A respected Japan specialist, Eamonn Fingleton, wrote an interesting piece in the New York Times the other day.

While I do not disagree with many of his points, I think he has missed some very relevant issues in his overly optimistic assertion pertaining to Japan's future.

Take his...

Trust between the people and government in Japan has been severely damaged since the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident of March 11, 2011. Inaccuracies in information flow and communication mistakes are largely to blame. In this article, I will argue that mistrust can be repaired if a collaborative effort between...

Almost four months ago, I started sharing my thoughts on the horrific earthquake and tsunami with readers of HuffPost. My first piece appeared on March 15, in which I chronicled my decision-making process leading up to my departure from Japan. At the time, my gut told me to...

There is plenty to be upset about these days in Japan. As the pain of losing 40,000 souls starts to ease, people living in Japan must now contend with a contracting economy, limited electricity, and politicians who spend too much of their time trying to oust Prime Minister Kan instead...

In scathing terms, one of Japan's honest citizens lashed out the other day, claiming that rather than do what is in the best interest of the people, the government is simply making decisions to "prolong its own life."

Toshiso Kosako, one of Japan's leading experts on nuclear safety,...

For those of us who reside anywhere near the Daiichi Fukushima nuclear facility, living with radiation has become an undesired way of life. It is the topic of daily conversation and for good reason.

In Tokyo, we continue to face not only the threat of a sudden spike in...

Controlling information flow in a crisis is crucial to its outcome. So it should come as no surprise that much information received about how the crisis at Fukushima unfolded has been kept away from traditional and social media as long as possible. In the end, however, the truth does come...

Unlike displeased masses in the Middle East who are rising up to demand domestic change, the Japanese people have traditionally preferred a milder form of protest. In fact, the idea of mass demonstration is unheard of in the land of conformity. Yet the crisis in Fukushima is encouraging groups of...

Earlier this month, it was reported that high levels of cesium were found on tea leaves in Shizuoka, south of Tokyo. Shortly thereafter, the Shizuoka Prefectural government asked the tea company that reported this important finding, Radishbo-ya, to refrain from carrying information on its website confirming...

The greatest concern for people living anywhere near the Daiichi Fukushima nuclear plant these days is the spread of radioactivity emanating from the facility. In recent days, several reports paint a dire picture of what is happening in Japan.

On June 7, Japanese authorities officially doubled the release of radioactivity...

Since the tragic March 11th earthquake in Japan, Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) has been allowed to manage information flow related to the nuclear crisis at Fukushima. And ever since that date, there have been multiple examples of inaccurate information being released to the public.

So one has...

Since the beginning of the Fukushima nuclear crisis in Japan, the question of who to believe has been of great concern. The Japanese government has shown better transparency in recent weeks and is even distancing itself (at least publicly) from Tokyo Electric Power Company
(TEPCO). Yet...

The way to manage a crisis is to be transparent. Transparency builds trust. Yet it is trust that is becoming harder and harder to find as each day passes here in Japan.

The latest came yesterday when a Japanese friend sent me a YouTube video from May...

Each week that passes here brings new revelations about the unstable nature of the nuclear facility at Fukushima as a result of the earthquake and tsunami on March 11th. Most recently, it has been confirmed by Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) that units #1, #2 and #3 at the...

The "Japan miracle" has been the study of Japan specialists for centuries. How a nation with almost nothing in the way of natural resources could rise to become a global power fascinates even watchers today. But recent events have shown that it will take new and innovative thinking for Japan...

A rather extraordinary thing happened the other day here in Tokyo. An adviser to Prime Minister Kan on the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant, recently appointed because of his expertise in radiation safety, resigned in protest over what he called the government's impromptu handling of...

Roughly six weeks have passed since the horrific events of March 11th unfolded in the Tohoku area of Japan. The total number of deaths and those still unaccounted for has now surpassed 28,000 and tens of thousands of people remain in makeshift shelters with uncertain futures. It is a very...

It is sometimes hard to know what is fact and what is fiction related to the Fukushima crisis. A lot of people I know here in Tokyo, myself included, are having trouble distinguishing between fact, fiction, and 'spin' with respect to the safety of air, water and food.

Can we...

After leaving Japan for nearly three weeks shortly a few days after the earthquake struck, I returned to Tokyo late last week. My decision to do so was based on the understanding that the spread of radiation from Fukushima had stabilized and daily radiation readings around Tokyo had returned to...

On March 15th I wrote about my decision to leave Tokyo. One of my main concerns at the time was that decision-making pertaining to the six overheating nuclear reactors at the Daiichi Fukushima nuclear facility would be too slow. Given that decision-making in Japan is nearly always done...