In recent years, foreign disinformation campaigns have been increasingly recognized as a national security threat in many Western countries, prompting the development of stronger countermeasures. Behind this shift lies growing concern about the impact of disinformation on democracy and elections, particularly due to the proliferation of social media and rapid advances in artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Key events such as the 2016 U.S. presidential election and Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine significantly heightened global perception of these threats. In contrast, Japan’s countermeasures have remained limited until recently. However, the revision of the National Security Strategy in December 2022 marked a shift toward more serious efforts to address disinformation campaigns mainly by foreign actors. This study investigates why Japan, which has shown relatively low levels of concern regarding disinformation issues, has begun to strengthen its policy response in recent years. It analyzes the government’s decision-making processes and the implementation of related policies, while also examining the policy challenges that Japan currently faces. In particular, the paper identifies three key issues in Japan: (1) ambiguity in the definition of disinformation, (2) biased perceptions of the problem, and (3) the limited range of actors involved in countermeasures. By comparing these findings with cases from Western countries, this study aims to propose future policy directions for Japan to address disinformation in a more comprehensive and sustainable manner.

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In recent years, shopping street in urban centers have faced challenges such as the homogenization and loss of character in commercial spaces. Store composition is a key factor contributing to the character of a shopping street. Its composition is thought to have changed based on the historical context, surrounding environment, and initiatives by local organizations. Therefore, it is important to clarify the transition of store composition and consider future prospects. Located in Namba, central Osaka City, the Ebisubashi-suji Shopping Street is a long-established shopping street that It has seen various changes in recent years, including increased tourist traffic and the expansion of chain stores. Efforts have been made to preserve the district's character by strengthening its organizational structure and establishing rules and plans regarding the types of businesses permitted. This study aims to clarify the transition of store in composition in the Ebisubashi-suji Shopping Street. The findings reveal significant changes in the surrounding environment, including improvements to transportation infrastructure and the opening of new commercial facilities. Despite intense turnover among the shopping street's stores, the business composition has remained centered on “clothing,” “food and beverage” and “restaurants.” This stability is thought to stem from institutional safeguards such as building agreements and town development plans, combined with effective coordination among stakeholders facilitated by organizations such as the landlords’ association. However, an increase in previously unconsidered business types has been observed, suggesting that a review of the rules will be necessary in the future.

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During the initial phase of a disaster, municipalities on the front-line are required to handle an enormous volume of emergency response tasks that differ from those in normal times, under circumstances where even a moment’s delay is not permitted. Under such conditions, it is difficult to maintain a perfect response at all times, and the occurrence of problems that can be regarded as some form of “failure” is almost unavoidable. Rather than viewing failures negatively, this study adopts the perspective of “Learning from Failures,” which emphasizes learning from failures, identifying their causes, and preventing recurrence. Based on this approach, it conducts an analysis of after-action reports from 12 municipalities affected by large-scale heavy rainfall disasters since 2013, with the aim of structurally clarifying failures in initial disaster response and their underlying causes. The analysis revealed that, many failures occurred in information-processing tasks, such as the collection and analysis of meteorological and damage information, the issuance of evacuation orders, communication with residents, and information sharing with related organizations. These failures can be classified into three levels: critical failures, failures affecting entities outside the organization, and internal organizational failures. The results confirm that Heinrich’s law of accidents—where numerous minor failures accumulate and lead to major failures—also applies to disaster response by local governments. Furthermore, the causes of these failures were not limited to individual errors but were multilayered, involving deficiencies in procedures, organizational structures, and facilities and equipment, thereby highlighting once again the importance of advance preparation and organizational readiness. Furthermore, based on the above findings, this study derives policy implications and presents insights to help municipalities effectively strengthen their disaster response capabilities while taking priorities into account.

