This week's newsletter takes in rugby, judo, The Last Samurai, and even a junior high school English textbook as it attempts to paint a picture of Japan-New Zealand relations and their political, cultural and commercial dimensions. Read Now

This week Terrie uncovers an often overlooked way to save energy and touches on the money trail in the Whaling industry after a reader makes an interesting comment...

The easy part of networking as a foreigner in Japan is getting together with people of similar backgrounds and cultures, and mixing for social reasons as much as business. Many of us do this without thinking, and without realizing that we're missing the best part of being in Japan - and that is the chance to mix with our Japanese colleagues. After all, associations and clubs are THE glue that holds Japanese business together and which allows CEOs and others to find new opportunities in this face-to-face culture.

Bid-rigging or 'dango' apparently takes places in the majority of public works projects in Japan. However, in an exclusive interview with Dr. Hiroshi Ohashi, Associate Professor of Economics at Tokyo University, we learned that as a result of the activities of the Japan Fair Trade Commission, and declining government budgets, the days of bid-rigging are numbered. Read Now