Unlock: The Real Japan#4

THE REAL JAPAN A SPECIAL MAGAZINE BY Nikkei Asia

DEVELOPING A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE

CONTENTS

A SPECIAL MAGAZINE BY Nikkei Asia

Welcome to issue four of Unlock the Real Japan, a special collaboration between Nikkei Inc. and Time Out Tokyo created to help Asia’s business leaders gain new insight into one of the most exciting countries on Earth.

Inside you’ll find Nikkei Asia’s renowned insight into the business world combined with Time Out Tokyo’s knowledge of city life, ensuring that visiting executives can experience all sides of life in Japan.

4

The issue is inspired by the United Nations’ sustainable development goals (SDGs), a set of 17 global aims that UN member states resolved to achieve by 2030. These goals, which include ending extreme poverty, fostering peaceful and inclusive societies, and taking urgent action on climate change, are described by the UN as a “plan of action for people, planet and prosperity”.

4 SUSTAINABLE FUTURES Digital artist and computer scientist Yoichi Ochiai on a futuristic approach to the SDGs

6

THE ORIGINATOR

An introduction to Shibusawa Eiichi, Japan’s sustainability pioneer

6

8 HYDRO POWER

In this issue we speak to some of the people at the forefront of Japan’s efforts to reach its SDG targets. We hope you enjoy reading about their visions for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable future.

Politician Shozo Kudo on the game-changing potential of hydrogen

10 CHEMICAL REACTION

The Japanese Hydrogen Association and its push for a zerocarbon future

12

10

FUTURE FOOD

How new technology is bringing sustainable solutions to the world’s kitchens

Edited by Matthew Lee, Marcus Webb (Time Out Tokyo) Designed by James Ladbury

17

Coordinated by Karolina Höglind (Time Out Tokyo/ORIGINAL Inc.)

14 FUNNY BUSINESS

GEORGE RINHART/CORBIS VIA GETTY IMAGES | MASAAKI KASUGA | KEISUKE TANIGAWA

Planned, produced and distributed by Nikkei Inc. Global Business

A new app blends kids’ education with entertainment

Directed by Akiko Toya (Time Out Tokyo/ORIGINAL Inc.)

17 LIFE THROUGH A LENS

Nikkei Inc. 1-3-7 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8066 +81 (0)3 3270 0251| nikkei.com Advertising and general enquiries: NARadvertising@nikkei.co.jp

Images of Tokyo’s development between two Summer Games

20 WITHOUT EQUALS

All rights reserved. Using the content for commercial purpose, citing, reproducing, editing, summarizing or translating the contents without prior permission of Nikkei Inc. is strictly prohibited.

The battle for gender equality in Japan

22 ETIQUETTE GUIDE

Understanding Japanese working hours and holidays

20

A SPECIAL MAGAZINE BY Nikkei Asia

|

3

4

|

UNLOCK THE REAL JAPAN

l Yoichi Ochiai

SUSTAINABLE

futures

Digital artist, computer scientist, and just about everything in-between, Yoichi Ochiai tells Matthew Lee about how he thinks about sustainability in radical ways

MIKA NINAGAWA

O

ften described as a wizard and an alchemist, Yoichi Ochiai has a reputation for making magic happen with cutting-edge technology. In previous eye-catching projects he’s made holograms that you can touch and feel, and ultrasonic waves that make objects levitate. His résumé – so packed with interdisciplinary art projects, scientific experiments, books and essays you wonder how he finds the hours in the day – is remarkably varied, but there are some unifying themes found in his work.

One of Ochiai’s regular go-to topics is what he refers to as ‘digital nature’ – he runs the Digital Nature group at the University of Tsukuba in Tokyo, where he is also an associate professor. Along with colleagues and students, Ochiai imagines a future in which new technologies, such as IoT (the Internet of Things) and AI (artificial intelligence), are seamlessly combined with the natural world.

“We are interested in how nature will be changed in the future,” says Ochiai.

“And what sort of digital ecosystem affects this kind of nature – an ecosystem in the form of humans, but also artificial things, and computational things. I’m thinking about how nature will be changed in computational ways, and about how we can achieve sustainability in both the digital world and the physical world.”

While some people might consider technology and nature to be incompatible, even antithetical, Ochiai insists they have much in common. “There are many biological things, some in humans, that are designed in computational or digital ways,” says Ochiai, who is also the founder and CEO of tech startup Pixie Dust Technologies. “You can find digital signals in the neural connections in your brain, and you can find digital processes in the memory of your DNA. We find human culture developing in a computational way, and also the computational way itself is implemented in nature.”

