TOKYO: The Japanese government used the term "climate crisis" to refer to global warming and its consequences for the first time, in an annual report released on Friday.

"It is not just 'climate change,' but a 'climate crisis' that shakes the foundation of the existence of mankind and all lifeforms," the government said in the 2020 white paper on the environment, recycling-oriented society and biodiversity.

An environment ministry representative said that the ministry wants Japanese citizens to understand that the world is in a critical state, as global warming triggers natural disasters around the globe.

Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said the same day that the ministry wants to use the white paper as an opportunity to make a "climate crisis declaration."

"With the risks of torrential rain damage and heat waves rising even further due to global warming, we are truly facing a crisis," he said at a press conference.

Koizumi said he wants to boost Japan's environmental measures by sharing the sense of crisis with other government ministries and agencies.

The report stressed the need for every citizen to change lifestyle to reduce greenhouse gases and achieve a sustainable society.

Specifically, the paper proposed that environmental protection and economic activities be balanced through the purchase of electricity generated through renewable energy sources, the recycling of clothes, and the adoption of "workation," in which people work remotely from resorts rich in nature.

JIJI Press