(20 Aug 2026) The National Institute of Informatics (NII) in Japan has integrated metadata from its Institutional Repositories DataBase (IRDB) into OpenAlex. Consequently, this initiative makes nearly four million Japanese research outputs freely available to researchers globally. The integration went live on 18 August 2026. It significantly enhances the international discoverability of scholarly works held…
(14 Jul 2026) Taylor & Francis has signed an MOU with the University of Tsukuba to expand the innovative Japan Institutional Gateway (JIG) research publishing platform, which they jointly operate, and to support the publication of English-language books by University of Tsukuba researchers. Previously limited to the University of Tsukuba and its affiliated institutions, JIG…
(26 Jun 2026) Japanese Emperor Naruhito and King Philippe visited the KU Leuven University Library on Wednesday afternoon as part of the Japanese imperial couple’s state visit to Belgium, marking 160 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The visit to the University Library highlighted the historical links between Japan and KU Leuven.…
(18 Jun 2026) This post highlights the real-world experiences and value stories drawn directly from a recent survey conducted among members of the ORCID Japan Consortium. As an early adopter of ORCID, Japan established a robust national consortium led by Academic Exchange for Information Environment and Strategy (AXIES). Now, just over six years since its creation, we have…
(12 Jun 2026) A university in this western Japan city has set up a permanent bookshelf called the “Apple Shelf” in its library to create a place for people facing various difficulties in life. The Apple Shelf originated in a Swedish library in 1993 for children who had difficulty reading and the project has been…
In Japan, open access policy emerged in a unique economic context and evolved separately from the broader movement. The result? Turmoil. (11 Mar 2026) Globally, the open access (OA) movement has long sought to liberate scholarly communication from commercial publishers. But Japan pursues open access and open science from a unique context; that approach…
(23 Feb 2026) Thousands of early modern Japanese books and manuscripts from the libraries of UCLA, UC Berkeley and UC San Francisco are being digitized to create a resource that will be accessible to scholars around the world. The digital archive, which could ultimately be the largest of its kind outside of Japan, will encompass…
(3 Feb 2026) When someone is not sure what book to read, a librarian’s advice can lead them to a book that unexpectedly stays in their heart forever. The working environment for librarians, who play such a vital role, should be improved to enhance the appeal of libraries. An expert panel at the Education, Culture,…
(21 Jan 2026) The artificial intelligence ChatGPT earned perfect scores in nine subjects in this year’s unified university entrance examinations, marking its first full score, an AI venture said Tuesday. When LifePrompt Inc tested the generative AI chatbot for the weekend’s university exams, the chatbot’s latest version had an accuracy rate of 97 percent across…
(5 Jan 2026) With the December 31, 2025, retirement of Mr. YAMAJI Yasushi, Ms. KITO Junko has been named Deputy Director General of the National Diet Library, effective January 1, 2026. Since joining the National Diet Library in 1991, Ms. Kito has served as director general of the Kansai-kan of the National Diet Library,…