Standing at the intersection of the digital and natural worlds, Ochiai aims to examine through his work how new technologies can help address some of the biggest challenges facing both Japanese and global society. There are plenty of major challenges contained within the UN’s 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs), and when a recent art festival in Kitakyushu, Kyushu Prefecture, announced that its focus was the SDGs, Ochiai was keen to contribute.

DIGITAL NATURE

“Kitakyushu is on the island of Kyushu, in the south of Japan, and it played a big role in the country’s industrial development,” says Ochiai. “They had a big problem there with water pollution in the 1960s and because of that there has been a strong relationship there between industrial production and sustainability.”

For the ART for SDGs event, which opened in April 2021, Ochiai used digital technology to present images taken at the Kitakyushu Museum of Natural History & Human History in a revelatory new light. His bold, thematically sprawling exhibit, ‘Perspective of Umwelt – Time and Space, Digital Nature and Arts’, didn’t merely treat the audience to a dazzling display of lights, lasers and digitally enhanced imagery from the natural world – it also posed big questions about what sustainability really means.

“Umwelt is a German term meaning every species has its own perspective of the world,” Ochiai says of the title of his exhibit. Through this concept of umwelt, he explains, you begin to think about sustainability in a more holistic way – what does sustainable development mean not just for humans but for all the species that share the Earth, and what would it have meant to humans who lived thousands of years ago? “An important quality of the SDGs is that they aren’t only about humans,” he says. “And also it’s important that they are not just from the perspective of developed countries, like those in the G7. We also need to think about perspectives on sustainability from less developed countries.”

Ochiai’s innovative approach to sustainability is also informed by Japanese history. His work explores how sustainable development is imbued in the national culture; he points to how a focus on local and renewable materials was inherent in the ancient aesthetic philosophy of wabi-sabi, and says that many elements of traditional culture, such as the tea ceremony, incorporated sustainable practices many centuries before sustainability became a buzzword. In his art he uses new technologies such as 3D-printing and laser-cutting machines to explore the timelessness of Japan’s traditional folkcraft.

While he takes some cues from the past, Ochiai also maintains a keen eye on the future. He’s excited to see how new technologies such as IoT and AI can help promote sustainable development.

Such innovations, he says, might help

l Some of Ochiai’s artworks exhibited at the ART for SDGs event in Kitakyushu, 2021

Japan deal with all sorts of issues. He cites the problem of under-managed forests, which results in issues with sustainability and the creation of wood products.

AI, he explains, can help with forest management.

New technologies can help society with some of the other SDGs, Ochiai adds. When it comes to the fourth of the UN’s goals, quality education, he says that the internet has opened doors in developing countries, and that it’s now possible for “students in South Africa to access a Stanford University lecture.”

He’s particularly interested in equality, a key component of the SDGs, and with typical polymathic flair he recently drew attention to the issue is a fashion show he directed. In ‘True Colors FASHION’ he explored how new technology can aid the creation of beautiful clothes for people with disabilities, a section of society the fashion industry has tended to ignore in the past. He thinks that new technologies

can do so much to help people with disabilities. “I’m interested in how AI can help with subtitles on video conferencing software for deaf people, or designing voice recognition systems for blind people,” he explains.

While Ochiai isn’t yet convinced that the SDG goals will be realised in Japan, he’s enthusiastic about how the UN’s project has got people around the world thinking about sustainability in both old and new ways – exploring their cultural traditions for values that can offer lessons for the future, and thinking about how technology to help create a happier and healthier future.

“I think that different ways of sustainability will be found in every community, and that – because of the growing interests in SDGs – we’ll find examples of sustainability suitable to everywhere,” he says. “So from that viewpoint, whether it’s SDGs or not, I’m feeling positive about the future.”

A SPECIAL MAGAZINE BY Nikkei Asia

|

5

THE

originator Meet Shibusawa Eiichi – the man who was setting sustainable goals a century ago

l Shibusawa Eiichi sitting in his Tokyo home in 1900

T

he UN set its Sustainable Development Goals in 2015, but there’s nothing particularly new about the ideas behind its ambitious call to action. The ‘father of Japanese capitalism’, Shibusawa Eiichi, put many similar principles into practice more than 100 years ago.

