海外に興味は無いのですか、とよく問われるが、正直、全く海外には興味が持ってない。まあそもそも国家の境界線が曖昧になりつつある時代に、国内と海外を分けて考えること自体がナンセンスだとは思うけど、僕にとっては日本、特に地方がいま超面白くて熱い。その理由は二つある。
一つ目の理由は少子高齢化の問題。今後先進国を覆うこの問題に対し①先端を行なってるのが日本の地方。つまり地方で子供が少なくなり、その問題が取り組むことが、他の先進国に対するロールモデルになり得るということ。不謹慎に思われるかもしれないけど、この問題に真っ先に取り組めるってのはある意味エキサイティングだよね。僕らも"タブレットばら撒きテロ"や"geimi"などで、都心の若者と地方のお年寄りを接続していけたらいいな、と動き始めている。そうやって若者とお年寄りが繋がって行けば、血の繋がりすら薄れてきてる今、若い子にとって第二第三の故郷が日本各地に出来るかもしれない。
若い子が減り、お年寄りが増え、人口が純減していく中では、今までの様な拡大路線の対策やビジネスは成り立たなくなっていく。つまり転換期、チャンスもある。人口が減るという問題も、逆から見れば一人当たりの土地が拡大するとも捉える事が出来る。狭い島国からしたらある意味チャンス笑。
少子高齢化で人の繋がりが横も縦も希薄になっていく中では、強者と弱者の定義も逆転していくかもしれない。すなわち②擬似家族的な繋がりが大事になってくる。シェアハウスに入る子が増えているのは、孤独死しないための本能的な行動なんだと思う。地方に移住する子や、新しく村を作ろうと試みてる若者が増えているのも、きっとそういうことなんだろう。そういった意味で、今、日本の地方が熱い。これが一つ目の理由。
そして二つ目は、単純に僕が東京に飽きてきた、ただそれだけ笑。
田舎の商店街を野生の鹿が歩いてるのを見てビックリしたんだけど、その時にビビビっと来たんだよね。見たことない様な刺激的な光景は、もはや地方にしか無いんじゃないか、と。福岡の田舎生まれの僕には、かつて「見たことない光景」や「面白くてやばい人」は東京にしか無かったんだよな。
今はミニ東京みたいな都市が日本中にあって、もはや「見たことない光景」は地方にしか無いことに気づいた。そして、本気で面白い、見たことのない事を実験しようとしている人たちは地方に散り散りになって飛んで行っている。③そんな人たちに、僕は今とても興味がある。
AI translation, cross-checked between two models.
I am often asked whether I have no interest in other countries, and to be honest, I have absolutely no interest in going abroad. Then again, in an age when national borders are becoming increasingly blurred, I think the very idea of separating domestic and overseas matters is rather meaningless; but to me, Japan, especially its regional areas, is incredibly interesting and exciting right now. There are two reasons for this.
The first reason is the problem of a declining birthrate and an aging population. When it comes to this problem that will affect developed countries in the future, ① Japan’s regional areas are at the forefront. In other words, the number of children in regional areas is declining, and tackling that problem could provide a model for other developed countries. This may sound insensitive, but in a way, being among the first to tackle this problem is pretty exciting, isn’t it? We, too, have started taking action in the hope of connecting young people in major urban centers with elderly people in regional areas through projects such as “tablet-scattering terrorism” and “geimi.” If young people and the elderly become connected in this way, then now that even blood ties are growing weaker, young people may come to find second or third hometowns in various parts of Japan.
As the number of young people falls, the elderly population rises, and the overall population continues to shrink, policies and businesses based on the kind of expansion pursued in the past will no longer be viable. In other words, this is a period of transition, and that means there are opportunities as well. Even the problem of population decline can, from another perspective, be seen as an increase in the amount of land available per person. For a cramped island nation, that is a kind of opportunity too, lol.
As a declining birthrate and an aging population weaken human connections both horizontally and vertically, the very definitions of the strong and the weak may also be reversed. In other words, ② family-like bonds will become increasingly important. I think the growing number of young people moving into share houses is an instinctive response aimed at avoiding dying alone. The increase in young people moving to regional areas or trying to create new villages probably stems from the same thing. In that sense, Japan’s regional areas are where the excitement is right now. That is the first reason.
And the second reason is simply that I am starting to get bored with Tokyo. That’s all, lol.
I was amazed when I saw a wild deer walking through a shopping street in the countryside, and at that moment something just clicked inside me. I thought that perhaps the only places left where you could encounter exciting sights unlike anything you had ever seen were regional areas. For me, having been born in rural Fukuoka, “sights I had never seen before” and “people who were fascinatingly outrageous” used to exist only in Tokyo.
Now there are cities resembling miniature versions of Tokyo all over Japan, and I have realized that the only places where “sights I have never seen before” still remain are the regions. And the truly interesting people, those seriously trying to experiment with things no one has ever seen before, are scattering and heading off to regional areas all over the country. ③ Those are the kinds of people I am extremely interested in right now.
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