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In addressing financial hardship, it is essential not only to provide support after hardship becomes apparent, but also to identify risks of livelihood hardship at an early stage and prevent its onset and escalation. Yet practical indicators that enable simple identification of such risks and early difficulties—and that connect individuals to preventive support and lifestyle improvement—remain insufficiently developed. This study aims to develop a “Simple Indicator for Poverty Prevention” (Bokyu Simple Indicator) from the perspective of Bokyu, an approach defined as the proactive prevention of livelihood hardship and mitigation of its escalation, and to examine its basic psychometric properties. As used in this paper, livelihood hardship risk encompasses not only pre-onset vulnerability but also early-stage difficulties that have already partially manifested, such as anxiety over bill payments or foregone medical care. Drawing on poverty research literature, policy documents, and interviews with support practitioners, we constructed 13 items covering four domains: Fundamental Attitudes, Finance, Health, and Social Relationships, each rated on a five-point Likert scale. Exploratory factor analysis of online survey data yielded a two-factor, nine-item structure comprising Economic Stability and Health/Money Management Capability. Subsequent regression analyses showed that Economic Stability was consistently associated with both objective economic status and subjective financial well-being. Health/Money Management Capability was associated with economic status, but its association with subjective financial well-being became less clear once control variables were introduced. While this indicator is not intended as a definitive diagnostic tool for livelihood hardship, it has potential applications as a self-screening tool for individuals assessing their own risk, as well as for practitioners conducting initial interviews or delivering Bokyu education programs.

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Japan is expected to face a rapid population decline in the coming decades, posing significant challenges for municipalities in sustaining administrative services. Promoting Digital Transformation (DX) in local governments has therefore become essential. Municipal DX entails not only the digitization of existing tasks through the introduction of information and communication technologies but also a fundamental redesign of administrative processes. Effective utilization of advanced technologies further requires collaboration with research institutions, such as universities with technical expertise, as well as private-sector organizations experienced in administrative operations. This study aims to develop and implement practical methods for improving the efficiency of specialized municipal tasks by applying AI technologies and data utilization within an industry–government–academia collaborative framework. Focusing on fixed asset taxation operations in Handa City, Aichi Prefecture, we constructed efficiency-enhancement techniques using remote sensing data and AI-based digital technologies. In developing a land category interpretation system, aerial imagery and cadastral map data were integrated with AI techniques to automate interpretation tasks that had traditionally relied on manual work. Furthermore, based on the automated interpretation results, we developed a support system that generates survey forms and provides optimized route guidance to facilitate efficient on-site land-use investigations. Through the development and field testing of these integrated workflow support systems, the effectiveness and practical utility of the proposed approach were demonstrated.

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Special District for Urban Renaissance (SDUR) is an urban planning system that enables the designation of highly flexible plans. However, few studies have been conducted in cities other than Tokyo. In addition, when analyzing public contributions, it is important to analyze at both the district level and the regional level. This study examined the designation trends of SDURs in cities throughout Japan, and analyzed the areas where SDUR is concentrated. We find that public contributions tend to vary with city size and area characteristics. Next, we conducted a case study in the Area around Osaka Station. In this area, we identified a variety of ways in which public contributions are used.

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This study examines whether demand induction through the generation of tourism demand can serve as an effective means of addressing the rebalancing problem in bike-sharing systems. The study focuses on four municipalities—Kamakura City, Fujisawa City, Zushi City, and Hayama Town—and uses GBFS inventory data collected at 10-minute intervals to identify the spatiotemporal patterns of unavailability (empty stations) and unavailability for return (full stations). Next, we generated tourist routes based on classifications of port characteristics and time-of-day transition rules. By incorporating these routes into the inventory time series as exogenous demand, we simulated the effect on improving supply-demand imbalances. The results showed that generating tourist demand reduced both the duration of “unavailable for rental” and “unavailable for return” states and the number of ports experiencing prolonged durations, confirming that the rebalancing problem was alleviated. Furthermore, the total transportation distance of bicycles (vehicle-km), calculated as a proxy for the burden of truck-based rebalancing, was reduced by up to approximately 20%, indicating the potential to achieve effects equivalent to or greater than those of weekly truck rebalancing. These results suggest that rebalancing can be supplemented not only by supply-side operations but also by demand stimulation through the utilization of tourist circulation. In other words, improvements in bike-sharing operations can be designed as a policy approach in coordination with tourism initiatives, and have the potential to contribute to improved mobility efficiency and service levels in cities.