A leading figure in the development of Japan’s economy, Shibusawa Eiichi (1840-1931) is widely regarded as the father of Japanese capitalism. In addition to introducing Western capitalism to Japan, he founded a number of prominent economic businesses and institutions including the Tokyo Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Tokyo Stock Exchange and the First National Bank. Shibusawa was a member of the

6

|

UNLOCK THE REAL JAPAN

Meiji government and worked under the Ministry of Finance as a bureaucrat in various high-ranking positions before moving on to become the superintendent for the First National Bank – the first modern bank in Japan and the precursor to what is now known as Mizuho Bank.

Shibusawa was involved with efforts such as ending poverty and aiding in the health and wellbeing of others

While in this role he helped run over 500 different commercial businesses including other banks and financial institutions.

But Shibusawa wasn’t only a visionary when it came to business and finance. He was also ahead of his time when it came to his desire for peace, prosperity and equality. Many of his social contributions are still considered relevant to today’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the UN’s General Assembly.

Although Shibusawa played an integral role in Japan’s industrial growth, he also made a number of important social contributions, being involved in some 600 organisations revolving around social and public welfare. He was also associated with the establishment of medical institutions, schools, and universities, as well as charities.

In over 50 years as director of Tokyo Yoikuin, a welfare facility which supported orphans and the impoverished, Shibusawa was already involved with efforts such as ending poverty and aiding in the good health and wellbeing of others.

Further social welfare involvement included Shibusawa’s contribution to the forerunner of the Japan Red Cross, known as Hakuaisha. Following the great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, he went on to run an organisation helping with relief and recovery efforts which aided in sustaining cities and communities, another of today’s SDGs. Shibusawa contributed much of his time to providing quality education, inadvertently focusing on another SDG, founding numerous schools and universities such as the prestigious Hitotsubashi University located in Kunitachi, Tokyo. Shibusawa was also active in promoting women’s education, with the foundation of Tokyo Jogakkan School for Women and Japan Women’s University, also based in Tokyo.

Strengthening global relationships is another factor that Shibusawa strived to achieve by introducing Japanese friendship dolls. The dolls were distributed to children as part of a goodwill program between Japan and the US to ease tensions in the 1920s.

While an accomplished industrialist, Shibusawa was first and foremost a philanthropist who believed in putting the public interest first. Along with his historical economic accomplishments, his humanitarianism and involvement with social issues are what he is still respected for to this day.

GEORGE RINHART/CORBIS VIA GETTY IMAGES

SUSTAINABILITY

RENEWABLE ENERGY What is the significance of Japan’s commitment to hydrogen as a nextgeneration energy source?

Japan lacks major fossil fuel resources such as oil, coal and natural gas, so the question of how to procure these is a constant issue.

Hydrogen, which is found everywhere on the planet, is the ultimate renewable energy source and has the potential to solve Japan’s problem of scarce resources.

l Shozo Kudo

How did Japan come to push for research into hydrogen?

The use of hydrogen as an energy source has been studied for a long time. For example, Iwatani Corporation, an industrial and household gas trading company, has been researching hydrogen for over 70 years. Perhaps the earliest public hydrogen initiative in Japan was the Fuel Cell Vehicle (FCV) parliamentary study group proposed by Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike. It was set up with the aim of achieving a hydrogen-driven society by the time of the Tokyo Olympics, and to run hydrogen-powered FCVs. In October 2020, prime minister Yoshihide Suga declared that Japan would aim for carbon neutrality by 2050, which brought hydrogen and [renewable fuel] ammonia into the spotlight.

8

|

UNLOCK THE REAL JAPAN

HYDRO

power Shozo Kudo has risen from local politics in his Nagoya to the national legislature, where he is serving his third term. Formerly the Director of the Committee on Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Kudo is a strong advocate of hydrogen energy. He talks to Yukie Yamashita about the benefits hydrogen can bring the country…

KEISUKE TANIGAWA

What are the challenges that need to be overcome in order for hydrogen use to become more widespread?

There are still issues to be addressed, such as how to produce hydrogen using clean electricity. One of the main challenges is to establish a way to produce “green” hydrogen using clean electricity, without relying on fossil fuels.

There’s also the issue of cost. For example, to promote the use of hydrogen cars there are many problems to be solved, such as improving the infrastructure of hydrogen stations and improving the energy efficiency of these vehicles.

In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the whole world including Japan has taken major steps towards achieving a greener society. Europe in particular is focusing on hydrogen, and France and Germany have announced that they will commercialize the technology needed to generate energy from hydrogen.

