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This paper aims to study the safe haven attribute of the Japanese yen under domestic and U.S. economic and policy uncertainty (EPU). Because of the existence of structural changes, a bootstrap rolling window subsample causality test is used to enhance the credibility of the results. The empirical results confirm that the exchange rate returns (RER) and Japanese EPU are correlated in specific periods when major economic or political events occur. In most crisis periods, the Japanese EPU has positive effects on RER, and the yen appreciates when the EPU is increasing. In addition, the RER of the yen and U.S. EPU are both negatively and positively connected. This finding confirms the hedging function of the yen in certain periods. The reason for this relationship is that Japan's low interest rates make the yen the primary funding currency in speculative carrying trade strategies, and thus, it tends to appreciate during crisis periods regardless of the origins of the EPU shocks. Therefore, the yen can be held as a safe haven currency unless the government intervenes artificially. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

University campuses are known to be a driving force of knowledge. Moreover, due to campuses' impact on their surroundings, they are also considered as a driving force of physical, social, cultural, and economic change. Therefore, this paper conducts a statistical multi-variate analysis to uncover campus-neighbourhood interaction and the following socio-economic outcomes. Thirteen different variables related to 43 university campuses in Japan and their neighbourhoods' attributes have been collected and measured. Principal component analysis and multi-linear regression analysis have been applied to uncover associations between selected variables. Additionally, k-means cluster analysis has been applied to discover hidden spatial trends between selected cases studies. Findings have shown that campuses located in highly urbanised accessible neighbourhoods create numerous benefits for students such as maximising students' residential preferences and modes of transportation. The main outcome of this paper lies in providing the grounds for a holistic framework towards a better decision making for campus development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aimed at explore international ocean governance issues through the perspective of Japan's nuclear contaminated water discharge to the sea. This paper analyzes the core issue of Japan's plan to discharge nuclear contaminated water into the ocean from the perspectives of Japan's international legal obligation, law enforcement issues, and judicial issues after integrated analyzing academic research paper and cases. Japan has obligations such as timely notification, information disclosure, environmental impact assessment, and avoidance of transboundary harm. Intergovernmental and non-governmental international organizations, such as IAEA, IMO and WHO should play a role in setting up an international group of experts to carry out monitoring and assessment, and whose positions and attitudes are important references for judging Japan's behavior. Cases heard before ICJ, ITLOS, and advisory opinion proceeding could provide reference from the judicial perspective on the issue of transboundary harm and proof of damages. Furthermore, this paper discusses the response strategies that the international community especially the opponents may adopt, including promoting the adoption of relevant treaties, take a combination of requesting advisory opinion and file arbitration, establish effective international monitoring mechanism, and engage in close communication with stakeholders. • This paper explored international ocean governance issues through the discharge of Japan's nuclear contaminated water. • This paper majored in Japan's international legal obligation, law enforcement issues, and judicial issues. • This paper discussed the response strategies that the international community especially the opponents may adopt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the entrepreneurship strategy is demonstrated by evidence as a path to enhance the performance of service firms, the question of how it happens has yet to be adequately studied in the tourism and hospitality (T&H) realm. More specifically, how an entrepreneurial strategy enables a T&H firm to enhance its performance through service innovation exploration-exploitation ambidexterity has created a strategic dilemma in extant T&H literature. Constructed on the dynamic capabilities view and organizational ambidexterity theory, our paper addresses this dilemma using data from a drop-and-collect survey of 303 T&H firms in Japan. The findings reveal that entrepreneurial strategy fosters service innovation exploitation and service innovation exploration within T&H firms. In contrast, service innovation exploitation helps T&H firms design unique service offerings, yielding a sustained competitive advantage and superior corporate performance in the long run. Further, the availability of slack resources within T&H firms fosters service innovation exploration and service innovation exploitation. • The effect of service innovation exploration and exploitation and their effects on service design and sustained competitive advantage • The findings reveal that service innovation exploration and exploitation have differential effects on sustained competitive advantage. • This research shows that service innovation exploitation is significantly related to sustained competitive advantage, whereas service innovation exploration is not. • The link between entrepreneurial strategy and performance is mediated by service innovation exploitation, service design, and sustained competitive advantage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the automatic analysis of natural environment images acquired with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) has rapidly gained popularity. UAVs are specially important in mountainous forests where access is difficult and large areas need to be surveyed. In Zao mountains in northeastern Japan, regenerated fir saplings are competing with sub-alpine vegetation shrubs after a severe fir tree mortality caused by bark beetle infestation. A detailed survey of vegetation distribution is key to improve our understanding of species succession and the influence of climate change in that process. To that end, we evaluated the suitability of deep-learning-based automatic image classification of UAV images in order to map sub-alpine vegetation succession in large areas and the potential of fir regeneration. In order to assess the contribution of this technology in this research field, we first conducted an observer study to assess the difficulty for humans of the task of classifying vegetation from images. Afterwards, we compared the observers' accuracy to four state-of-the art deep learning networks for automatic image classification. The best observer accuracy of 55% demonstrates the limitations of species classification using only images. Furthermore, a detailed analysis of the sources of error showed that even though humans could differentiate between deciduous and evergreen species with an accuracy of 96%, identifying the correct species within each group proved much more challenging. In