The Japanese Approach to Environmental Issues - World Affairs ...

decades. The fleet is conducting its largest hunt in the South Pacific and has instructions to kill up toone thousand whales, including fifty humpbacks.TIME: WHY JAPAN’S WHALE HUNT CONTINUES (Nov. 20, 2007)http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1686486,00.html?xid=feed-cnn-topicsUnder a loophole in the 1986 International Whaling Commission (IWC) ban against commercialwhaling, Japan has continued to kill hundreds of whales every year for scientific research. Once awhale is killed, scientists collect data from the animal's remains on its age, birthing rate, and diet; themeat is then packaged and sold.THE INDEPENDENT: SECRET PLAN TO LET JAPAN RESUME WHALING (March2008)http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/secret-plan-to-let-japan-resume-whaling-793486.htmlControversial plans to lift the worldwide ban on whaling were presented to a secret meeting of morethan seventy governments in London last week. The plans, which have alarmed environmentalists,have been welcomed by both pro- and anti-whaling governments and seek to lift a long stalemateover hunting, enabling Japan officially to resume commercial whaling for the first time in more thantwenty years.SustainabilityCENTER FOR GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP: CARING FOR THE ENVIRONMENT –FOCUS ON RECYCLINGhttp://www.cgp.org/pdf/DeAi_PDF/Section3/Lesson_14.pdfThis lesson invites students to assess the meaning of the term "environment" from a personalperspective. After considering selected photo sheets, text narratives, and other resources, smallgroups of students formulate posters or brochures advocating a recycling action appropriate for theJapanese cultural context. Students reflect upon their work and assess the viability of their campaignin the U.S. cultural context.NATIONAL COUNCIL ON ECONOMIC EDUCATION: THE ECONOMICS OFRECYCLINGhttp://www.econedlink.org/lessons/index.cfm?lesson=EM218&page=teacherIn this lesson plan, students review the legislation in Japan that requires all consumers to pay a fee forrecycling large appliances. As the lesson unfolds, students are asked to explain recycling rates in Japanand the United States by reference to incentives, predict how consumers, repair services, andappliance makers will respond when the government changes incentives for recycling, and developstrategies for reducing the amount of waste disposal at landfills.NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC: XPEDITION HALLhttp://www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions/hall/index.htmlNational Geographic's Xpedition Hall is a virtual museum that offers interactive exhibits. Gallery Vspecifically pertains to Environment and Society. Navigate through The Garden to examine howhumans affect the environment, and explore Living Landscapes to see how the environment affectshumans. All exhibits include related activities and lesson plans.TEACHER’S GUIDEhttp://www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions/hall/teachersguide.pdfKIDS WEB JAPAN: PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENThttp://web-japan.org/kidsweb/explore/environment/index.htmlJapan is working to help countries around the world tackle environmental problems by providingthem with environmental technologies for recycling and cutting greenhouse gas emissions. This site16