On December 20th, Global Asia Research Center, Waseda University, hosted a workshop entitled “Urban Migrants in Rural Japan: Between Agency and Anomie in a Post-growth Society,” presented by Dr. Susanne Klien, an Associate Professor at Hokkaido University. 

The workshop presented the situation of urban migrants in rural Japan based on Dr. Klien’s newly published book. Dr. Klien started the presentation by guiding the audiences through the current scenario of the people’s movement from urban to rural areas. She introduced several concepts and approaches concerning rurality. Afterward, she discussed the definition of “rural” as the counterpart of the city, yet the boundary between the two remains unclear. Dr. Klien also invited the audience to rethink the images of rural life that are often associated with nature, quality time with family, sustainability (DIYs).

In the latter half of the presentation, Dr. Klien mentioned a few factors that triggered the movement from urban to rural areas. According to her fieldwork across Japan, 80% of people who moved to the rural areas are adults in their 20s and 30s. Dr. Klien added that from her interviews, those who decided to move are people searching for a more meaningful life, cultural activities. Relatively, correcting the unequal distribution of population among cities in Japan and improving family relationships of those who moved to the rural area, the government, companies, etc., are providing funds and financial incentives. After a fruitful discussion, the presentation was concluded by highlighting the post-pandemic reflections where people can work remotely to maintain their jobs in the urban area while also enjoying rural life with family. In order to promote tourism, amidst the post-pandemic, the concept of “workcation” was introduced as where people can work and have vacationed at the same time.