoMo

Japanese telecommunications giant NTT DoCoMo has an impressive commercial for their Touch Wood SH-08C cell phone. The ad was produced by a Japanese agency Drill, Inc. Watch it here: Read More


Panasonic to build eco-conscious smart town in Japan by 2014

Panasonic is planning to develop a comprehensive eco-conscious ‘smart town’ in Fujisawa City in Japan by 2014. Read More


Japan plans solar panels on all new buildings by 2030

If the 20th century saw a nuclear renaissance, will the 21st century become the golden age for alternative sources of energy? Recent developments in Japan all point in this direction. The enormous scale of the March 11 triple disaster — a powerful earthquake, a tsunami and a destroyed nuclear power… Read More


March of the penguins at a Hokkaido zoo

At Asahiyama Zoo in Ashikawa in Hokkaido, starting this week you can attend a penguin parade. The popular annual event which began eight years ago will take place daily and last until mid-March of next year. NHK has a report: This year, visitors are entertained by 17 penguins who march… Read More


Solar power meters on Japanese buildings

The solar power industry boomed in Japan years ago thanks to policies that made it competitive to conventional energy sources. For example, in 2003 Japan generated half of all solar power in the world, developed 44% of all new solar energy equipment and installed 5 times more new solar power… Read More


Shimizu’s Dream: Innovative projects for the world of tomorrow

Japanese construction firm Shimizu Corporation, a company with a history of over 200 years and one of the rare world corporations that thinks about future generations, has presented its vision of the world of tomorrow with a series of mega-projects under the name Shimizu’s Dream. Shimizu’s incredibly detailed proposals of… Read More


What do Japanese do with plastic bottle caps and lids?

They throw them into trash bins for plastic bottle caps, of course! In Japan, recycling is part of daily life. Besides separating caps from plastic bottles, people usually remove the labels from bottles as well before dumping them into recycle bins. There even exists a special organization — The Council … Read More


The oldest tree in Japan

In Japan, you can easily find plenty of old things. One of these is Jomon Sugi (縄文杉) which is officially the oldest known tree in Japan. It is estimated to be between 2170 and 7200 years old — exact age is unknown. Discovery of the tree in 1968 on the… Read More


ULV-III: New ultra-light electric vehicle

At the Automotive NEXT Industry Fair 2010 in Tokyo last week Waseda Environmental Institute introduced a next-generation, ultra-light electric vehicle called ULV-III. The vehicle, designed for one person, weights only 72.6 kg (160 lbs). According to the developer, it could be used as a mobile advertising medium for environmental campaigns… Read More


Japan owns 40.8% of world’s patents in green technologies

As global currents seem to suggest, in the turbulent times we are entering, green technology won’t be just one of the most profitable markets but an urgency if we as human race want to remain alive in this increasingly harmful environment which we have been corroding with toxins of all… Read More