Japan is a fortunate country. What better measure is there to support this assertion than declining mortality and growing life expectancy?! The Japanese do not die during the first precarious months after birth, enjoying as they do the lowest infant mortality on earth. They do not die on the...

Das Thema „Regionale Disparitäten“ hat derzeit Konjunktur in Japan. Deröffentlich-rechtliche Rundfunksender NHK begann im April 2007 mit einerlockeren Reihe von Fernsehdokumentationen unter dem ObertitelChiiki hatsu! Dō suru Nippon [Aus den Regionen! Japan, was tun?]. Gesendetetwa jeden...

Since the early 1950s, the Japanese government has followed a paradigmof ‘balanced regional development’ that is based on comprehensive planning approachescharacterized by very high levels of central government control. However,the intended regional economic growth failed to occur and...

The shrinking and ageing of urban populations is a worldwide phenomenon,and in Japan it is a central problem not only for the future but already atpresent. In contrast to the large, dynamic cities of Japan, the mass of smaller citieswith fewer than 200,000 inhabitants – in particular those...

In 2007, the city council of Kyoto adopted the keikan jōrei [townscape ordinances],a set of amendments to existing building codes that was hailed as revolutionaryeven by critical commentators. The new rules expand existing protectedareas, ban putting up rooftop billboards and neon signage, and...

Drastic demographic changes in Japan have forced Japanese municipalitiesto seek ways to prevent further shrinking. One strategy initiated by severaltowns and cities is to attract retirees. Due to recent changes in elderly people’slifestyles, it is not unreasonable to opt for this strategy:...

Japan witnessed a boom of municipal mergers between 1999 and 2006. Duringthat period, the number of municipalities was reduced from 3,232 to 1,820. TheGreat Mergers of the Heisei Period, as they have become known, took place withina framework of extensive decentralization reforms in which the...

In recent years, many regional cities that had relied on their industrial baseand central function for the surrounding areas have experienced varying forms ofdecline, including population shrinking and ageing. During the wave of municipalmergers, these cities have integrated many peripheral...

Arbeitswelten in Japan – der Plural steht für die schillernde Vielschichtigkeitdes Begriffs von Arbeit: die regelmäßige Tätigkeit kann als Selbstständigeroder in einem Angestelltenverhältnis erfolgen, sie kann ehrenamtlichsein, kreativ künstlerisch oder erfolgsorientiert und auf...

This paper analyses the evolution of the image of Western corporations asemployers in Japan since 1945. It shows how the changing perception of Westerncompanies in Japan has influenced their position in the Japanese labour market andtheir ability of successfully recruiting highly qualified...