* * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * *<br>A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd.<br>(<a href="http://www.terrie.com">http://www.terrie.com</a>)<br><br>General Edition Sunday, June 12, 2011, Issue No. 617<br>
<br>+++ INDEX<br><br>- What's New -- Content Publishers Need a Software Alliance<br>- Metropolis Members Club winners<br>- News -- Bankruptcies of SMEs rises<br>- Candidate Roundup/Vacancies<br>- Upcoming Events -- Next Entrepreneur Seminar set<br>
- Corrections/Feedback<br>- News Credits<br><br>SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at:<br><a href="http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie">http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie</a><br>
<br>BACK ISSUES<br><a href="http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take">http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take</a>, or,<br><a href="http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/">http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/</a><br>
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<br><br>+++ WHAT'S NEW<br><br>When our sister company Japan Inc. Holdings first bought <br>out the Metropolis magazine in late 2007, one of the top <br>items on the agenda was to create a better web presence for<br>the magazine, that would allow it to fight back against <br>
web-only companies who were staking out ground <br>traditionally claimed by Metropolis. Unfortunately, due <br>mainly to lack of experience and by using low-cost <br>off-shore resources, several attempts at producing online <br>
applications were notable failures. In fact the only real <br>success Metropolis had was the simple reproduction of <br>content on a Wordpress Content Management System <br>(CMS).<br><br>Wordpress, by-the-way, is great. It is very stable, easy<br>
to learn and has great functionality. Drupal, Joomla, and <br>other CMS's are also good, but it's Wordpress that has <br>market mass and developer momentum behind it.<br><br>Those rather costly failures helped us learn, as have many <br>
other publishers and ordinary companies who publish content<br>regularly, that to compete properly with the web-only <br>firms, you have to be a software company or have a friendly<br>one very close at hand. Using outside resources makes you <br>
totally reliant on them, and we found that critical points of <br>failure are the partner's availability, their ability to <br>communicate, continuity of engineering resources, and a <br>proper understanding of your business field. <br>
<br>Thus, early last year, after the second outsourced effort, <br>we decided to set up a separate software company, called <br>MetroWorks. Some of you may recall seeing ads in Terrie's <br>Take soliciting potential investors. In case you were <br>
wondering about the effectiveness of this type of approach <br>to getting funding, out of 45 inquiries arising from the <br>Terrie's Take ads, 12 people invested.<br><br>[Continued below...]<br><br>-------- Remaining Partners for Tourist Web Project -------<br>
<br>Our many thanks to the 30+ partner candidates who have <br>contacted us so far. The project is moving forward with<br>great momentum and full project details are available for <br>interested parties.<br><br>We still have openings for partners in the following <br>
prefectures:<br><br>Aomori, Iwate, Akita, Yamagata, Fukushima, Niigata, Toyama,<br>Fukui, Yamanashi, Gifu, Shizuoka, Aichi, Mie, Kyoto, Hyogo,<br>Yamaguchi, Tokushima, Kagawa, Kochi, Saga, Nagasaki, Oita, <br>Miyazaki, and Kagoshima<br>
<br>If you can write and market tourism for your prefecture, as<br>part of a nationwide English-language tourism push under<br>the Metropolis banner, then please email us today for our<br>Powerpoint presentation.<br><br>Initial project manager: <a href="mailto:terrie@metropolis.co.jp">terrie@metropolis.co.jp</a><br>
------------------------------------------------------------<br><br>[...Article continues]<br><br>The MetroWorks team has been hard at work ever since and <br>has created a range of primarily PHP-based applications <br>that allow non-software companies to interact with and <br>
monetize their audiences and yet don't require those <br>publishers to cannibalize their offline (paper) content. <br>For Metropolis magazine, the first application to be <br>implemented was a new, much faster version of the <br>
Classifieds, which MetroWorks delivered in November 2010. <br><br>While the previous online Classifieds software was slow and <br>unreliable, the new application has been running strongly <br>and the growth of new business was immediately obvious. Now<br>