Japan has been leading the way in terms of technology over the past decade.

However, due to hurdles in areas such as testing and regulation, it has not been possible to put this technology to practical use. Members of the Diet, the national

legislature, and others are working to break down these barriers.

What are some of the ongoing efforts to promote the use of hydrogen?

We are now at the stage where we have gone from research to demonstrations to widespread use. For example, we are working on the use of hydrogen-powered FCVs for emergencies and disasters.

One of the most important aspects of expanding the use of hydrogen technology is awareness of its safety. Unlike petrol or natural gas, hydrogen is invisible and has no smell. This makes it difficult to communicate its safety.

The more people know that the electricity they use every day is generated by hydrogen, the more they will understand. This is the first step and it’s necessary to reduce costs. The mere sight of a pile of red-colored tanks of hydrogen can give the public the impression of danger. At the moment there are a number of regulations that make it difficult to change the system, but the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy and parliamentarians are working together to make this happen.

How about private sector initiatives?

In December 2019, the world’s first liquefied hydrogen carrier, Kawasaki Heavy Industries’ Suiso Frontier, started transporting hydrogen with the aim of building an international hydrogen energy supply chain. In March 2020, the Fukushima Hydrogen Energy Research Field (FH2R), one of the world’s largest hydrogen production facilities, was completed in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture. Also, Toyota’s fuel cell vehicle, the Mirai, is undergoing a full model change.

What does the future look like for hydrogen research and rule-making?

We are lobbying for an international framework of rules concerning the procurement of fuel for hydrogen production. We are also actively working to create an environment in which hydrogen researchers can immerse themselves in research, and to attract foreign researchers to Japan.

How is hydrogen positioned in Japan’s next Basic Energy Plan?

When we think of using hydrogen for power generation, the first major issue is its low energy efficiency. We have to start

l The FH2R hydrogen production facility in Namie, Fukushima

Ideally we would like to be generating electricity from purely domestic hydrogen by 2030

by improving this. Secondly, when we think about the use of green hydrogen produced with clean energy, we must take into account the situation of renewable energy in Japan. With its mountainous terrain, Japan doesn’t have as much land available for large-scale solar power generation as the US or some Middle Eastern countries. If we want to go for clean hydrogen energy, we should also consider the problem of disposal and recycling of solar panels.

What is the potential for hydrogen use in industry?

In the future hydrogen could be used to curb carbon dioxide emissions in the steel industry and other industries that consume large amounts of electricity.

However, in order to make this technology practical, costs must be reduced. The production of cheap hydrogen is a challenge for the industrial sector.

Japan’s largest steelmaker, Nippon Steel Corporation, has a demonstration project to use hydrogen to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the steelmaking process. Likewise, chemical manufacturer Showa Denko is working on a chemical recycling project to produce hydrogen from used plastics such as PET bottles.

How could hydrogen vehicles be promoted further?

There are still no hydrogen refueling stations at highway service areas in Japan.

This infrastructure needs to be improved in order for hydrogen cars to be practical.

Are there any private sector initiatives to promote the use of hydrogen?

In December 2020, 88 companies including Toyota, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and Iwatani Corporation launched the Japan Hydrogen Association.

This is groundbreaking in that it involves not only manufacturers and companies working on technology development, but also trading companies and financial institutions –they play an essential role in selling Japanese technology abroad and raising funds for new technology development. The commercialization of hydrogen technology can be a very big step for Japan in increasing its presence in the world. New technologies are being researched, such as the production of hydrogen by plants during photosynthesis.

The government is ready to support companies in taking new risks if necessary.

Where will hydrogen use be by 2030?

Hydrogen can be a purely domestic energy source, free from geopolitical risks and a pillar of a stable supply. Ideally, we would like to be generating electricity from purely domestic hydrogen by 2030, leading to carbon neutrality by 2050. To achieve this we need to gain the trust of our citizens. Electricity supports all civic and economic activities. It’s important to keep that in mind while saving electricity and producing it for use many years down the road.

A SPECIAL MAGAZINE BY Nikkei Asia

|

9

RENEWABLE ENERGY

What is the Iwatani Corporation’s vision for hydrogen?

The company’s founder, Naoji Iwatani, saw hydrogen as the ultimate energy source and was involved in the hydrogen business from early on. For example, our company’s hydrogen was used as fuel for a rocket launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in the 1980s.

