In the context of a decline in its overall population, Japan's non-metropolitan areas are most severely affected by the ongoing demographic change. The fast-spreading 'marginal settlement' (genkai shū raku) phenomenon, which refers to communities that have reached the limits of their manageability due to depopulation and ageing, requires a fundamental shift in Japan's policy response to trends of regional abandonment and collapse. The article analyses current and future economic and socio-demographic challenges facing shrinking communities in Japan, and assesses the development and institutional context of government policies related to depopulating mountain areas in particular. It argues that shrinking communities should abandon the expectation of externally induced local revitalization and concentrate on asset-based community development. Community ownership of assets is discussed as a creative and innovative means to facilitate local engagement, foster local place attachment and thereby strengthen the resilience of rural communities and their independence from central government control.
JapanÕs March 2011 triple disaster of earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear meltdown shattered the countryÕs nuclear-dependent energy policy. Questions about the long-term consequences of Fukushima still linger, but a political and economic re-evaluation of the costs and benefits of this high-risk technology is long overdue. Concerns about the future role of nuclear power are part of the larger international debate about energy security and climate change. Germany is frequently seen as leading the way toward a clean-energy future with its nuclear exit and renewables expansion, but both Japan and Germany have managed to maintain a secure energy supply with dramatically reducedÑor even zeroÑnuclear power since 2011. A comparison of similarities and differences between Japan and Germany helps to explain each countryÕs responses to Fukushima and to draw out key lessons for future energy systems. Energy policies that scrutinize vested interests of the industry and allow for more decentralized energy systems, relying on more renewable energy sources and more programs for emissions reductions, are key in shaping the inevitable big shift.
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