Key Points
- Keisuke Murakami’s new book, “New Regional Revitalization Theory,” argues for a shift from subsidy dependence to economic independence for local regions.
- The “equal distribution” model of the past is failing as Japan enters a phase of rapid population decline, requiring a transition to “selection and concentration.”
- Murakami emphasizes that while specific “content” cannot be easily copied between regions, the underlying financial and structural “systems” can and should be shared.
- The “Swimmy” strategy—small, innovative players collaborating to create a path—is proposed as the necessary catalyst to change the direction of large, slow-moving local administrations.
Full Transcript (English)
Host (Jun Hori): Today, I would like to introduce a book. It is titled “New Regional Revitalization Theory,” and it will be released soon. The text on the book jacket is quite striking: “Why does regional revitalization end up as nothing more than a slogan?” I believe it is very significant that Mr. Murakami is the one publishing this. On our program “Next Public,” we have often discussed his work. He has been on the inside of Kasumigaseki, connected with people on the ground, and has spent years searching for ways to empower local communities. Mr. Murakami, welcome to our new studio.
Guest (Keisuke Murakami): Thank you. Congratulations on the new studio. It’s a wonderful space.
Host: Mr. Murakami, you have worked with pioneers in various regions through the “Pioneer Meetings.” You have looked at things from a bird’s-eye view while also maintaining a “bug’s-eye” perspective on the ground. You haven’t just drafted policy; you’ve empathized with the life struggles of people in these communities. What was your primary intention in writing this book?
Murakami: At the beginning of the book, I write about the shift “from revitalization to independence.” We have been talking about regional revitalization for ten years now. I think many initiatives have emerged. In the past, people within a region were often too concerned with each other to try new things, but over the last decade, mixing with people from outside has changed things. I think “Stage 1” was successful in that regard. However, the problem is that the initiatives that have started are not yet independent. They rely on subsidies or donations. While donations aren’t bad, these projects haven’t reached the stage where they can raise their own funds or recruit their own talent through their own business activities. If we let our guard down, everything will just revert to how it was. We are at a turning point. I wrote this book to discuss the methods needed for these projects to become self-sustaining over the next ten years.
Host: My biggest impression after reading this was how you set aside subjective views and remained thoroughly objective. You analyzed the reality of the field through numbers and the actual behavior of the people you met. Often, books on regional development focus on the passion of the leaders or specific “methods” that worked for one person. This book feels different. Was that structural approach intentional?
Murakami: Yes, it was intentional. The keyword behind it is: “Content does not expand horizontally; what expands is the system.” For example, the emotional or “moving” parts of a story are important. Knowing how different people tackled challenges is valuable. But if you focus only on that, people say, “We can’t do this because we don’t have a leader like that person,” or “We don’t have that beautiful scenery.” They try to copy the “content.” Instead, we need to look at the systems. How do you handle finance behind the scenes? How can locals who have never invested in someone else’s business learn the mechanism of investment? How was the factor of “vacant houses” utilized? Systems can be shared across regions. I wanted to strip away the subjective parts and extract the common, shareable systems.
Host: What exactly created this “subsidy-soaked” economy?
Murakami: It’s a combination of factors, but the shift to a shrinking population is a major one. Until around the year 2000, the population outside the Tokyo metropolitan area was actually still growing, even if Tokyo was absorbing many people. The impact of population decline really starts to hit when the babies born during that time reach adulthood. We are seeing the full impact now, around 2020. People are suddenly noticing that customers are gone or the buses aren’t running. If we don’t solve this locally now, it will eventually spread to Tokyo. Everyone is starting to realize this, but they are stuck in a loop.
Murakami: There are two main issues. First, as you mentioned, behavior only changes after the pain sets in. But to solve these problems, we have to act before the pain becomes unbearable. Humanity hasn’t quite overcome this paradox yet. Second is the “Titanic problem.” A big ship cannot turn quickly. In the book, I talk about “breaking the Champagne Tower.” For a long time, the system was designed to pour resources from the top and distribute them equally to every corner of the country. This was actually a wonderful thing—ensuring the same quality of roads, water, and education everywhere. But because this “fair distribution” mechanism is so well-perfected, it’s hard to change. When the population is shrinking, you can’t just spread resources thinly; you need “selection and concentration” to survive. But the system is designed for distribution, not strategic concentration. It’s hard to change direction.
Host: So, how do we prevent regional revitalization from ending as just a slogan?
Murakami: I am a big proponent of the “Swimmy” strategy. You know the famous picture book “Swimmy”? A small black fish joins a school of red fish to look like one giant fish. In the first ten years, a few “small fish” (innovators) have jumped out of the “boiled frog” pot in every region. But the local governments and banks aren’t yet ready to authorize the path these innovators are taking. Furthermore, those innovators are still often relying on subsidies. “Stage 2” is about these pioneers becoming able to raise their own funds. I suggest two keys: using real estate effectively and creating “local circulation finance” rather than relying on global finance. If those pioneers can survive without subsidies, the “big ship” of the local administration will finally be able to change its course.