Our current chairman, Akiji Makino, has built upon Iwatani’s ideas. We are a pioneer in the Japanese hydrogen business, which includes hydrogen refueling stations. My impression is that these ideas have blossomed and momentum for them has been gathering since Prime Minister Suga’s decarbonization declaration of October 2020. Hydrogen is an element found everywhere on earth and it contains no carbon. Using hydrogen as an energy source is the ultimate goal in the field of renewable energy.

Is the JH2A active beyond Japan as well?

Current hydrogen technologies and supply chains are international, so cooperation with the rest of the world is crucial for hydrogen use in Japan. Our eventual aim is to produce hydrogen domestically, but for the time being I believe that international cooperation is essential to keep costs manageable and to secure locations for purposes such as carbon

10

|

UNLOCK THE REAL JAPAN

CHEMICAL

reaction Hiroshi Fukushima, senior managing officer of the Iwatani Corporation, talks to Yukie Yamashita about the Japan Hydrogen Association and how this zero-carbon fuel can help power Japan’s future by fuel cell vehicles in the future.

As hydrogen-powered large fuel cell vehicles, ships, and airplanes become more common, the amount of hydrogen handled will increase, and thus costs can be expected to decrease. With this in mind, we hope to lobby the national and local governments for deregulation and supportive measures, including for the conversion of vehicles to ones powered by hydrogen.

dioxide capture and storage (CCS). The global hydrogen market is still in its early stages. There are issues to be resolved, such as regulatory questions and how to define so-called green hydrogen. Standards will need to be set together with the rest of the world.

How can hydrogen help Japan achieve carbon neutrality by 2050?

The deployment of more hydrogen stations is crucial, considering the possibility that trucks and other commercial vehicles will be replaced

How do you hope Japan will promote the use of hydrogen?

The ultimate goal is to produce hydrogen domestically, but seeing that imports are necessary for now, the government’s resource diplomacy plays an important role. The public and private sectors are working together to avoid dependence on any one region. I believe that Japan’s hydrogen-related technology will become a major export industry in the future.

What are some of the JH2A’s upcoming activities in Japan?

Hydrogen will be used in the Olympic torch and at the athletes’ village at the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

Looking forward to the next big event – the Osaka Expo in 2025 – Iwatani Corporation would also like to provide opportunities for people to become more familiar with hydrogen through initiatives such as the use of hydrogenpowered ships.

KEISUKE TANIGAWA

How did the Japan Hydrogen Association (JH2A) come about?

In recent years, hydrogen initiatives have been formulated in Europe as well as in the US and China, where efforts to commercialize hydrogen have been accelerating. Against this backdrop, in March 2020, interested parties in Japan came together to propose the formation of a group that would help bring about a hydrogen-powered society as quickly as possible. The group included the top executives of what came to be the nine founding members of the JH2A (Iwatani Corporation, ENEOS, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, KEPCO, Kobe Steel, Toshiba, Toyota, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, and Mitsui & Co.).

Although Japan was long ahead of the rest of the world in technologies such as solar cells, storage batteries, and semiconductors, we have unfortunately fallen behind as the market has matured.

In order to avoid a similar situation with hydrogen, the JH2A was established to help the private sector take the initiative and work toward early implementation.

FOOD TECH

FUTURE

food As the food tech market booms Io Kawauchi speaks with Hirotaka Tanaka and Akiko Okada, authors of a new book on the topic, about Japan’s contribution to the revolution brewing in the world’s kitchens

T

he food industry is one of the largest in the world – after all, everybody eats. But are we producing and consuming food the right way, especially considering the impact food production has on the climate and food consumption has on public health? Food tech is about using technology to make food better – smarter, greener, healthier, less wasteful, more efficient and more sustainable. It isn’t only about ingredients – it’s also about cooking methods, cookware and logistics including deliveries, as well as robotics. Global startup investment in food tech reached approximately $15 billion in 2019 – a figure about five times larger than five years earlier.

Japan usually has its finger on the pulse of new technology, and food tech is no exception. A number of startups have appeared in recent years, while major food and consumer electronics companies as well as real estate developers, including Ajinomoto, Panasonic and Tokyo Tatemono, have also entered the market.

Hirotaka Tanaka and Akiko Okada have been watching these Akiko Okada developments with interest. As the co-authors of Food Tech

12

|

UNLOCK THE REAL JAPAN

Revolution: The Evolution and Redefinition of Food, they have charted the progress made in Japanese food tech. Asked which products excite them, Tanaka mentions Base Food, a startup that’s developed a brand of “complete nutritional food”, which provides a third of a person’s daily nutritional needs in one meal.

