Our Impact

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    Say No to Nuclear Financing – World Bank and ADB, Why Turn Away from the Right Path?

    https://chng.it/G9MCKn6Gpv Why this petition matters: For these reasons, we are preparing to send the following petition to both the World Bank and ADB. We ask for your support by adding your signature. We will submit all signatures and comments to the World Bank and ADB. 👉Let’s act together to prevent today’s decisions from burdening tomorrow’s generations. —— International Petition:  “Say No to Nuclear Financing – World Bank and ADB, Why Turn Away from the Right Path?” To: Mr. Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank GroupTo: Mr. Masato Kanda, President of the Asian Development Bank We are deeply concerned that the World Bank Group and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) are moving…

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    NGOs Urge World Bank and ADB: “No Nuclear Financing”

    Tokyo, September 1, 2025 — Sixty-eight NGOs from 25 countries and regions, including Japan, have launched a global petition urging the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to reverse recent moves toward financing nuclear power projects. For decades, both institutions excluded nuclear power from their lending due to unresolved risks: nuclear proliferation, safety hazards, radioactive waste, and high costs. However, on June 10 the World Bank’s Board of Directors lifted its ban, and the ADB is expected to follow in its upcoming energy policy review. “The reasons nuclear power was excluded in the past remain as urgent as ever,” the petitioning groups warned. “Supporting nuclear projects would pose…

  • Japan’s push for nuclear power deters from the country addressing the climate crisis. Find out why.

    Why Japan wants more nuclear power after the Fukushima disaster | ABC News Japan to increase nuclear power as new crises overshadow fears of Fukushima repeathttps://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-02-12/rebirth-of-japanese-nuclear-power-industry/104922298

  • Green Action Work – May 2023 ~ April 2024

    Lawsuits / Webinars / Submissions / Symposiums / Booklets / Leaflets / Protest Statements The January 1, 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake proved yet again that Japan must rid itself of nuclear power reactors In 2003, Noto Peninsula citizens won a hard-fought 28-year battle to stop a nuclear power plant complex from being built in Suzu town, located on the tip of Noto Peninsula. On January 1,2024, Suzu suffered a devastating earthquake. The land around the proposed site elevated 2 meters. Over the years, Green Action was part of the movement to stop the siting of this plant. On February 19th, Green Action organized this press conference at the Foreign Correspondents’…

  • The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan PRESS CONFERENCE

    Japan’s Nuclear Power Policy and the Noto PeninsulaMonday, February 19, 202414:00-15:00Language: English or Japanese with English interpretation Speakers:Susumu KITANOChief plaintiff / Shiga Nuclear Power Plant Must be Decommissioned! LawsuitFormer member of the Ishikawa Prefectural Assembly Shoko MURAKAMIChief Secretary for the Citizens’ Commission on Nuclear Energy (CCNE) Aileen Mioko SMITHExecutive Director, Green Action

  • Green Action Work – May 2022 ~ April 2023

    Lawsuits / Webinars / Submissions / Symposiums / Booklets / Leaflets / Protest Statements We recommend this Webinar if you are interested in finding out whether fast reactors and the nuclear fuel cycle have any valid role to play in solutions to climate change, and, if you want to find out whether these programs have nuclear proliferation concerns. Speakers include Allison Macfarlane, former Chairman of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and Frank von Hippel, one of the United States’ most prominent scientists in the nuclear policy arena.Green Action’s executive director addresses Japan’s nuclear fuel cycle program and its implications for the fast reactor program. VideoMarch 11, 2023US-Japan Nuclear Energy…

  • Green Action Work – May 2021 ~ April 2022

    Lawsuits / Webinars / Submissions / Symposiums / Booklets / Leaflets / Protest Statements Lawsuit to stop Ohi nuclear power plant (ongoing: Osaka Court of Appeals) This lawsuit is filed by 212 citizens against the Japanese government. Green Action director is co-chief plaintiff. The case is now in appellate court. (Photo: Osaka District Court, December 4, 2020. Day of Osaka District Court win. The verdict ruled that the government’s licenses for operating Kansai Electric’s Ohi Units 3 and 4 were illegal and revoked the licenses. Kansai Electric is the second largest electric utility in Japan and owner/operator of the greatest number of nuclear power plants. Download: Report(PDF)

  • Minamata & Fukushima: Structural Violence in Environmental Disaster

    Minamata & Fukushima: Structural Violence in Environmental DisasterTuesday, April 12 12:00 – 14:00 https://icas.tuj.ac.jp/event/minamata-fukushima-structural-violence-in-environmental-disaster/ Zoom Meeting Access April 12, 2022 12:00 PM (Noon) Tokyo – Starthttps://temple.zoom.us/j/93245351283?pwd=c0xmemtMNVcvWkxHNTJkZGJYOG94QT09Meeting ID: 932 4535 1283 | Passcode: 106014 Institute of Contemporary Asian Studies Temple University, Japan Campus www.tuj.ac.jp/icas Information: Kyle Cleveland, ICAS Co-Director | Email: kylecl@temple.edu ICAS events reflect the opinions of the speakers and participants, and do not represent the views of Temple University or the Institute of Contemporary Asian Studies. Date & Time: Tuesday, April 12 12:00 – 14:00 Moderator: Kyle Cleveland (ICAS Co-Director) Registration: Registration is encouraged (e-mail to icas@tuj.temple.edu), but not required. 登録なしでも参加できますので、直接会場へお越しください。 This event is organized by Kyle Cleveland, ICAS…

  • Minamata Film Premieres in Berlin

    Minamata, a film drama based on the book by W. Eugene and Green Action director Aileen M. Smith, premiered on February 21st at the Berlin International Film Festival. Directed by Andrew Levitas, the film stars Johnny Depp as photographer Eugene Smith, who travels with Aileen to Japan to document the effects of mercury poisoning on the residents of a coastal community. Actors Bill Nighy, Hiroyuki Sanada and Minami play supporting roles as Life editor Robert Hayes, activist Mitsuo Yamazaki and Aileen Mioko Smith. At a press conference for the film, Depp, who spearheaded the film’s production, said he felt that Minamata was “a story that needed to be told.” He…

  • The Green Action Executive Director gives a talk in English, Sunday, November 11th at Patagonia Kyoto

    The Green Action Executive Director gives a talk in English, Sunday, November 11, 2018 at Patagonia Kyoto WORKING TO END NUCLEAR POWER IN JAPAN Nuclear power in a land of earthquakes and volcanoes Aileen Mioko Smith is founder and executive director of Kyoto-based Green Action, an anti-nuclear organization established 26 years ago. Before starting Green Action, Smith worked with the LIFE magazine photojournalist W. Eugene Smith photographing the plight and fight for justice of Minamata disease victims in southern Japan. Their story is to become a motion picture starring Johnny Depp. See video of talk: When: Sunday, November 11 (no reservations required) Where: Patagonia Kyoto 3F (north side on Shijo…