17/02/2011
Minamata declares itself an eco-tourism model
The city of Minamata in southern Japan, since famous for its legal struggles with big business over ‘Minamata Disease’ and the devastation of the local eco-system, has declared itself a top destination for environmentally conscious individuals and businesses. Not just as a vacation spot, but as a place to live and work. Over 100 people […]
17/02/2011
Assistant Director Yoshihisa Ogawa and Research Manager Andrew Stevens visited Cheshire West and Chester Council this week for a CLAIR report on local authority policies for tourism promotion as part of local economic development. In Chester they learned how the new local authority is using its significant heritage assets to promote the visitor economy while […]
16/02/2011
Tokyo Named Asia-Pacific’s Greenest City
Tokyo has been named as Asia-Pacific’s greenest city, followed by Seoul, Melbourne, Singapore and Osaka. A survey by Solidiance evaluated ten cities in categories such as CO2 emissions, energy, transportation, air quality, water, waste and green space as well as environmental governance. The study’s editor, Jennifer Elison, told the City Mayors website that the results […]
11/02/2011
Europe and Japan discuss intercultural cities in Tokyo
The Council of Europe, European Union and Japan Foundation held a joint seminar in Tokyo in January in order to introduce and compare initiatives towards integration at regional and community levels in Europe and Japan. “Japan, though it may be considered outside as ethnologically monolithic, has in fact a long history of accepting immigrants from […]
10/02/2011
Professor David Cope, Director of the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST) spoke to Japanese officials at JLGC today about the work of the office, particularly its international dimension. The talk addressed not only its advisory role on issues as diverse as the menace of chewing gum in the urban environment and local authority […]
10/02/2011
First ever conference of German cities with Japanese links in Berlin
As part of the 150-year anniversary celebrations of the first Prusso-Japanese treaty, on February 8 2011 the first ever conference of German cities with ties to Japanese cities took place at the Japanese Ambassadors’ Residence in Berlin. More than 70 participants turned out for this event, among them mayors and former mayors for major German cities as […]
09/02/2011
Creating value through local partnerships – Japan Day Seminar
The Japan Day Seminar: Local Links Conference will be held on Friday March 4 2011 at the Corn Exchange, Rochester in Kent. Featuring presentations from British local authorities and Anglo-Japanese organisations, the event will focus on how local bodies have been able to use their international partnerships with counterparts in Japan in new ways to […]
31/01/2011
The story of Paro the robot seal (who made his UK debut at our LGA conference stall two years ago) is now well-known here, but as the Daily Yomiuri reports, local governments in Japan are finding ever more innovative ways to keep their elderly populations mentally stimulated and alert: An increasing number of social welfare […]
21/01/2011
Yamanashi Prefecture brings Koshu Wines to London
Yamanashi Prefectural Government accompanied 14 wineries to London this week in support of efforts to market Japanese “Koshu” white wine, using the UK as a base for entry into the European market. This follows a very successful event last year where industry professionals were introduced to the region for the first time at events promoting the wine varieties as […]
19/01/2011
Anglo-Japanese Local Governance Study Visits
All staff of JLGC were fortunate to attend two days of lectures this week at the Institute of Local Government Studies of the University of Birmingham. Monday’s session, led by Professor Tony Bovaird, covered ‘From Performance Management in local government and its legacy to new forms of council management and service provision’, while on Tuesday […]
