On December 17th, 2018, Waseda University’s Global Asia Research Center hosted a workshop entitled “Comparative Analysis of the Recognition and Promotion of the Movement of the ‘Most Beautiful Villages’ in France, Italy, and Japan.” Ryunosuke Takatsu, a Ph.D. candidate in socioeconomics at the University of Rennes 2 (France) delivered a research presentation based on his forthcoming Ph.D. dissertation.

First, he illustrated the example of convivial communities in France and Italy, moving on to compare how France, Italy, and Japan had adopted their standpoints differently in implementing the most beautiful villages project. France and Italy emphasized aesthetic values and attractiveness to tourists in order to retain the villages. On the other hand, Japan valued self-reliance such as self-sustainability of food, housing, and energy. Takatsu also introduced the result of a comparative survey on how people in France and Japan were informed about most beautiful village projects. In France, 70% were aware of this project, while on the other hand, 80% of respondents in Japan were not aware of this project. This may be connected to the fact that Japan had the lowest number of villages which were involved in this project.

Mr. Takatsu focused on presenting several convivial communities in Japan. Some villages faced societal problems known as a shortage of labor force and a rapidly aging population. One of the Japanese villages promoted local business, attracted tourists, and provided a training program to supplement its lacking labor force. Convivial communities placed importance on harmonization and diversity. In this sense, the villages need to develop variable identities and put some efforts in embracing different people.

After the presentation, a lively discussion went on. Other participants linked to the topic of foreign labor migrants in Japan, and how such migrants may fulfill the shortage of labor in the villages. As is shown, Mr. Takatsu’s comparative analysis shows great potential in the field of socioeconomic studies. It could be said that the workshop was full of conviviality.