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Aug 11, 2024 | 
japantimes.co.jp | Mara Budgen
Manning Rollerson turned down a $20,000 offer in 2016 for the land he inherited from his grandmother in the East End, a historically Black neighborhood in Freeport, Texas, designated as a “negro district” in 1930. After Rollerson refused to sell, Port Freeport, the government body responsible for the town’s harbor on the Gulf Coast of the United States, claimed eminent domain and took over his and other people’s land to expand its facilities.
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Mar 24, 2024 | 
japantimes.co.jp | Mara Budgen
Ngo Thi To Nhien was not an activist or a dissident, but “a government insider,” according to The 88 Project, a group tracking political prisoners in Vietnam.
This did not prevent her from being arrested by the Vietnamese authorities in September and accused of “stealing, buying, selling or destroying” state seals or documents — charges for which she faces up to five years in prison.
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Dec 29, 2023 | 
japantimes.co.jp | Mara Budgen |Melissa Ge |Lance Henderstein |Anika Exum
In a year without a global pandemic dominating the zeitgeist, it seemed that the usual suspects — war, economic hardship and climate change — took center stage once again. In front of this backdrop, our interviewees this year gave a lot of advice for living a good life and paying attention to the things that matter most. Here are some of the best 20 Questions responses in 2023. How can photography help people become aware of nature’s fragility and the need to protect it?
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Dec 7, 2023 | 
japantimes.co.jp | Shaun Mckenna |Mara Budgen |Dave Cortez
In a year that saw Japan release 24,000 tons of wastewater (so far) from Fukushima No. 1 as the planet smashed heat records, it’s no wonder climate anxiety is on the rise. Mara Budgen joins us to break down the year in environment news, where we could see hope, and what we should be worried about.
Hosted by Shaun McKenna and produced by Dave Cortez.
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Nov 2, 2023 | 
japantimes.co.jp | Mara Budgen |Dave Cortez
Single parents in Japan have it tough, but these hardships seem to disproportionately affect single mothers more. This week, filmmaker Rionne McAvoy joins us to discuss the hidden poverty present in one of the world’s richest nations.
Hosted by Mara Budgen and produced by Dave Cortez.
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Oct 29, 2023 | 
newsbreak.com | Mara Budgen
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Oct 29, 2023 | 
bbc.com | Mara Budgen
Japan's adrenaline-fuelled adventureBy Mara BudgenFeatures correspondentKitayama Village Tourism Association(Credit: Kitayama Village Tourism Association)The Kitayama River is the only place in Japan where highly skilled helmsmen are keeping the ancient tradition of log rafting, or "ikada-kudari", alive. Slender cedar trees towered over us as we drove along a winding mountain road straddling the borders of the Japanese prefectures of Wakayama, Nara and Mie.
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Sep 24, 2023 | 
japantimes.co.jp | Mara Budgen
Shigeru Ban has visited the city of Lviv in western Ukraine twice since the Russian invasion began. The first time, in September last year, “most of the ground floor of buildings was covered by sandbags,” the Japanese architect recalls.
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Aug 31, 2023 | 
bbc.com | Mara Budgen
Emphasising self-defence rather than victory, Japan's youngest martial art brings both new and veteran practitioners from across the globe to Tanabe, the town where it was born. Two men stood opposite each other holding wooden sticks shaped like a katana, the legendary Japanese sword, at arm's length. The tips of the sticks crossed each other as the men's gazes locked in a solemn stare. They raised the sticks above their heads, lowering them firmly – though not violently – to meet their opponent's.
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Jun 13, 2023 | 
lifegate.it | Mara Budgen
Niseko, Toya-Usu e Shiraoi sull’isola di Hokkaido non sono mete per semplici turisti, ma per viaggiatori che vogliono entrare in contatto con le comunità. Se dovessimo descrivere l’Hokkaido con una parola sarebbe “vasto”. In un paese come il Giappone, dove gli spazi sono generalmente ristretti, le grandi vallate, le foreste infinite e l’oceano sconfinato di quest’isola rappresentano un’eccezione.
