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Fukushima Prefecture

Children play near a Geiger counter that monitors radiation at a kindergarten about 30 miles from the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The government is increasingly pushing families displaced by the disaster to return to their home

Some of Japan’s ‘nuclear refugees’ can finally go home — but they don’t want to

Environment

Not everyone who evacuated the area near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant four years actually had to leave. But four years later, despite government reassurances — and plenty of pressure — they say returning to their homes still isn’t safe.

Rasen kaigan (Spiral Shore) 45 from the series Rasen kaigan (Spiral Shore), 2012.

These artists remember the Fukushima disaster through their photography

Arts
Former NHK anchor Jun Hori speaks at a TEDx event in Kyoto, Japan, about opening Japanese journalism to non-traditional sources.

Japan’s timid coverage of Fukushima led this news anchor to revolt — and he’s not alone

Media
Kiyoko and her husband Yoshishiro Baba ran a fish restaurant in their home in Kawauchi until the Fukushima meltdown.

A couple returns to their ‘heaven’ near the Fukushima nuclear disaster

Environment
These residents have been given temporary jobs maintaining public places.

Not everyone wants the clean-up in Fukushima to be over

Environment
Pete Knutson and his son Dylan sell local Pacific salmon at outdoor markets around the Seattle area. The sign on their stall at a recent market in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood reads, “In response to multiple customer inquiries regarding the Fukushima i

Worried about radioactive ‘Fukushima’ fish in the US? Don’t be, scientists say

Environment

Nearly three years after the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan, many consumers in the US remain concerned about radiation in fish from the Pacific Ocean. One Seattle fisherman finally got his fish tested, and found what many scientists have also found: there’s nothing to worry about.

A pro-European integration protester sits in a burnt police bus after a rally near government administration buildings in Kiev January 20, 2014. With tension still high, about 1,000 protesters confronted police on Monday near Kiev's main government headqu

New clashes in Kiev, reviewing the guest list for Syria’s peace talks, and Russian fears of ‘black widows’

Global Scan

The situation in Kiev remains volatile, with protesters in favor of closer ties with the European Union burning buses and hurling projectiles at police. And planned Syria peace talks in Geneva this week were nearly derailed by a UN invitation to include Iran. And Russia is looking for four women it is worried may be planning suicide attacks at the Sochi Olympics. That and more, in today’s Global Scan.

Big plastic bags containing radiated soil, leaves and debris are dumped at a tennis court at a sports park near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant

A reporter covering the Fukushima nuclear meltdown actually lived through Chernobyl

Health & Medicine

There’s been no end to the ongoing disaster at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan. And Yuriy Humber has a unique perspective. He’s been reporting on the Fukushima meltdown for Bloomberg News in Tokyo and also lived through the Chernobyl disaster.

As Japan struggles to contain Fukushima, U.S. facilities face tighter restrictions

Environment

The Japanese government is freezing the ground around the Fukushima nuclear plant, hoping to staunch the flow of radioactive ground water. Meanwhile, in the United States, regulators are tightening up restrictions on U.S. plants, especially those built like Fukushima.

Fukushima’s continuing struggles raise questions about America’s nuclear waste storage

Environment

Nuclear waste is piled up around the United States. Similar waste were part of the problem at Japan’s Fukushima plant, which continues to leak even 2.5 years later. That continued crisis has some asking if the U.S. is asking for trouble with its waste storage.