Launched in 2016 by Shun Hashimoto, who previously worked in business development at IT firm DeNA, Base Food has created more nutritional versions of high-carb foods such as bread and pasta.

“Too many carbs can cause obesity and diabetes, while the ‘complete nutritional diet’ offered by Base Food could make society healthier,” says Tanaka. “They’ve been working with [food corporation] Ajinomoto to pursue bettertasting products.” Okada recommends the DeliSofter, a cooking device for dysphagia that allows you to soften dishes without changing their taste or appearance. It couldn’t be simpler – you press a button and hard, chewy food becomes soft and easy to eat. More than 100 types of dishes can be prepared, and the 500 units that were released Hirotaka Tanaka in 2020 have sold out. Gifmo,

a venture business by Panasonic, is now seeking to expand production. Okada reveals the DeliSofter’s origin story. “An employee at Panasonic who was worried about her grandmother’s dysphagia, a medical condition that makes swallowing difficult, came up with the idea of a device that would allow family members to eat the same food together [regardless of their circumstances],” she says. “That it was invented in Japan is no surprise, as we have a rapidly aging population.”

While the creations by startups such as Base Food and Gifmo are capturing the imagination, Tanaka points out that plenty of existing technologies in Japan have the potential to make inroads globally.

“Japanese food manufacturers have been developing so-called ‘design technology for deliciousness’ for a long time now, and they’re pretty good at it,” says Tanaka. “Technology adjusting taste, texture and aroma has been provided to food service companies and convenience stores. Just like Ajinomoto and Base Food have started to collaborate, this technology is starting to be shared with startups.”

Think local Okada says that food tech can also help enhance local communities. He cites Obuse, a small town in Nagano which attracts around a million tourists each year by focusing local development around food production, especially its famous chestnuts. Food tech’s positive local impact has prompted investment in other green innovations. The town has now established an electric power company and started production for local consumption of energy through small-scale hydroelectric power generation.

“The sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the circular economy, in which waste is minimized by extracting as much as possible out of resources, are also components of food tech, and in this field we are focusing on the rural regions of Japan,” says Okada. “It may be difficult to apply these lessons to Japan as a whole, but it is possible to start small and be successful in a place like Obuse.”

According to government data, investment in food tech in Japan was valued at ¥9.7 billion in 2019. The equivalent figure in the US was ¥957.4 billion. In other words, there’s room for development in a country famous for its food and its technology. When the two are combined, the potential is limitless.

EDUCATION

FUNNY

business When it comes to tackling the fourth SDG, quality education, could comedy be part of the answer? Kaoru Hori talks to Takayuki Oinuma about how Laugh & Peace Mother uses laughter and technology to make kids’ education fun

I

t started with a PR campaign featuring Tekken, a comedian famed for his innovative use of flip-books and drawings. In 2016 the manga-loving funnyman, one of the stars on the books of Osaka-headquartered talent agency Yoshimoto Kogyo, had agreed to use his page-flipping skills to help the Ministry of Justice in its efforts to help former juvenile delinquents get their lives back on track. The routine was spotted by Kaoru Nemoto, director of the United Nations Information Centre, who recognized the value in getting comedians to help spread the word on topics that might at first appear unlikely sources of humour. Nemoto asked Yoshimoto Kogyo to take part in a number of educational activities including events and videos to help spread the word about the UN’s sustainable development goals (SDGs).

In April 2019 Yoshimoto Kogyo along with telecoms giant NTT and

14

|

UNLOCK THE REAL JAPAN

the Cool Japan Fund established a new video production and app-making company called Laugh & Peace Mother.

Its president, Takayuki Oinuma, says that the company’s goal is to help Japanese youngsters gain the skills required to secure a bright future for themselves – and for the country. The key skills children require, he believes, include communicating well, being creative and making things from scratch, and the ability to be flexible and adapt to changing times. “It’ll be difficult to be competitive in the job market in the future with only academic skills, as jobs are disappearing and entirely new jobs are being created in the span of a decade,” says Oinuma.

With these goals in mind, Laugh & Peace Mother provides videos, apps and online classes to its users. Although it’s only been up-and-running for a short time, the company already offers more than 700 videos, including animated

biographies of historical figures and sporting clips accompanied by athletes offering tips. The apps include games which help kids improve their math, writing and geography skills, as well as online classes conducted by popular comedians. Using tech to help kids learn is a winning concept – education Laugh & Peace Mother-style feels a bit like watching comedy clips on social media, or playing video games. “The hardest part of the planning process was figuring out how to capture both sides – children’s enjoyment and parents’ satisfaction,” says Oinuma. “We started by finding out what children like. Once they find something they like, they usually stick to it.”

