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Gavin Blair

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Christian Science Monitor

Where are all the shoppers? Curfew shows what base relocation could mean to Okinawa

By Gavin Blair | 03/28/13

The Futenma Marine base on Okinawa may finally be relocated to a less densely populated part of the island. But its removal could be a blow to the local economy.

Christian Science Monitor

Japan's leaders give up on quitting nuclear power

By Gavin Blair | 11/06/12

Although Japan's 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster set much of the public against nuclear power, politicians are not convinced.

Christian Science Monitor

Would Japanese nationalist Abe's return to premiership fuel row with China?

By Gavin Blair | 09/27/12

Japan's main opposition party has chosen Shinzo Abe, the nationalist former prime minister, to lead it, positioning him to likely return to the prime minister's office by year's end.

Christian Science Monitor

Japan's poverty gap has politicians calling for rise in minimum wage

By Gavin Blair | 08/14/12

It is only over the past decade that poverty has come to be recognized in Japan.

Christian Science Monitor

Double the sales tax? Japanese see hit to wallets, little impact on national debt

By Gavin Blair | 06/27/12

Japan's lower house of parliament voted Tuesday to double the sales tax. The bill still has to pass the upper house, and many question if it can make a significant dent in Japan's massive public debt.

Christian Science Monitor

Japanese firms struggle to keep manufacturing at home

By Gavin Blair | 02/03/12

Factories that once powered the economy are either being relocated overseas or losing out to Asian rivals.

Christian Science Monitor

Japan's anti-nuclear protesters find the going tough, despite Fukushima disaster

By Gavin Blair | 11/23/11
As staffers trickle out of the powerful Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) on their way home from work, a group of women from Fukushima Prefecture shout at them through a megaphone. "When are we going to be able to return to our hometo
Christian Science Monitor

How Japan's Fukushima disaster may exacerbate population woes

By Gavin Blair | 08/12/11
This week Japan announced that its population has fallen for the second year in a row, which – along with a shrinking workforce – will pose huge challenges for its economy and society. While these trends were set before the triad of disasters be
Christian Science Monitor

Beginning of the end for nuclear power in Japan?

By Gavin Blair | 06/21/11
Christian Science Monitor

A hard-hit Japanese city sees signs of hope in road repair, reopened shops

By Gavin Blair | 04/20/11
Tens of thousands of tons of concrete, wood, and metal – the remnants of houses, shops, and boats destroyed when the 9.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the northeastern coast of Japan on March 11 – are piled neatly along the sidewalks of Ishinom