According to The Nikkei Asian Review, a group of 40 Japanese shipping companies, shipbuilders and technology companies aims to have remote-control vessels ply Japanese waters as early as 2025, a potential life preserver for a graying industry suffering from a chronic labor shortage.
The project under the auspices of the nonprofit Nippon Foundation will use satellites and high-speed fifth-generation wireless networks for communication between land and sea, and artificial intelligence to help set efficient routes. Participants include Nippon Yusen and Nippon Telegraph & Telephone.
If domestic ships can be steered from land-based centers hundreds of kilometers away, crew members could simply commute to a nearby control station instead of needing to spend months at sea. Even graduates of maritime training schools now shy away from these harsh conditions. The Nippon Foundation aims to have unmanned vessels account for 50% of domestic shipping by 2040.
The broad consortium can handle technical challenges, including the need for cameras and sensors that monitor conditions in place of a human crew, that transportation companies and shipbuilders could not tackle on their own.
"We don't intend to monopolize the technology we've developed," said Satoru Kuwahara of Japan Marine Science, a Nippon Yusen group company involved in the project. "We want to work with good partners to create a market for it."
The remote-control technology will undergo a trial run late next year with a mid-size domestic container ship, which will also be equipped with a system enabling it to automatically steer away from potential collisions with other vessels. The plan is to include all the necessary equipment and systems in a container that can be installed on existing ships, removing the need for an expensive refit.
The communications will be handled on NTT mobile networks, likely on LTE, with satellites from broadcaster Sky Perfect JSAT serving as a backup if the connection is severed. Maritime telecommunications are said to be a decade out of date from the mainstream, with transmissions from land to ships less than 100 km away traveling at the equivalent of 2G speeds.

https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Transportation/Robo-ships-offer-lifeline-for-Japan-s-shorthanded-industry

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https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-ntt6908691.html?lang=ja 
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According to The Asahi Shimbun, tannins in persimmons are highly effective against the novel coronavirus, researchers at Nara Medical University here have discovered.
The research team said it is accepting applications from companies to jointly research and develop food products using the tannin such as candies and lemon soda to combat the virus.
“We want to work with companies that can quickly release products to the world by conducting further research with us,” said Hiroshi Hosoi, president of the university.
The tannin content needs to be higher than that in an unprocessed persimmon to be effective, the team explained in its announcement.
“I think the public is more familiar with persimmon tannin since it comes from nature,” said Toshihiro Ito, a professor of immunology at the university and a member of the team. “We want to make our findings beneficial to as many people as possible by determining the best content of the tannin through experiments.”
No clinical trials in humans have been conducted yet to confirm the findings.
Persimmon tannin is contained in the fruit and used in preservatives and dyeing. The team, which also includes Hisakazu Yano, a professor of microbiology and infectious diseases at the university, conducted an experiment on the tannin’s effectiveness against the novel coronavirus.
In the experiment, the researchers prepared solutions that recreated the environment inside the human mouth and body by using saliva and other materials.
They then added the virus into one group of solutions and a mixture of the virus and the tannin into another group of solutions for comparison.
The team said the “active” virus count was reduced to less than one ten-thousandth in solutions that contain the tannin, showing that it is effective against the virus.
But the tannin can no longer render the virus ineffective when the content of the tannin is diluted to a certain level, according to the team.
Ito, who has studied the antibacterial actions of persimmon tannin, said it can be assumed that the tannin sticks to the surface of the coronavirus and prevents it from entering cells inside the mouth and throat.
Persimmon tannin has also been reported to be effective against the flu and the norovirus, according to Ito.

http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/13736334

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/7141426.html?lang=ja 
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According to The Australian Financial Review, women working as doctors, consultants, bankers and lawyers are turning their backs on stable careers to chase the dream of making it big with a start-up, with a new women-only fellowship at accelerator Startmate beginning recently.
Ewelina Rudnicka worked in human rights and international development after university before completing a public policy masters at Harvard, which led her to joining Boston Consulting Group.
She says she thinks working in a start-up will give her the opportunity to have more ownership over what's being created, and expects the fellowship to give her the chance to learn more about the industry — including the difference between a product manager and product owner — and lead to a new job.
"I'm quite interested in fintech. I've worked a little bit in financial services and that's a natural draw to me ... but I think the most important criteria for picking an organisation is how much ownership I will have — will I be able to drive the work, will my actions have tangible impact on the company?
"I'm attracted to start-ups that have a mission and I'm drawn to ones that talk about themselves in terms of consumer transparency.
According to the head of the fellowship, Sophia Witherington, the program aims to help place 300 women in roles within the sector by the end of 2021.

https://www.afr.com/technology/why-women-are-leaving-stable-jobs-for-careers-in-start-ups-20200915-p55vyq