An instant success In the three months since the service was launched, over 120,000 of the company’s apps have been downloaded. The feedback from parents has been particularly encouraging, says Oinuma, and the company has received requests from schools to provide online after-school classes. “We’d like to do our part in Japan’s efforts to digitize the educational field,” says Oinuma.

The company is already looking at the possibility of expanding to other countries. “Japanese education programs produced by NHK and other channels have been well received overseas,” says Oinuma. “The original idea for Laugh & Peace Mother was to create a platform that would be accessible outside of Japan as well.” However, Oinuma stresses that the company won’t rush into expansion. “I’d like to think that we expand only after a thorough analysis of what’s been popular domestically and which parts of our output are easily adaptable.” He believes that content would need to be localized to account for cultural differences.

The fourth UN sustainable development goal is to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”. Oinuma believes that technological advances will help Japan and other nations reach this goal. “I believe that with good education, poverty and hunger can be reduced,” he says. “Through education, people will become more aware of their responsibilities and even awareness of climate change will deepen. I think it’s a very fundamental and important goal, and I’m going to work very hard towards realizing it.”

TOKYO 1964-2021

LIFE THROUGH

a lens

It’s been 57 years since Tokyo was last an Olympic city.

To get a sense of how the metropolis has changed between 1964 and this summer’s Games, we take a look at the work of two great chroniclers of the Japanese capital – photographers Masaaki Kasuga and Herbie Yamaguchi

l The famed Matsuzakaya Ginza department store

Masaaki Kasuga, 1964 l The west side of Shibuya station, where the Moyai statue stands today

l A clothing store with the Olympic flag proudly on display

l The district of Shinjuku at the time of Japan’s first Olympics

l An electronics shop in the district of Akihabara A SPECIAL MAGAZINE BY Nikkei Asia

|

17

TOKYO 1964-2021 Herbie Yamaguchi, 1970-2021

l Two men stand at the harbour with Tokyo Tower in the background, 1970

l Japanese fans of the English pop group Culture Club, 1983 l Students protest in Tokyo, 1970

l Another scene from the student protests, 1970 l A couple skip down the road in Daikanyama, 1996

18

|

UNLOCK THE REAL JAPAN

l Mourners gather at Tokyo’s Imperial Palace on the day of the state funeral of Emperor Hirohito, 1989

l Girls adjusting their school uniforms, 1984 l Three children take a ride on their father’s bicycle, 2009

l Schoolgirls on a summer excursion, 2004

l A train promoting the UN’s sustainable development goals passes through Tokyo, 2021

l Schoolchildren wearing facemasks during the Covid-19 pandemic, 2021 l Shibuya by night, 2020

A SPECIAL MAGAZINE BY Nikkei Asia

|

19

WITHOUT

equals Japan has some work to do to achieve the sixth SDG of gender equality. Activist Fumino Sugiyama tells Kaoru Hori that it’s time for politicians to act

F

umino Sugiyama used to be a member of Japan’s women’s fencing team. Today he is a leading campaigner in Japan for trans rights; he is the co-director of Tokyo Rainbow Pride, which celebrates the city’s LGBTQ+ community, and as a member of Shibuya’s Gender Equality and Diverse Society Promotion Council he played a role in the district becoming the first municipality in the country to recognize same-sex partnerships. He has also written a number of books.

The UN says gender equality is “a necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world”.

Unfortunately, Japan still lags behind major advanced economies – in the 2021 edition of the World Economic Forum’s annual ‘Global Gender Gap Report’, it came 120th of 149 countries. The lack of diversity in the economy and in politics – 9.9% of parliamentarians are female, far

20

|

UNLOCK THE REAL JAPAN

below the international average of 25.1% – is likely holding the country back.

Sugiyama believes that gender inequality is embedded in Japan’s social structures. He talks about how the birth control pill was only introduced in Japan in 1999, 34 years after it appeared in Europe and the US. “Yet Viagra was approved here after an unusually quick review process that only took half a year, shortly after the drug became popular in the US,” he says. “The reason why women’s rights are not easily recognized is that there are almost no women involved in the process of making important decisions.” The numbers bear out his theory: in 1999 there were only six women among the 204 bureaucrats at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the body responsible for approving the birth control pill and Viagra. “It’s a structural issue rather than a matter of intentional obstruction by men,” he says.