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This study examines a policy management framework for sustaining local public transport, using the Gifu City Community Bus System as a case study. In recent years, local cities in Japan have introduced various mobility measures, including demand-responsive transport, AI-based demand-responsive transport, and shared mobility services. Nevertheless, amid population decline, population aging, declining ridership, and a shortage of bus drivers, the maintenance and renewal of local public transport remain major policy challenges. In Gifu City, community buses were introduced on a trial basis in October 2006 and have since been expanded in stages. Nearly 20 years later, the system continues to operate in 20 districts. In addition, under the Regional Public Transport Convenience Enhancement Implementation Plan, measures such as strengthening trunk bus routes, improving access to urban centers, providing real-time operation information, and promoting ridership are being implemented in an integrated manner. This study analyzes this long-term institutional operation from the perspective of the PDARU cycle, consisting of Plan, Do, Assess, Report, and Utilize. It seeks to conceptualize the sustainability of local public transport not only in terms of planning, implementation, and evaluation, but also as an operational process that includes the sharing of evaluation results and subsequent institutional revision. Furthermore, this study regards Gifu City’s community bus system not as a conventional or outdated policy measure, but as an institution that has been continuously renewed through complementary transport services, digital information provision, and network integration. By comparing the Gifu case with that of Tsuruoka City, this study clarifies the characteristics of Gifu City’s approach. Finally, it discusses the extent to which PDARU can serve as an analytical perspective for future demand-responsive transport and AI-based mobility policies.

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The construction industry plays a fundamental role in national land conservation and in ensuring regional safety and security. However, the limited inflow of young workers and the resulting shortage of future human resources have become major concerns. To promote both recruitment and retention among younger generations, it is important to understand how workers themselves evaluate the industry and what kind of future image they envision from a generational perspective. This study analyzes generational differences in perceptions of the construction industry using a questionnaire survey of workers engaged in construction and infrastructure maintenance. Specifically, it examines generational differences in industry satisfaction and willingness to recommend the industry to the next generation. In addition, topic modeling is applied to open-ended responses to identify the structural characteristics of workers’ ideal images of the construction industry. The results show that evaluations of the industry differ across generations, with respondents in their 30s exhibiting relatively lower levels of satisfaction and willingness to recommend the industry to the next generation. The topic modeling analysis further reveals that ideal images of the construction industry can be categorized into three orientations: a “micro-oriented” perspective focusing on familiar issues such as working conditions and workplace environments, a “macro-oriented” perspective emphasizing broader and longer-term issues such as the social role of construction and infrastructure maintenance, and an intermediate orientation between them. Furthermore, the generational comparison indicates that younger workers tend to place greater emphasis on working conditions, workplace environments, and job fulfillment. These findings suggest that efforts to enhance the attractiveness of the construction industry should not be limited to pre-entry public relations or image-building activities, but should also be connected to post-entry retention support, improvements in working environments, career development support, and the design of work-related systems that reflect the perspectives of younger workers.

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We investigated the relationship between Yokai (Japanese traditional monsters) legends and disaster risk and explored the potential of using Yokai legends in regional disaster risk education, through inquiry-based learning at a junior high school and an outreach program at an elementary school. First, literature reviews and field surveys indicated that many Yokai legends were intended to ward off past natural disasters and to warn of dangers on dark roads, and that they still reflect local environmental characteristics. Furthermore, analysis of their relationship with hazard maps showed that locations associated with Yokai legends related to natural disasters remain areas where vigilance is warranted. These findings suggest that Yokai legends have strong potential for use in disaster risk education. Next, we analyzed the educational effects of Yokai legends through an outreach program at an elementary school. The results of a survey of children showed an increased interest in Yokai and a greater tendency to perceive them as “things that exist nearby and should be avoided.” Text analysis indicated that Yokai legends can convey local disaster risks and foster an awareness of risk avoidance. Furthermore, because 73.9 % of the children reported wanting to share Yokai legends with others, the study suggested that Yokai legends can be revived in local communities as a medium for conveying disaster risk. The methods for discovering and reviving Yokai legends practiced in this study are likely applicable to other regions as well. We hope that Yokai legends will be passed down as a form of disaster risk education in many regions in the future.

