The purpose of this study was to examine whether drama therapy intervention can be applied to support the interpersonal problems of international students in the future and to clarify the effects of drama therapy on the interpersonal problems of Chinese students in Japan during their intercultural life. Arts-Based Research (ABR) was employed as the research method. Two workshops incorporating drama therapy techniques were conducted, followed by individual interviews with six workshop collaborators. The obtained content was analyzed from an ABR perspective. The results showed that the experience of the drama therapy method was effective in releasing suppressed feelings, developing diverse perspectives on interpersonal problems, and giving the collaborators the courage to face their problems. This confirmed that the drama therapy method has a positive impact on the interpersonal problems of international students. It is expected that the drama therapy method will be utilized in the future as interpersonal assistance support, and it is suggested that it will help improve the quality of cross-cultural adjustment for international students.

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China’s responsibility for environmental preservation has become a major debate worldwide, but the literature lacks discussions on the perspectives of people for whom China’s investment may cause environmental problems. This article aims to answer the question: How do Egypt’s diverse range of actors represent their views on China’s responsibility for environmental preservation? To assess the nature of people’s perspectives, this article uses universalism and particularism as opposing concepts and tries to categorize people’s perspectives along the continuum between the two. Based on 39 semi-structured interviews, this article finds that the majority of the Egyptians demonstrate their universalist tendency in their assessment of China’s action on environmental preservation. However, amongst the universalists, the views about China’s responsibility diverge depending on whether they focus on China’s environmentally oriented projects or on an unintended environmental consequence of China’s infrastructure investment, which is detached from environmental consciousness. On one hand, with regard to China’s behavior in investments in Egypt, approximately four-fifths of the interviewees view China as responsible due to its effective policies to preserve the environment. They have emphasized that environmental preservation must be favored over any aspect of economic development. On the other hand, regarding China’s indirect engagement with environmental preservation, around three-fourths of the interviewees view China as irresponsible for funding and investing in GERD’s construction, given that this dam has significant negative impacts on environmental aspects in Egypt. They consider China as prioritizing economic benefit over environmental concerns. This may affect China’s reputation as a responsible great power, not because it is confined to China, but because of it, China is regarded as irresponsible.

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Despite the various benefits of sustainable agricultural practices, sustainable rice cultivation in the Mekong Delta still faces significant barriers, and its total area is still limited. The government has been making efforts to promote national programs such as “Three Reductions, Three Gains,” “One Must Do Five Reductions,” and the Vietnam Sustainable Agriculture Transformation Project (VnSAT) to improve farm income, farmer health, and the environment. Nevertheless, rice farmers’ decisions to implement sustainable agricultural practices depend significantly on their awareness and intention. This study aims to understand what influences rice farmers’ intentions and their behavior toward sustainable rice farming in the Mekong Delta, especially in Long An Province. Data were obtained through face-to-face interviews with 163 rice farmers in two districts of Long An Province. Structural equation modeling was applied to explore the relationship among constructs built on the Theory of Planned Behavior. The estimated structural equation model demonstrates substantial effects of knowledge on attitude, of knowledge on intention, of subjective norms on intention, and of intention on behavior toward sustainable agriculture. The knowledge-intention-behavior path has a favorable, fully mediating impact. Knowledge was the most significant variable in forming attitude and intention, while subjective norms also played a crucial role in intention. On the other hand, the findings indicate that the direct influence of subjective norms on farmers’ behavior is weaker for farming rice in sustainable ways than for coping with climate change or extreme weather events. Policy initiatives must be implemented to provide more educational programs, such as vocational training, demonstrating model fields to farmers, and pooling land for large-scale production to enable the effective application of technology in agriculture.

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This paper discusses the revision of the Law on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control in Vietnam (henceforth the Law) and the progress of related national policies in association with the “Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030” (SFDRR). The revision of the Law took place after the SFDRR, which began in 2015. As evidenced by previous research, many countries are promoting disaster risk reduction with the SFDRR policy in mind. As natural disasters have become more frequent and larger in scope than before, an important method of escape and other actions focusing on reducing the loss of lives and livelihoods in the Hyogo framework era are not enough to deal with new disasters. The research question in this study is, “Can Vietnam’s revised Law foster the implementation of SFDRR priorities?” To clarify this, we will test the hypothesis that “The content of Vietnam’s disaster risk reduction capacity enhancement supports the implementation of the Priority Actions of the SFDRR.” This study conducted interviews with people involved in disaster prevention in Vietnam to confirm consistency with documents. As a result, this research revealed that currently, in Vietnam, the human resources and budget allocated to response measures and pre-disaster investment are still insufficient. Therefore, it is desirable to enhance strategies and plans, standards and criteria, and laws regarding pre-disaster investment for more comprehensive improvement in disaster risk reduction capacity.