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/4618753.html?lang=ja 
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According to The Nikkei Asian Review, with the coronavirus pandemic set to transform Japanese offices, furniture and stationery maker Kokuyo is dealing with the blow to its traditional businesses by looking ahead to the contactless, digitally oriented offices of the future.
The company in July rolled out the Work Pod, a one-person booth that gives workers a closed space where they can focus on paperwork or online meetings, with a feature that automatically recirculates the air inside every 30 seconds.
Kokuyo has already received more than 100 inquiries from corporate customers about the new offering. While orders for new office furniture products normally start coming in only after the company begins marketing them, the Work Pod drew an enthusiastic response right after Kokuyo's initial press release.
The booth, designed with post-pandemic office life in mind, may represent a way forward for a company whose traditional businesses are unlikely to fare well under the new normal. Office furniture makes up more than 40% of Kokuyo's sales and has been a major earnings driver in recent years.
The company released an earnings forecast for 2020 last month that shows group net profit sinking 67% to 5 billion yen (US$ 47.6 million). President Hidekuni Kuroda contends that its business model will need to evolve in light of the pandemic.
"The office furniture and stationery businesses have been put in a tough position by the rise in telework and at-home schooling," he said. "We urgently need to pivot to products and services that support these new ways of life."
Though the nature of the office seems poised to change, people will still continue to work, whether at home, in shared offices or on "workations" in resort areas. Kokuyo sees this as an opportunity.
Companies have begun to consider shifting away from conventional offices, such as Fujitsu, which has said it will reduce its office footprint in Japan by 50% by the end of fiscal 2022. Kokuyo sees the office becoming not just a place where people come together to work, but "a space where ideas are generated," Kuroda said.

https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Kokuyo-envisions-work-pods-at-offices-in-Japan-s-new-normal
 
If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-12507162.html?lang=ja
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According to The Australian Financial Review, Brisbane house prices are expected to surge 20 per cent over two years after the market bottoms out in mid-2021, while Sydney prices could climb 14 per cent, fuelled by record low interest rates and freely available credit, according to Westpac economists after they revised their previously more bearish outlook.
Melbourne prices are predicted to lift by 12 per cent, Perth by 18 per cent and Adelaide by 10 per cent over 2021 and 2023.
Nationally, house prices are expected to rise by a total of 15 per cent over the same period, almost double the 8 per cent the bank forecast in April.

https://www.afr.com/property/residential/sydney-home-prices-to-jump-14pc-by-2023-20200917-p55wlx

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/20231420.html?lang=ja 
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According to The Asahi Shimbun, Japanese electronics giant Panasonic Corp. wants to get its hands dirty by making use of its prowess in advanced information technology to assist small and midsize farmers in their quest for better yields.
Panasonic offers to analyze soil samples for quality based on techniques used by crop growers to achieve better tasting harvests across Japan that are more nutritional.
The endeavor is also intended to help lessen their reliance on agrochemicals and chemical fertilizers. Panasonic said its aim is simply to make agriculture more eco-friendly and sustainable.
This past summer, vegetable grower Shigemasa Suzuki was agonizing over his farm’s falling productivity, which was especially painful as he knew the demand was there.
“If I continue to rely on conventional methods, I won't be able to respond to recent drastic climate changes,” Suzuki recalled thinking.
Vegetable prices surged due to poor weather conditions nationwide. Suzuki grows eggplants in Marugame, Kagawa Prefecture, and was desperate to increase shipments but had no luck.
The prolonged rainy season in July, followed by August with very little rainfall, left Suzuki pondering how to “radically review soil preparation in a way that can significantly affect the harvest, shape and other qualities of my crops.”
It was around this time that Suzuki heard from another farmer about the Saibai Nabi Doctor service introduced by Panasonic in May.
The system works very much like a doctor's diagnosis of a health problem in the way it evaluates agricultural field conditions cited by farmers. For example, it uses 27 categories to look at such things as the presence of magnesium, which is indispensable for photosynthesis., and essential minerals for organic farming.
The findings are shown in numerical form to provide advice on how to improve soil conditions for different crops. Fertilizers needed for soil preparation can be bought through the service as well.
Suzuki sent a soil sample from his field to Panasonic and received the analysis findings in late August. The assessment revealed his farm “lacks manganese” but is “excessively rich in zinc,” which means his land is anything but ideal for growing eggplants.
Based on the results, Suzuki said he will “follow the advice and use fertilizers and check the soil conditions regularly,” adding that he also intends to use the service for soil preparation to grow spinach and asparagus.

http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/13693042
 
If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/it.html?lang=ja 
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According to The Asahi Shimbun, overseas corporate investors are fed up with Japanese companies that have made no progress in welcoming female directors to their corporate boardrooms.
In recent months, dissenting votes have been cast by such investors at general shareholders' meetings, urging these companies to appoint at least one woman, if not more, to their executive boards.
Goldman Sachs Asset Management Co. in April announced its standard for voting and said it will oppose a proposal regarding the election of directors submitted by a company that has no female directors.
The asset management company, in fact, cast a "nay" vote at about 400 general shareholders’ meetings this summer.
“Diversity leads to innovation, creates a better work environment and works more favorably in recruiting,” a company representative said.
Although simply appointing a woman to serve on an executive board doesn't go far enough, it still is necessary for a company to have at least one, the representative said.
Legal & General Investment Management, one of the largest asset management firms in Europe, has taken a similar approach starting from this year.
According to Zenkoku Kabukon Rengokai, an industry group that collects information on companies and stocks in Japan, out of 1,759 companies that include listed ones, 40 percent  appointed a female director in 2019.
However, on 80 percent of these corporate boards, the appointee was the sole woman in an otherwise all-male boardroom.