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This paper examines Nousaku, a regional small and medium-sized enterprise based in Takaoka City, Toyama Prefecture, Japan, and conceptualizes the leadership practices of Katsuji Nousaku, its current chairman, who led the company’s transformation, as “creative leadership.” It aims to clarify how these practices were formed and developed, and how they generated a virtuous cycle of originality and co-creation. Innovation in traditional industries should be understood not merely as new product development or market expansion, but as a practice through which an entrepreneur reinterprets the meaning of technology, materials, and work itself, including tin casting, beyond established assumptions and connects them to new value creation. Based on a qualitative case study drawing on interviews, site visits, lecture materials, published writings, and public documents, the analysis shows that Nousaku’s practices developed from a strong sense of problem awareness formed within a subcontracting structure. From this starting point, they progressed through a transformation in the meaning of tradition, the exploration of originality through in-house product development, the reinterpretation of tin casting, and the challenge of 100 percent tin, before extending into empathy formation and co-creation in domestic and international contexts, as well as into industrial tourism and broader regional spillover. A distinctive finding is that originality fostered empathy, that empathy provided the basis for co-creation with others, and that learning generated through co-creative relationships stimulated new originality. Moreover, this cycle was supported by customer touchpoints and experiential platforms, including directly managed stores, overseas bases, the new company headquarters, and industrial tourism. This paper offers a perspective that reinterprets innovation in traditional industries as a chain of meaning redefinition, original value creation, and learning through co-creation, and provides theoretical and practical implications for research on regional SMEs.

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A growing trend has emerged in promoting “Unique Venues” (UVs), which involve renting historic buildings and other sites for MICE (Meeting, Incentive travel, Convention, and Exhibition/Event) to enhance attractiveness. Although, amendments to the Cultural Properties Protection Law have encouraged the utilization of cultural assets, significant concerns regarding preservation persist. The understanding of UV cases and practices of planning, development, and operation remains unclear. This study aimed to inventory cases, focusing on differentiation and unexpectedness, and to clarify how preservation and utilization are positioned within planning, development, and operation by the promoting entities in government-designated cities and Kyoto City. The findings indicated that gardens, parks, temples, and shrines are frequently used as UVs. This trend appears to result from differentiation from other convention facilities and international venues, achieved through traditional wooden architecture and gardens, as well as the unexpected use of these sites for purposes distinct from their original intent. In regional plans for the preservation and utilization of cultural asset in government-designated cities, measures for utilization are limited; however, some cities have incorporated UV utilization and reinvestment in preservation, reflecting the intent of recent legal revisions. Within Kyoto City, various organizations have actively promoted UVs, leveraging the city’s abundant cultural assets. Nijo Castle and Choraku-kan have positioned their use as UVs as sources of revenue and dynamic preservation, respectively, thereby achieving a balance between preservation and utilization through UVs and reinvestment. Since a standardized approach to UVs risks diminishing their distinctiveness, it is crucial to recognize the unique characteristics of each cultural asset, including differentiation, unexpected elements, and constraints.

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In Japan, the objective evaluation of “daily living areas” is increasingly required as a common foundation to integrate urban, transportation, and welfare policies. While the use of mobile phone location data (human mobility data) has become widespread, no studies have statistically verified the consistency between the objective movement histories derived from such data and the subjective living areas captured by conventional questionnaire surveys. Furthermore, the application of macroscopic location data has been delayed in the welfare sector, which typically emphasizes microscopic individual issues. To address this gap, this study evaluated objective daily living areas in Kariya City, Aichi Prefecture, using two distinct types of human mobility data. We then compared these findings with subjective evaluation results obtained from resident questionnaires and workshops. To account for inherent data biases, we applied the Friedman test and Kendall’s coefficient of concordance (W) based on the ranking of destination proportions. The analysis revealed that movements within the same junior high school district were the most dominant across all evaluated districts. Crucially, a strong statistical agreement (W > 0.7) was confirmed among all objective and subjective methods. These findings demonstrate that human mobility data can serve as a highly reliable alternative indicator for evaluating daily living areas, even in the welfare sector. By effectively clarifying the shared boundaries among urban, transportation, and welfare planning, this study highlights the practical significance of sharing and utilizing human mobility data across multiple departments rather than limiting its use to a single sector. Future research should validate these findings in other municipalities with different urban characteristics, as this study was limited to Kariya City.

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The outflow of young people from regional cities is becoming more noticeable. One of the reasons for this is thought to be a decline in local attachment among young people. In this study, we hypothesized that local activities during the period leading up to high school education are important as a means of fostering local attachment among young people, and conducted a questionnaire survey of second-year high school students, who are at the stage of considering their future career paths after graduation, and analyzed the survey results focusing on the relationship between local activities and local attachment and the resulting influence on future residential intentions. We also analyzed items related to daily school life and self-esteem, and understood the impact of these items on the motivation for local activities. Based on the results of the analysis, we verified that local activities among young people are related to fostering local attachment, which in turn leads to intentions to live there, and considered measures to combat the outflow of young people from regional cities and the future of high school education.

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