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This article examines videos created by female YouTubers who identified themselves as hāfu. Using online ethnography, the objective is to examine how they construct alternative meanings of female hāfuness through three themes of digital storytelling: physical appearance, language proficiency, and cultural identity. The results suggest that YouTube enables these YouTubers to participate in digital storytelling of life experiences in ways that redefine the stereotypical and limited role of physical appearance, language, and cultural identity that have influenced female hāfu representation and dominated Japanese mainstream media for more than fifty years.

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This paper explores the interplay between language and thought in Nishida Kitarō’s philosophy, particularly how the Japanese language informs his conceptual framework. Nishida’s work challenges conventional Western epistemology by proposing an alternative model based on his logic of “place” (basho 場所) and “predicate” (jutsugo 述語), redefining as such the subject-object relationship. Scholars have observed that the Japanese linguistic structure, with its emphasis on context and predicative logic, plays a crucial role in shaping Nishida’s philosophical discourse. This prompts the question of whether his ideas are intrinsically shaped by the features of Japanese or derived from a broader attempt to synthesize Eastern and Western traditions. Through a critical analysis, this paper aims to address this debate, examining the extent to which Nishida’s philosophy is limited by language or transcends it. Findings suggest that while Nishida’s engagement with the Japanese language significantly influenced his thinking, his philosophical contributions extend beyond linguistic determinism. His framework reveals how cultural, linguistic, and embodied experience coalesce in shaping perception and thought, offering a unique approach to understanding reality that challenges both Western dualism and traditional Eastern metaphysics. The study concludes that Nishida’s philosophy not only reinterprets the subject-object divide but also contributes to a more global philosophical discourse.

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Shareholder perks are a unique program in the Japanese stock market. Compared with firms in other countries, Japanese companies have implemented shareholder-perk programs in a remarkable way. Approximately 30 percent of all listed companies in Japan offer shareholder perks programs. This study aims to clarify the past results and trends in research on shareholder perks and suggest future directions based on a survey of the literature, especially in Japan. The results of the Systematic Literature Review (SLR) revealed that the primary research methods of shareholder-perk studies have changed over the years, and empirical studies have been increasing mainly in the last few years, with some areas having a bias and lacking accumulation of research on certain issues. The results of this analysis suggest the future direction of research on shareholder perks.

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This study describes the multidimensional and dynamic nature and the difficulty of consilience among professionals involved in supporting people with disabilities, as well as the need for an integrated model. It explains how the integrated model recently proposed in the area of Contextual Behavioral Sciences, called the Extended Evolutional Meta-Model (EEMM) is suitable for supporting people with disabilities (Hayes et al. 2019). Mochizuki (2007) proposed the “linkage model,” which could be used to help people with disabilities. This study proposes combining a linkage model with the EEMM. Finally, two cases are introduced using the EEMM and linkage models. Further studies using these models are desirable. The EEMM can represent phenomena in which factors of multiple dimensions are interrelated, but the development of measurement methods and research designs that empirically demonstrate these relationships has only just begun. Future research is needed to develop the measurement and research design to demonstrate empirical evidence of the usefulness of the EEMM and linkage models.

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This research note discusses how Confucian scholars, who had a considerable influence on Japanese thought and education during the first half of the 19th century, were able to survive the Meiji Restoration in Japan — a period that forced Confucian scholars to adapt to extreme changes and the structural problem presented by the Japanese social welfare system at the beginning of the 20th century. This study focuses on the paths taken by the descendants of the Koga family — which was once a prestigious family with strong ties to Shoheiko, the center of Confucian education in early modern Japan — during the Meiji and Taisho periods. The history of the Koga family is recorded in the documents of Kusama Yasoo, who discovered a contemporary descendant of the Koga family and subsequently supported him. These records demonstrate that the rise of Western natural science following the Meiji period reduced the demand for Confucian studies. Consequently, the descendants of Confucian scholars in Japan were forced into lives of hardship without social welfare support in the early 20th century. Despite their achievements and influence as Confucian scholars in the early modern period, the Koga family was one of several shogunate vassal families that came to be poorly regarded by later generations. The social conditions that their descendants had to endure during the Meiji and Taisho periods were a major factor that resulted in the Koga family becoming a “forgotten” Confucian family.

