In late 2025, reporterOwen Clarktook a bus from Tokyo to Kazuno, a tiny town in Japan’s Akita Prefecture. Kazuno is ground zero for the country’s war against marauding bears. Throughout 2024 and 2025, aggressive bears attacked people across the country, killing more than a dozen and injuring several hundred. The situation was so bad that Japan’s military sent armed soldiers into Kazuno to protect the populace. Clarke found the town in a state of panic. But over the course of ten days, he took a deep dive into the environmental and societal dynamics that have allowed bears to roam into towns and villages to hunt humans. Clark’s story,Japan Is Fighting a War Against Bears. The Bears Are Winningexplained what he discovered. This week, it’s the latest Long Read on the Outside Podcast.