the online Classifieds account for a significant part of <br>Metropolis' total online revenue. "Women seeking men" and <br>vice versa have never been happier...! :-) <br><br>As a side note, it's a strange thing that Classified ads <br>
have never really caught on in Japan. We're not sure why --<br>perhaps text-only ads seem too simple? Anyway, there is <br>no real equivalent to Craig's List here. This of course <br>provides an excellent market for MetroWorks, which <br>
is now speaking to a number of Japanese publishers about <br>getting their users on to self-service, online, mini ads.<br><br>Following on from the Classifieds has been a new <br>application, internally called the RBR Engine, which is a <br>
ranking/reviewing engine modeled on several famous <br>restaurant/dining sites on the web. In its current <br>incarnation, the RBR engine is on the Metropolis website as<br>MetroDining.jp. If you haven't tried out MetroDining yet <br>
(URL: <a href="http://www.metrodining.jp">www.metrodining.jp</a>), you should. The database is <br>currently being populated with the 2,000 or so food <br>articles that Metropolis has published in recent years, and<br>Metropolis editors tell us that currently about 900 <br>
restaurants are up and running. They are aiming for about <br>another 50-100 restaurants a month, as well as dozens of <br>reader reviews, and by the end of this year will have the <br>largest online database in English of places to eat out in <br>
Tokyo. Other cities are not far behind.<br><br>There are other restaurant evaluation sites in English out <br>there, and several are very good, so what makes <br>MetroDining so different? Answer: the availability of a <br>
friendly, local, software company.<br><br>By this we mean that MetroWorks was able to go through some<br>of the best of breed ranking/reviewer engines out there, <br>such as <a href="http://yelp.com">yelp.com</a>, <a href="http://tabelog.com">tabelog.com</a>, and <a href="http://gurunavi.com">gurunavi.com</a>, and pick <br>
up advanced features not available on competitor sites. As <br>a result, today Metrodining.jp has user/reviewer input <br>tools, likes/dislikes to weight reviews so as to improve <br>review quality, and shortly, loyalty points. In addition <br>
the site includes merchant input tools, so that restaurant <br>and bar owners can put up offers and general information in<br>a self service context.<br><br>The advantage of a close software company has become clear <br>in recent weeks as the Metrodining.jp site has been <br>
launched and fine-tuned. For example, it was designed to <br>run on a browser on mobile devices, but Metropolis quickly <br>found that iPhone browsing using Softbank as the carrier <br>(eMobile connections are much faster) is very slow. So slow<br>
in fact, that it makes the application look like it is at <br>fault. It didn't take long to realize that this is why so <br>many media companies have released iPhone applications, <br>because an "in-device" front-end can mask to a certain <br>
extent the bandwidth availability issues and make for a <br>better user experience. Thus, MetroWorks will be turning <br>out an iPhone application for Metrodining.jp in the next <br>few weeks.<br><br>Another application that has just been released by <br>
MetroWorks is a Social Network System (SNS) engine, <br>similar to what you might find on Facebook. <br><br><a href="http://metropolis.co.jp/community/">http://metropolis.co.jp/community/</a><br><br>Why, you might wonder, would MetroWorks try to recreate a <br>
web service that already has 500m members? The reason is <br>quite simple: people may go to Facebook to meet existing <br>friends, but they don't as easily find new friends there. <br>Yes, there are groups, but these tend to be made up of a <br>
very diverse membership and are often difficult to feel <br>comfortable participating in. For this reason, web users <br>will still look at brands that represent a particular value or <br>brand, and if SNS functionality is available, then they will <br>
use that brand to complement their existing activity on <br>Facebook.<br><br>So it has been that Metropolis launched its first version <br>SNS in November 2009, and quickly gathered about 12,500 <br>members. As mentioned, all of those users could easily <br>
just stay on Facebook, but in addition they are using the <br>Metropolis as well. Metropolis represents a connection <br>between Japanese and non-Japanese, and access to <br>foreign lifestyles in Japan. As a brand, it's very focused, <br>
and users know and like this. <br><br>Unfortunately Metropolis' SNS growth started to slow and <br>so about two weeks ago, MetroWorks upgraded the SNS <br>to a version which is much more secure and has some <br>rather cool new functions within its Facebook-like <br>
