Abstract

According to a 2024 OECD report, Japan has the highest proportion of women without children in the world. With the number of births at 680,000, the impact of population decline is severe: young people are leaving rural areas, infrastructure such as water and sewer systems is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain due to declining tax revenues, and there is a growing shortage of workers to sustain industry. Against this backdrop, this work follows the efforts of nurseries in Aomori, Fukushima, and Saitama as they strive to revitalize and rebuild their communities by placing childcare at the center of their initiatives.

Author’s Information

Professor at Konan University, member of the Child and Family Agency Council. Specializes in social security and childcare policy. Graduated from Waseda University Faculty of Education. After studying at the Matsushita Institute of Government and Management, she obtained an MBA from Northwestern University and a PhD in Commerce from Keio University Graduate School. She previously served as Deputy Mayor of Yokohama City. Major works include "The Nursery School Problem: Waiting Lists, Shortage of Childcare Workers, and Anti-Construction Movements" (Chuko Shinsho), "The Melancholy of Unemployed Women with University Degrees: Reasons Why They Don't Work or Can't Work" (Shinsensha), "Nursery Schools Today: Raising Children Together," "What Welfare Can Do Now: From the Experience of the Deputy Mayor of Yokohama City," "Aging Society Without Children: The Fear of Zero Births," and "The Mother's Wall: The True Nature of the Burden that Drives Child-Rearing to the Brink" (co-authored, all published by Iwanami Shoten).