Aiko Tanabe

Health Correspondent, The Continental Times

Aiko covers health for The Continental Times and has reported from more than a dozen countries.

In Japan’s Oldest Prefecture, the Government Pays Neighbors to Knock on Doors

With 39 percent of residents over 65 and care workers scarce, Akita has enrolled 4,200 paid ‘watchers’ to check on elderly neighbors, an experiment in aging that the rest of Japan is studying.

Oct. 11, 2026 6 MIN READ

After a 16-Year Freeze, South Korea’s Universities Raise Tuition, and Students Push Back

More than 60 universities increased fees this year by up to 5 percent, saying buildings and laboratories had decayed under a government-enforced cap. Students have staged the biggest campus protests in a decade.

Oct. 10, 2026 5 MIN READ

Students on a university campus in Seoul.