presentation -- like Twitter-style follower features. The <br>new functionality has kicked the SNS back into life and <br>there are now 14,400 members, boosted by new<br>sign-ups every day.<br><br>So what have we learned about running a relationship <br>
between a content-producing business and a software <br>development partner?<br>* The software partner needs to have interests closely <br>aligned to those of the content company, so as to ensure <br>efficient and effective use of resources. Some form of <br>
profit-sharing is a great way to achieve this.<br>* The software partner needs to allocate engineers to <br>projects on the basis that those engineers will continue to<br>be available in the future. Even with the best code <br>
notation practices, you can't beat having the original <br>engineer being available to tell another how an application<br>is built and works.<br>* There needs to be a senior manager in the content company<br>who is highly motivated to understanding the software <br>
development process and who will take ownership of setting <br>milestones, pushing projects along, and getting in at the <br>front end of a project to review designs and features. This<br>is not easy to do, because it requires strong <br>
conceptualization and communication skills, AND, can be <br>really boring! Clearly someone with a marketing background <br>and yet lots of patience is the best candidate for this.<br>* There needs to be an understanding that no specification <br>
is ever 100% appropriate to users on the Web, and it is not<br>until an application is up and running that you find out <br>how people will react to it. Yes, you can run focus groups <br>and make sure that testing and debugging follow best <br>
practices, but sometimes you just can't tell if a given <br>business model will work until you try it.<br>* Therefore, there needs to be a high level of flexibility <br>on what the application will finally look like, so that as <br>
preliminary user reactions come in, the content company's <br>senior manager AND his/her counterpart in the software <br>partner are prepared to rip apart the interface or the <br>functionality in order to give users something they <br>
actually want.<br><br>Lastly, one more really great thing we have learned is that<br>there are so many gaps and opportunities in the market for <br>web-based software applications. As we found with the <br>Classifieds for Metropolis magazine, there are many barely <br>
touched application areas that are proven and crowded <br>abroad and yet are virgin territory here. The current <br>economy may be in a state of disarray, but it's an exciting<br>time to be developing new web sites and online social <br>
functionality.<br><br><br>...The information janitors/<br><br>***------------------------****-------------------------***<br><br>Metropolis Members Club Winners<br><br>The week before last, Robert Hoey who won one night's <br>
accommodation for two at The Westin Tokyo courtesy of The <br>Westin Tokyo. In the next two weeks we have another GRAND <br>PRIZE, which is a pair of air tickets to any United direct <br>destination in the USA or Asia courtesy of United Airlines.<br>
This is the big one...!<br><br>Our Metropolis Members Club is growing by leaps and bounds <br>-- join now. No obligations, simply receive our weekly <br>email magazine and enjoy the Metropolis stories, discounts,<br>and prizes. <br>
<br><a href="http://metropolis.co.jp/club/">http://metropolis.co.jp/club/</a><br><br>***------------------------****-------------------------***<br><br>--------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support ---------<br><br>BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service.<br>
<br>Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group,<br>we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers<br>for companies not yet registered in Japan.<br><br>This innovative service is available for companies needing<br>
to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable<br>to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining<br>an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the<br>employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including<br>
management of the employee.<br><br>Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a<br>look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online<br>Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602,<br>
and we can do the same implementations for you.<br><br>For more information on this and other SI and IT services,<br>in English or Japanese:<br><br>Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: <a href="mailto:solutions@biosjp.com">solutions@biosjp.com</a><br>
