Green is the all pervading colour of nature. Beatiful and breathtaking. But not can stir the soul and the mind as the dazziling white of sakura, the Japanese cherry blossom, says ANIL AGARWAL

A comparison to show the difference that social organisation makes to the state of rivers and the environment

The Japanese have regenerated their forests twice after their large scale destruction. But today, it is doing so at the cost of tropical forests of Southeast Asia

A good society knows how to clean its rubbish. But instead of setting an example for the world through its traditional handling of human excreta, Japan is following unsustainable Western models of sewage treatment

1888 Tokyo Municipal Improvement Commission set up; this came about after the cholera epidemics of 1879 and 1886 in which over 100,000 people suffered got the disease. 1889 A report filed by

The idea of the johkasou , a septic tank that literally translates to

Industrialisation has brought prosperity. And increasing amount of wastes, especially plastics. The answer: burn it. But there is a problem: dioxin, one of the most carcinogenic chemicals known to humankind. Japan reels under it

The concern over air pollution in Japan is based on some truly alarming findings of research in Japan. "A compound discovered in the exhaust fumes of diesel engines may be the most strongly

The new challenges before Japan require leadership from not just the government and the corporate sector but also the civil society

It is widely alleged that Japan has regenerated its forests at the cost of tropical forests in developing countries, especially in Southeast Asia. Yasuko Shimizu, a nun from Mercedarian Missionaries