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Recently, with the globalization of food, the increasing prevalence of diseases such as obesity and lifestyle-related diseases, which are primarily influenced by diet, has become a common problem in the world. Furthermore, climate change and geopolitical conflicts have had a significant impact on food production and food supply chains worldwide. Due to this situation, food and nutrition education is needed worldwide to help people learn “What,” “How much,” and “How to eat,” develop appropriate food-related decision-making skills, and achieve a healthy diet throughout their lives. In Japan, a school lunch system for children has been in place for many years, and, since 2005, Food and Nutrition Education, known as Shokuiku, has been promoted through school lunches, mainly by nutrition teachers. In Japan, the Shokuiku is considered part of education, and the cooperation between schools, families, and communities contributes to raising interest in food and health issues not only among schoolchildren but also among parents and local people, as well as to the realization of sustainable food by linking it to the use of local products. Despite these excellent efforts, this is not well known outside Japan. Therefore, one aim of this paper is to give a comprehensive report on this issue to the global audience. Furthermore, we will discuss the issues regarding the “verification of the effectiveness” of Shokuiku through school lunches by nutrition teachers, which have emerged from current specific examples of Shokuiku.

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Environmental pollution from pig farming in Vietnam remains a pressing issue due to poor waste management practices. Many pig farms lack efficient systems for handling manure and wastewater, resulting in soil and water contamination and the release of harmful gases, such as methane and ammonia. This pollution is a serious threat to natural ecosystems, particularly in rural areas where regulations are insufficient and their enforcement is limited. The challenges in managing pollution include insufficient infrastructure, a lack of technical expertise, and economic constraints, especially for small-scale farmers. Many farmers struggle to adopt advanced or sustainable technologies due to high upfront costs and limited access to resources. Internationally, several countries have successfully implemented integrated waste management systems, such as biogas digesters and constructed wetlands, which help reduce pollution while enabling energy and nutrient recovery. Strong regulatory frameworks and financial incentives in these countries further promote sustainable practices. Drawing from the current state of environmental pollution in pig farming, the causes of pollution, and international best practices, targeted solutions have been proposed for Vietnam’s pig farming sector.

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Despite its recognized expectorant, antitussive, and antiemetic effects, Pinellia tuber (PT) requires processing to mitigate its toxicity and irritation prior to clinical application. Traditional PT processing methods include hot water washing and ginger–aluminum potassium sulfate (G-APS) treatment, each historically applied for distinct therapeutic purposes. Additional processing approaches have emerged in recent years, with reported compositional changes. However, the clinical relevance of traditional methods remains unclear. Among the chemical constituents of PT, lysophosphatidylcholines (LPCs) have garnered significant attention for their gastroprotective effects and pro-inflammatory activity. Although LPCs are pharmacologically significant, the influence of processing on their levels and the resulting effects of changes in their levels on the clinical utility of PT remain poorly understood. This study characterized chemical changes in PT induced by traditional processing and investigated the implications for detoxification and therapeutic applications. In this study, PT samples were subjected to no processing (control), hot water washing, or G-APS boiling, followed by chemical composition analysis using liquid chromatography–quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry. The metabolic profile of hot-water-treated PT samples resembled that of untreated samples, with hot water treatment primarily exerting a quantitative effect on LPC content. Conversely, G-APS processing induced both quantitative and qualitative changes in LPC content. The study findings illustrate that different processing methods generate distinct chemical profiles in PT, particularly concerning phospholipid content, highlighting the need to align processing selection with detoxification goals and therapeutic intent for efficacy and safety assurance. Thus, the treatment of crude drugs for detoxification purposes requires careful planning, as this process could simultaneously lead to a reduction in therapeutic efficacy.