Web: <a href="http://www.biosjp.com">www.biosjp.com</a><br>-----------------------------------------------------------<br><br>+++ NEWS<br><br>- Mizuho debacle precipitates FSA probe<br>- Japanese prefectures being trademarked in China<br>
- Bankruptcies on the rise<br>- Survey says 28.5% of companies planning HR outside Tokyo<br>- Ascendant Business Solutions KK sold <br><br><br><br>-> Mizuho debacle precipitates FSA probe<br><br>The Financial Services Agency (FSA) is apparently looking <br>
at conducting a probe into major banks IT operations and <br>their ability to respond to outages and emergencies such as<br>the one that Mizuho went through after the March 11 <br>earthquake, when its ATM network crashed for several weeks.<br>
***Ed: Mizuho has always said publicly that the ATM crash <br>was caused by a surge of donations for Tohoku/Sendai <br>earthquake victims, but it's interesting to see that the <br>FSA is probing, amongst other things, how each bank's IT <br>
systems are managed and how that management is delegated. <br>We can't help wondering if Mizuho had outsourced some of <br>its ATM work to another company and for this reason was <br>unable to maintain services themselves after the quake.** <br>
(Source: TT commentary from <a href="http://e.nikkei.com">e.nikkei.com</a>, Jun 09, 2011)<br><br><a href="http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110609D09JFN02.htm">http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110609D09JFN02.htm</a><br>
<br>-> Japanese prefectures being trademarked in China<br><br>Although globally it is accepted practice that you can't <br>trademark place names, it seems that within China trademark<br>registrations of place names is quite rampant. The Japan <br>
Patent Office has reported that at least Fukui, Aichi, <br>Kagawa, and 23 other locations in Japan were registered in <br>China in the last 12 months. Apparently Hokkaido, Aomori, <br>Nagasaki and 6 other prefectures have made applications in <br>
China themselves to try to protect themselves from such <br>patent squatting. ***Ed: Our company tried once to register<br>the name JapanInc.com, and was told that as a place name it<br>would be disallowed. We finally got approval by changing <br>
the "a" in "Japan" to an "@", which is why Japan Inc. <br>magazine is spelled J@pan Inc.** (Source: TT commentary <br>from <a href="http://nikkei.com">nikkei.com</a>, Jun 11, 2011)<br><br><a href="http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110611D10JFA01.htm">http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110611D10JFA01.htm</a><br>
<br>-> Bankruptcies on the rise<br><br>Japan has successfully kept bankruptcies low over the last <br>couple of years (since the Lehman Shock) by providing bank <br>loan repayment forgiveness for many small and medium-sized <br>
companies. While this has served to keep tens of thousands <br>of firms in business, the additional stress of the <br>post-earthquake economy has proven too heavy for many and <br>according to Tokyo Shoko Research, bankruptcies of firms <br>
with debts of JPY10MM or more jumped to 1,071 in May, up <br>4.9% from the same period last year. ***Ed: Our bet is that<br>the volume of smaller and medium-sized companies will start<br>to surge over the coming months, especially those in the <br>
hospitality and entertainment sectors.** (Source: TT <br>commentary from <a href="http://e.nikkei.com">e.nikkei.com</a>, Jun 08, 2011)<br><br><a href="http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110608D08SS205.htm">http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110608D08SS205.htm</a><br>
<br>-> Survey says 28.5% of companies planning HR outside Tokyo<br><br>A recent survey by recruiter Hays Japan has found that of <br>just over 200 Japanese and International companies polled, <br>about 28.5% plan to build HR resources outside of Tokyo, so<br>
as to diversify risk. The companies appear to favor the <br>Kansai, Kyushu, and Hokkaido mostly, with many of these <br>simply continuing to stay on after temporary relocations <br>originally implimented after the March 11 earthquake. ***Ed:<br>
The same survey found that 51% of companies identified IT <br>as their most important job function, followed by 34.5% <br>naming HR.** (Source: TT commentary from <a href="http://wsj.com">wsj.com</a>, Jun 09, <br>2011)<br>
<br><a href="http://on.wsj.com/mHLTei">http://on.wsj.com/mHLTei</a><br><br>-> Ascendant Business Solutions KK sold <br><br>While it may be a tough market for foreign firms in Japan <br>right now, some M&A deals are still getting done. The <br>
Ascendant Business Solutions KK company was sold on May <br>20th to a Hong Kong conglomerate called Tricor for an <br>undisclosed sum. Our congratulations go to founder Mark <br>Ferris and his management team for their success, and we <br>
