When Japan restarted one of the seven reactors at the largest nuclear plant in the world in January, many of the locals from the nearby village of Kariwa – population, about 4,200 – were uneasy about it. Not the mayor, though. Shinada Hiroo expresses unwavering trust in the people who run the nuclear facility, reflecting a changing attitude toward nuclear energy in Japan. Fifteen years ago Wednesday, a powerful earthquake and resulting tsunami triggered the nuclear emergency at Fukushima. Japan’s government responded by shutting down all 54 of the country’s nuclear reactors. And in 2012, it even decided to phase out nuclear power generation. But today, with Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae leading the charge, Japan is slowly putting nuclear power at the center of its national energy policy. Why We Wrote This Japan turned off all of its nuclear reactors after the 2011 nuclear disaster at Fukushima. Now, the government – and the public – has reversed course.…