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In the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (hereinafter “Hong Kong”) of the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter “China”), the relationship between language and identity is very complicated due to the sovereignty shift in 1997. Therefore, the real transition might be a matter of language and identity, not of sovereignty. Hong Kong people (Hong Kong residents speaking Cantonese as usual) continue to experience “in-betweenness.” In the colonial days, they used to be “in-between” Britain and Hong Kong. Nowadays, they are “in-between” mainland China and Hong Kong. Unlike other Asian countries, even in the postcolonial era, their experience is not “independence,” but just a “sovereignty shift.” Therefore, their identity is often not “fixed,” but “floating” (Tam 2005, 168). This paper explores, from a postcolonial perspective, Hong Kong’s complexity reflected in the people’s languages in their own unique way.

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The Katsuhara Sumio Materials (且原純夫資料) in the Fujiwara Hironobu Collection (藤原浩修氏収集資料), housed at the Hiroshima Prefectural Archives, contains all copies of the Japanese Communist Party’s newspapers published since the early 1950s division. These materials are unsorted at present; hence, their specific contents are unknown. The author examined these materials in May 2024, confirming their titles, issue numbers, and contents. Consequently, this paper examines the journals included in the Katsuhara Sumio Materials and assesses their research potential.

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This paper takes the end of COVID-19 lockdown in China at the end of 2022 as a quasi-natural experiment. It constructs a double-difference model to explore the impact of the end of the pandemic on residents’ savings. The results show that the degree of economic recovery after the end of the pandemic is negatively correlated with the savings of the residents. Subgroup regression shows this impact has different degrees of influence in different recovery areas. The heterogeneity analysis finds that this impact is more significant in rural areas. Mechanism tests indicate that the phenomenon is mainly explained by affecting consumer confidence and investor sentiment. This article provides empirical evidence for the design of policies to stimulate consumption, build consumer confidence, and improve the capital market.

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Trade facilitation is implemented to enhance international trade. Well-organized trade facilitation is indispensable in developing countries, especially in transition economies. Trade facilitation performance is an important part of trade policy. This paper investigates the impact of trade facilitation on the exports and imports of 21 former socialist countries with a gravity model. The export and import data for the analysis consist of 10 major partner countries provided by UN Comtrade, and the sample period, which is confined by the availability of trade facilitation indicators from OECD, is three years (2017, 2019, and 2022). The estimated results considering corruption with area-specific effects show that the coefficient of the average trade facilitation index (TFI) is positive and significant. In addition, the results reveal that when there is less corruption, trade is more enhanced. The study also discusses the relationship between current informal rules of institutions (e.g., anti-corruption) and new formal rules (proposed by trade facilitation). Transition economies with informal rules that support new formal rules initiated by trade facilitation tend to have more active trade.

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The outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic in China from the end of 2019 to the beginning of 2020 has greatly impacted the survival resilience of many enterprises. Therefore, systematic research on how Chinese enterprises cope with the shock of the epidemic and how to improve their resilience is of great significance for the development planning of enterprises in the post-epidemic era. In this study, the ability to resist and defend, and the ability to grow and innovate after exogenous shocks, are taken as two aspects to measure the stability and development of enterprise survival resilience. The quarterly index data of A-share listed companies in China from 2017 to 2022 are selected, and the time point of the full outbreak of the epidemic in China, that is, the first quarter of 2020, is taken as the breakpoint. A breakpoint regression (SRD) model is used to study the impact of the epidemic shock on the survival resilience of enterprises in China, and the heterogeneity characteristics of state-owned and non-state-owned enterprises and enterprises in different national industries are analyzed. According to the test results, the shock of the epidemic has a significant impact on the survival resilience of Chinese enterprises, and there is heterogeneity among enterprises of different natures and industries. Finally, based on empirical results, this paper proposes differentiated stability maintenance strategies for enterprises in the service industry with strong dependence on offline human flow, the real economy industry with high market demand sensitivity, and the important supply industry related to the national economy and people’s livelihoods.

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A rapid increase in foreign visitors has led to overtourism in Kyoto. Given this situation, the promotion of smart tourism is expected to contribute to addressing overtourism. This study involves a comparative analysis between Kyoto and Seville, examining advanced cases to identify aspects that can serve as references from successful instances. We used a new insight on smart tourism destinations (STDs) defined by the European Commission, which began from 2018: Accessibility, Sustainability, Digitalization, and Cultural Heritage. Based on the previous discussion, here we will also propose the following three aspects of Kyoto’s future development: (1) A City Accessible for everyone—Advisory Boards; (2) Enhance Digital Management of Tourist Attractions; (3) Enhance Disaster Awareness in Tourism—Disaster Education with VR.

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