understand that the team will stay with the company for a <br>while. Tricor is a major corporate services firm, with over<br>1,500 employees in 14 countries, mostly in Asia. (Source: <br>TT commentary from ascendant website, May 24, 2011)<br>
<br><a href="http://www.ascendantbusiness.co.jp/en/">http://www.ascendantbusiness.co.jp/en/</a><br><br><br>NOTE: Broken links<br>Many online news sources remove their articles after just a<br>few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we<br>
apologize for the inconvenience.<br><br>***------------------------****-------------------------***<br><br>+++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES<br><br>=> BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively<br>marketing the following positions for customers setting up<br>
or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of<br>bilinguals.<br><br>** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION<br><br>BiOS is urgently looking for a software developer with <br>experience developing iPhone applications at our partner <br>
company’s office in the Minato-ku area. The candidate will <br>be responsible for creating/updating/modifying existing <br>iOS applications, as well as creating/managing server-side <br>resources such as; data, files, data interchange, etc.<br>
<br>You will also be responsible for providing support for <br>other projects team is working on (i.e. web development).<br><br>Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment,<br>this position is suitable for someone with solid experience<br>
developing iApps and who has proficiency in Objective C and<br>iOS SDK technologies. In addition, since this role requires<br>coordination with multinational team members and managers, <br>business-level communications skills in both English and <br>
Japanese will be required, although English-only and <br>Japanese-only applicants will be considered.<br><br>Remuneration is JPY4.5m – JPY6m depending on your <br>experience and skill level.<br><br>** POSITIONS VACANT<br>
<br>- Enterprise Support Mgr, global sw co, JPY8M – JPY11m<br>- Snr Web Apps Dev, global ceramics co., JPY4.5m – JPY5.5m<br>- Move/Add/Change Coordinator, global bank, JPY4m – JPY5m<br>- Marketing Comms Specialist, global sw co, JPY6m – JPY8m<br>
- Netcare Engineer, BiOS, JPY4m – JPY5m<br><br>Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to:<br><a href="mailto:tomohiro.kimura@biosjp.com">tomohiro.kimura@biosjp.com</a><br><br>** BiOS Job Mail<br><br>Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its<br>
job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition<br>carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date<br>vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job<br>description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS<br>
home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and<br>searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious<br>to know if there is something out there that might suit you<br>better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and<br>
convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like<br>to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more,<br>please email <a href="mailto:kenji.sakota@biosjp.com">kenji.sakota@biosjp.com</a>.<br><br>Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to:<br>
<a href="mailto:tomohiro.kimura@biosjp.com">tomohiro.kimura@biosjp.com</a><br><br>-----------------------------------------------------------<br><br>***------------------------****-------------------------***<br><br>+++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS<br>
<br>---------------- CCH Labor Law Seminar --------------------<br><br>CCH Japan presents its 'Japan Labor & Employment Law <br>Seminar 2011'<br><br>Covered are the following key topics:<br>- Avoiding HR Management pitfalls in your business<br>
- Dealing with salary reductions, poor performance, sexual <br>harassment, bullying, creating work rules,etc.<br><br>Date: Friday, 24th June 1:30pm-5:00pm <br>Venue: Happo-en 5F Linden Room<br>Language:English<br>Speaker:Hideki Kano Attorney, Anderson, Mori & Tomotsune<br>
Fees: 20,000JPY+Tax<br><br>Register: <a href="https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form">https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form</a><br>Related Books: Japanese Labor & Employment Law and Practice<br>1st Edition (published 10th June)<br>
<br>* Seminar participants qualify for special 10% discount!<br>For more details, please contact us at: <a href="mailto:support@cch.co.jp">support@cch.co.jp</a>,<br>or 03-3265-1161.<br><a href="http://www.cch-japan.jp">www.cch-japan.jp</a><br>
