In comfortable, convenient, modern Japan, there are some who are willing to drop everything for a communal life on a remote island where they will begin each day before 5 a.m. with a hard run, followed by hours of housework and drum practice.
The island, Sado Island, is best known for the kidnappings of Japanese citizens by North Korea. But for Yuichiro Funabashi, artistic director of this year’s mid-August Earth Celebration — the Kodo drummers’ annual festival — it’s all about “being face to face with the drum.”
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We all know Japan is second only to Singapore when it comes to keeping things clean, so it’s little surprise to see the country’s captains of industry come up with a futuristic vehicle called the Solarve Bus (a contraction of "Solar Vehicle") that’s sparkly both inside and out.
Sanyo and Ryobi teamed up to outfit (Japanese) the standard road-going bus with solar panels on the outside to generate power and some nifty air scrubbers in the cabin for the passengers to enjoy cleaner air.
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Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) announces that cumulative sales in Japan of its hybrid vehicles have topped the 1-million mark, while more than 2.68 million units have been sold globally as of July 31, 2010(1).
In August 1997 in Japan, TMC launched its first hybrid vehicle, the Toyota "Coaster Hybrid EV" minibus. In December of the same year, TMC launched the Toyota "Prius" – the world’s first mass-produced hybrid vehicle. The use of the Toyota hybrid system was subsequently expanded to such vehicles as minivans, SUVs and rear-wheel-drive sedans. In 2009, TMC …

Honda Motor Co. plans to consolidate its lineup in Japan by ceasing development of new models of name-brand cars and will only offer a hybrid version of its Civic, according to a report Friday. The Nikkei business daily reported that while Honda plans to roll out a new Civic worldwide in fall 2011, in Japan only the hybrid version will be released. Honda also plans to discontinue the Legend sedan, and has already halted development of the Elysion, according to the report.
Source: Market Watch

Daiwa House Industry Co Ltd announced June 9, 2010, that it has constructed a convenience store equipped with a lithium-ion (Li-ion) rechargeable battery system in Ehime Prefecture, Japan.
The company installed photovoltaic (PV) batteries, Li-ion rechargeable batteries, LED lighting equipment and an energy management system to use solar energy for the lighting equipment and refrigerators in the store. Also, the rechargeable batteries store surplus electricity to equalize the power load.
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The customized Mira EV travelled at speeds of around 40kph as it drove non-stop around a car racing course in Shimotsuma in Ibaraki Prefecture.
The red and white vehicle, fitted with a special lithium ion battery created by the Japanese company Sanyo, ran for 27.5 hours covering a distance of 1,003km without being recharged.
A total of 17 different people took turns at the wheel of the electric car as it circled repeatedly around the racecourse during the experiment.
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Japan’s solar cell market more than tripled in the year to March, as government incentives spurred households to purchase the eco-friendly technology, industry data showed Tuesday.
Shipments of solar cells and modules in Japan rose 263 percent from the previous financial year, the Japan Photovoltaic Energy Association said.
Nearly 90 percent of the shipments were for household use, due to government cash subsidies and tax incentives for homeowners to install the greener technology.
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Ever wanted to just wipe your @$$ with that memo? Well now you can in complete comfort and with no worry of paper cuts. This wonderful machine from White Goat Paper will shred documents and then turn the shredded paper back into pulp. Once, it’s done doing that it makes a roll and puts the toilet paper around it. This is one of those freaky eco-ideas that just makes sense and well you know the Japanese think of everything cool. So go get those confidential memos …

A win for Japanese technology abroad and for a greener way of travel and mass transit for Vietnam.
According to Bloomberg News:

Vietnam’s Cabinet has approved plans for a $55.9 billion high-speed rail project that would use Japan’s bullet-train technology, Nikkei English News reported, without saying how it obtained the information.
The rail line would connect the northern and southern parts of Vietnam. Construction is to start in 2012 and trains would run on part of the line in 2020, Nikkei said.
Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd., Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Mitsubishi Corp., Sumitomo Corp., …

The need to spread the huge costs of developing modern eco-friendly cars was the key factor in negotiations that led to Wednesday’s announcement of a loose capital tie-up between the Nissan-Renault alliance and Germany’s Daimler AG.
While demand for eco-cars is expected to increase because of stricter regulations for carbon dioxide emissions, development costs for these cars can be prohibitive for a single automaker.
The three companies instead hope to share each other’s technologies, allowing them to develop a wider range of fuel-efficient cars at lower cost.
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