contrast, deep learning networks achieved accuracy values in the range of 70–80% for species classification, clearly demonstrating capabilities beyond human experts. Our experiments also indicated that the performance of these networks was significantly influenced by the similarity between the datasets used to fine-tune them and evaluate them. This fact highlights the importance of building publicly available images databases to further improve the results. Nevertheless, the results presented in this paper show that the analysis of UAV-acquired with deep learning networks can usher in a new type of large-scale study, spanning tenths or even hundreds of hectares with high spatial resolution (of a few cms per pixel), providing the ability to assess challenging vegetation dynamics problems that go beyond the ability of conventional fieldwork methodologies. • UAV Shrub image classification. • Deep Learning vs human expert comparison. • Focus on Practical use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article studies urban–rural mobilities in contemporary Japan using several island communities in the Setouchi region of the Seto Inland Sea as a case study. It seeks to examine the phenomenon of den-en kaiki (rural return) with a focus on young Japanese urbanites moving to depopulated regions outside large cities. Based on a 15-month ethnographic study, the paper draws on original in-depth qualitative interviews with 35 individuals in their 20s–40s. The findings show that while some may be more traditional "lifestyle migrants," many are adopting rural living as a temporary escape from the city and are not necessarily committed to staying long term. The narratives reveal diverse mobilities as a reflection of the changing attitudes of young Japanese attempting to find meaning and satisfaction while sustaining a livelihood in post-growth Japan. The growing importance of the "relationship population," referring to urbanites who spend extended time in rural communities but do not live there, is discussed to broaden existing conceptions of rural mobilities from the Japanese context. The messiness of rural mobilities in contemporary Japan highlights the need for an expanded understanding of concepts such as counter-urbanization to include various forms of exchange and consider how they can contribute to the future sustainability of rural spaces. • Fluid urban-rural mobilities are reflective of new values amongst young Japanese. • I-turners displayed varying levels of commitment to rural living while U-turners are more likely to settle. • Ethnographic data reveal a desire to explore alternatives to traditional lifelong employment. • Urban-rural migrants struggle to balance financial security with lifestyle aspirations. • More study on the 'relationship population' as a growing influence on the future of rural Japan is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors regret to inform readers of the following corrections required in the article. Upon meticulous examination, an error has been identified in the data concerning the fixed-capital utilization matrix C, detailed in Section 2.2 of the paper. Regrettably, this discrepancy has resulted in an inaccurate calculation of the material carbon footprint, encompassing the effect of fixed-capital supply chain. The authors regret that the values of the material footprint (MF) in the sentences [Our results show that the fixed-capital formation was responsible for 454 million tons MF,...] and [The fixed-capital formation for the service sector produced an MF of 168 million tons ...] are incorrect. The correct value are 428 million tons and 145 million tons, respectively. [Display omitted] The authors regret that the values of the material and carbon footprint are incorrect. The correct version of graphical abstract is the one provided here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In contrast to many high-income countries, there is no clear positive relationship between maternal education and employment in Japan. However, recent policy, normative, and labor market changes are expected to have encouraged highly educated women to continue working, especially in regular employment, resulting in an increasing positive educational gradient. Despite this expectation, little is known about the changes in the educational gradient in recent cohorts. This paper examines the changes in the educational gradient in women's employment around their first and second births using nationally representative panel survey data of women born in the 1960–1989 cohorts in Japan. The results show a significant increase in the positive educational gradient in employment rates around the first and second births in the 1980s cohort. Highly educated women are more likely to be in regular employment and less likely to leave employment, which contributes to their higher employment continuity. Conversely, the employment rates of women with lower levels of education have not increased to the same extent across the cohorts, and they have become more likely to be in nonstandard employment. These findings suggest that the weak relationship between maternal education and employment is changing in Japan, which may contribute to greater inequality in the labor market, household, and offspring outcomes in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the Japanese government has shown great interest in automated driving and has invested in related projects. This paper first aims to investigate the government's expectations of automated driving at three levels: project, function, and societal, and how the sociotechnical vision "Society 5.0″ is used to justify and drive automated driving-related policies. Second, it discusses how Japan's sociotechnical imaginaries of state-led national development and the corresponding governance approach synergistically relate to the performativity of expectations in the policy process. I analyze "Society 5.0″, and expectations of automated driving, in eleven governmental documents released between 2013 and 2020. The results show a strong emphasis on the benefits to the older population and the economy. This reflects imaginaries of national security and success based on economic growth and scientific and technological superiority, which contribute to inflating expectations. Both the government's historical intervention in technology development and Shinzo Abe's exercise of political leadership contribute to the fact that "Society 5.0″ is considered a "common understanding", and technological expectations are easily bound on policymakers in policy planning and implementation. While the government tries to be agile and responsive to global change, its approach stifles creativity in designing future sociotechnical systems. • Expectations for automated driving are interrelated at the project-, function-, and societal-levels. • The Abe administration made sense of expectations of productivity gains from automated driving by linking them to the issues of Japan's aging population and economic recession. • A top-down and systematic policy process based on imaginaries of state-led national development accelerates the diffusion of visions and expectations. • The national sociotechnical vision "Society 5.0″ has successfully legitimated the Government's R&D initiatives as a common understanding of the times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]