-----------------------------------------------------------<br><br>------------------ ICA Event - June 16 --------------------<br><br>Speaker: Jack Byrd, Managing Partner - 360 Risk Management <br>Group<br>Title: Prevent/Detect Workplace Fraud<br>
<br>Details: Complete event details at <a href="http://www.icajapan.jp/">http://www.icajapan.jp/</a><br>(RSVP Required)<br><br>Date: Thursday, June 16, 2011<br>Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar<br>
Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members).<br>Open to all.<br><br>Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan<br><a href="http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map">http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map</a><br>-----------------------------------------------------------<br>
<br>--------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------<br><br>Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 16th of July, 2011<br><br>If you have been considering setting up your own company,<br>find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd,<br>
founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be <br>giving an English-language seminar and Q&A on starting up a<br>company in Japan.<br><br>This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved,<br>and to ask specific questions that are not normally <br>
answered in business books. All materials are in English <br>and are Japan-focused. Over 450 people have taken this<br>seminar in the last 8 years, and approximately 20% have<br>gone on to form companies.<br><br>For more details:<br>
<a href="http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar">http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar</a><br>-----------------------------------------------------------<br><br>***------------------------****-------------------------***<br>
<br>+++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK<br><br>In this section we run comments and corrections submitted<br>by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and<br>amplify our points, by email, to <a href="mailto:editors@terrie.com">editors@terrie.com</a>.<br>
<br>*** In Terrie's Take 615, we wrote about how the government<br>came up with its energy saving figures. A helpful reader <br>offers the likely answer:<br><br>=> Reader:<br>In the newsletter, it seemed like you wondered where the <br>
25% figure for energy reduction came from, instead of the <br>15% figure that keeps appearing in the media.<br><br>The original goal of 6% energy reduction was from Team <br>Minus Six, "Team Minus 6%" was established in April 2005 as<br>
a Japanese international commitment to the Kyoto Protocol, <br>and is a national campaign against global warming aimed at <br>cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 6%. The team leader is <br>the Prime Minister and the sub-leader is the Minister of <br>
the Environment.<br><br>Reference:<br><a href="http://www.team-6.jp/english/about.html">http://www.team-6.jp/english/about.html</a><br><br>This morphed into "Challenge 25" starting January 2011 <br>(even before the Great East Japan Earthquake) which had the<br>
new goal of a 25% reduction. This campaign consists of the <br>following six challenges (my translation, no English <br>translation on the official web site):<br><br>1. Choosing Eco Lifestyle: CoolBiz, WarmBiz, My Bag, Public<br>
Transportation<br>2. Choosing Low Energy Appliances: LED/CFL lightbulbs, <br>Purchasing Replacement Energy Efficient Appliances, Eco <br>Automobiles<br>3. Choosing Natural Energy: Solar, Wind, Water, Green Power<br>4. Choosing Building and Home Eco: Eco Reform, Eco <br>
Building/Office<br>5. Choosing Carbon Dioxide Reduction: (Low) Carbon <br>Footprint Goods, Carbon Offset Goods, Local Producers<br>6. Participating in Activities to Stop Global Warming: <br>Participating in Events, Car Share/Rental Bicycles, Park <br>
and Ride<br><br>Reference:<br><a href="http://www.challenge25.go.jp/index.html">http://www.challenge25.go.jp/index.html</a><br><br>***********************************************************<br>END<br><br>SUBSCRIBERS: 8,866 members as of June 12, 2011<br>
(We purge our list regularly.)<br><br>+++ ABOUT US<br><br>STAFF<br>Written by: Terrie Lloyd (<a href="mailto:terrie.lloyd@japaninc.com">terrie.lloyd@japaninc.com</a>)<br><br>HELP: E-mail <a href="mailto:Terrie-request@mailman.japaninc.com">Terrie-request@mailman.japaninc.com</a><br>
with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include<br>the quotes), and you will get back a message with<br>instructions.<br><br>FEEDBACK<br>Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the<br>
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