Regional Decline and Depopulation
Structural impact of demographic change on communities, including municipalities at risk of extinction, Tokyo-centralization, and the vacant house crisis.
7 items
The 'Singles Tax' Unmasked — Japan's Child-Rearing Support Levy and the Asymmetry Between Benefits and Burdens
From April 2026, a new levy — the "Child and Child-Rearing Support Contribution" — will be collected on top of public health insurance premiums. Branded on social media as a "singles tax," the scheme requires contributions from all insured persons regardless of whether they have children. This article analyzes the policy across three dimensions: the structural conflict between social insurance principles and social solidarity logic, the contrast with overseas financing models, and the state of evidence on its effectiveness as a measure to address Japan's falling birthrate.
15 Years After 3/11, 2 Years After Noto — The Structural Limits of Japan's ¥41 Trillion Recovery
Fifteen years after the Great East Japan Earthquake and two years after the Noto Peninsula earthquake, Japan's ¥41 trillion recovery budget rebuilt infrastructure but failed to bring residents back. Population declined in 90% of 42 affected municipalities. A structural analysis of hardware-biased recovery and the absence of a recovery model for depopulating areas.
Renewable Energy and the Regional Economy — New Inequalities Born of the Energy Transition
Analyzing regional disparities in renewable energy deployment and the structural impact on local economies. Reading the asymmetry of benefits and burdens.
Does DX Promotion Narrow or Widen the Regional Gap?
A simulation debate analyzing the benefits and inequality risks of Japan's Digital Agency DX policies. Examines the digital divide between municipalities, IT adoption gaps among elderly populations, and the relationship with Tokyo-centric concentration in the context of regional revitalization.
Population Decline and the Concentration in Tokyo — Reading the Mechanics of Regional Disappearance Through Structure
Structural analysis of population outflow from regional areas and Tokyo concentration. Using demographic projections to read beyond the extinction city thesis.
Can 'Kankeijinko' Solve the Sustainability Problem of Student Community Work?
Japan's relational population framework offers a structural response to the 4-year turnover cycle in student organizations and sustainability pathways.
The 'Depth' of Child Poverty — What Relative Poverty Rates Cannot Tell Us
Japan's child poverty rate declined to 11.5% in 2021. But the improving rate masks worsening poverty depth experienced by the poorest children.