http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/13739798

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/no.html?lang=ja 
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According to The Australian Financial Review, across Australia, a generation of 20- and 30-year-olds – many of whom turned their back on their rural upbringing in favour of high-flying and well-paid jobs in the "big smoke" – are reconsidering their priorities and rethinking their futures.
The glittering lights, skyscrapers and bustling bars and cafes of Sydney and Melbourne have lost their lustre during the pandemic, as corporate jobs have disappeared or been banished to the home office and kitchen table.
With KPMG looking to permanently change the way its staff are so centralised, moving instead to multi-hubs and more flexible work-from-home arrangements, Gubbins who trained as a lawyer and now works with KPMG’s food and agribusiness sector is hopeful her “escape to the country” can become permanent.
“It’s going to take a bit of figuring out what works now. I don’t think I need to be back in head office all the time and KPMG has been very supportive; we are talking about a hybrid model for the future.
“I’d like to stay and live regional, travelling interstate to meet clients as I do now and with the option of going into Melbourne head office when required."
Gubbins says coronavirus has catalysed her close cohort – many of whom she grew up with in western Victoria and who all moved into corporate jobs in Melbourne – to take stock, stand still and rethink values. One friend has quit her landscaping architecture job in Melbourne and shifted back to her regional hometown of Hamilton to start a gardening business.

https://www.afr.com/companies/agriculture/welcome-to-the-work-farm-home-revolution-20200917-p55woa

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/5449847.html?lang=ja 
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According to The Australian Financial Review, the sharp slowdown in private housing development gives Australia an opportunity to expand the small but fast-growing build-to-rent asset class, consultancy Urbis said, as it presented figures showing new apartment project launches halved in the June quarter.
New apartment project launches totalled 23 nationally in the June quarter, down from 60 in the same period a year ago. There were just 55 launches in the first half, putting the country on track this year to record half of last year's total 199 launches, itself half of the 2015-2018 average of 407 projects, the consultancy's Q2 Apartment Essentials Report shows.
But the report also shows the pick-up in build-to-rent accommodation. In the year to June, 3305 BTR units were approved nationally and 1895 built, up from the 2645 approved and the 1812 constructed a year earlier. The sector was growing and now was a good time to push it harder to ease the country's housing shortfall, Urbis director Mark Dawson said.
Mirvac has led the nascent sector with projects in Melbourne and Sydney but others are also joining in, such as Queensland developer Homecorp Property Group, Grocon, the family-owned Suleman Group in Melbourne and even US property giant Greystar.
Major hurdles remain. The federal government's refusal to allow BTR investors the same reduced withholding tax rates as allowed for student accommodation and other commercial property investments raises the cost of developing them. State land taxes are also a barrier.
Diversified property group Mirvac last month said it would refocus its build-to-rent strategy to NSW after that state government slashed land tax for the asset class by 50 per cent and introduced planning policies that could potentially fast-track approvals for future projects.
If the sector could be shown to work in Australia, capital would pour in, Mr Dawson said.

https://www.afr.com/property/residential/private-development-loss-is-build-to-rent-s-gain-urbis-20200909-p55twx

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/2705102.html 
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Foundation for Australia-Japan Studies (FAJS) Rio Tinto Australia-Japan Collaboration Program Research Grant Round 2021 opens August 31, 2020 and closes September 30, 2020.
The 2021 call for research grant Expressions of Interest will open on 31 August and close on September 30, 2020. See https://www.fajs.org for details about accessing the application online and for full Guidelines
The objectives of the Foundation for Australia-Japan Studies
The Foundation’s mission is to encourage research collaborations between academic institutions and external partners, including industry and government, in Australia and Japan, and to support people who are transforming the bilateral relationship through these partnerships. One way FAJS does that is through our research project grant program. The current grant program is the Rio Tinto Australia-Japan Collaboration Program.

Priority areas
Grants are available for many different types of research. The Foundation will prioritise high quality programs particularly, but not exclusively, in the areas of:
• Materials and energy technologies and systems
• Computing, digital and AI applications and developments
• Food, marine and agriculture science and technologies
• Medical science and technology
• Social and physical infrastructure
Please consult the full Guidelines for further details.

Nature of Grants
Grants will typically be between AUD$50,000 to AUD$150,000 in value. These grants are a valuable opportunity to start up new projects or to extend existing ones with Japanese and Australian counterparts. They can be in part used to support the exchange of researchers to build lasting links between research teams from diverse organisations. Projects should have well defined research objectives and show clear links between university researchers and industry or government.

Further information
The Guidelines explaining the criteria for projects can be found at the Foundation’s website https://www.fajs.org
The expression of interest is a simple online process with very little paperwork. After initial assessment, the Foundation will invite selected projects to go to the next stage of submitting full applications. The EOI process for the projects opens on August 31 and closes on September 30. The link to the online application process will be posted on the Foundation website www.fajs.org on August 31st. Short listed projects will be invited to submit full applications in early November.

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/5397595.html
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