How can we eliminate structural distortions and create a more equal society? Sugiyama says fairness is the key.

“Fairness is equality without prejudice,” he explains. “It’s not a matter of special treatment. As is always said in LGBTQ discussions, recognizing same-sex marriage is not special treatment. It is important to give everyone equal rights, so that everyone gets to start from the same line.”

The 2015 ruling in the Shibuya and Setagaya wards of Tokyo to allow same-sex couples to get partnership certificates which are the equivalent of marriage was a big step forward; today 106 municipalities implement the partnership system. However, Japan is the only G7 country not to fully recognize same-sex partnerships, and the country still doesn’t have any national legislation protecting LGBTQ people from discrimination.

Sugiyama believes that the public’s understanding of gender and LGBTQ issues has “deepened” over the past few years, and Human Rights Watch says that lawmakers are “out of touch with Japanese public opinion” on such topics.

One particular development made Sugiyama feel hopeful for the future – when Ibaraki Prefecture introduced same-sex partnership certificates in 2019 the governor, Kazuhiko Oigawa, said that an individual’s “basic human rights come before [other people’s] understanding”.

“It’s not the lack of understanding that prevents the establishment of systems,” says Sugiyama. “It’s the establishment of systems that lead to greater understanding.

“Just like traffic laws make our lives safer and more secure, gender and LGBTQ laws help people live in this country with peace of mind and prevent them from being hurt by discrimination and prejudice that stem from a lack of understanding.”

The theme of this year’s Tokyo Rainbow Pride was “Speak up. Change the world. Our voices. Our rights.” “Parades can’t change the law but it’s important to create an atmosphere that allows for laws to change,” says Sugiyama. “The current rules don’t match reality, and updating them would lead to a more accepting society. Politicians should take action.”

And public opinion really does seem to be shifting. “Fifteen years ago, when I told people I was transgender they kept asking about it over and over again. These days when I tell people I’m transgender they say ‘Oh, so you are’. Society is changing drastically. The question now is whether politics will change.”

KEISUKE TANIGAWA

EQUALITY

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

ETIQUETTE GUIDE:

WORKING HOURS AND HOLIDAYS When you’re doing business in Japan, understanding the work culture can make a difference. And to ensure you’re always in the right place at the right time, it helps to get au fait with working hours and public holidays. Here’s the lowdown on time and time off…

GUIDE: KAROLINA HÖGLIND & MATTHEW LEE

DO Plan afternoon meetings

Working hours in Japan aren’t dissimilar to most other countries – the day usually starts at around 9am and ends at 6pm-ish. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as the problem of overcrowded public transport during rush hour, there have been efforts made in recent years to stagger people’s work schedules so they arrive at the office at different times, a concept known as ‘jisa-shukkin’ (時差出勤). In one innovative example, in 2019 Tokyo Metro offered passengers free soba noodles if they travelled before rush hour. Another reason to consider arranging meetings in the afternoon, when more people are likely to be at work, is the tendency for Japanese firms to have ‘chourei’ (朝礼), or morning assemblies, when teams go over the day’s agenda.

DON’T Expect to leave work on time

Japan is notorious for its hard-working culture, and you shouldn’t be surprised if your meetings in the country stretch well into the evening. However, in recent years things have been getting better for employees – in 2019 the government passed a law limiting overtime to 45 hours a month. That same year a TV show called ‘I Will Not Work Overtime, Period!’ made its small-screen debut.

The determination of its main character to leave work at exactly 6pm so she could have a social life really struck a chord with the viewing public.

22

|

UNLOCK THE REAL JAPAN

time to visit Japan in general because with the whole country holidaying at the same time, seats on trains and beds in hotels can become almost impossible to find, and those that can be found are often expensive.

DON’T Email at all hours

DO Find out when holidays are

Workers in Japan typically get between 10 and 20 days of annual leave, but many barely use them – according to government figures from 2018, workers only took 52.4% of the paid leave days they were entitled to. This is often because workers are nervous that by taking time off they will make life more difficult for their colleagues. However, there are plenty of public holidays and workers have the opportunity to take a longer vacation at New Year and during Golden Week – a series of five public holiday days in a single week. Don’t arrange any business dealings in Japan during the New Year period or Golden Week because many people will be off work. In fact, Golden Week can be a bad

Regardless of when you email a Japanese company, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll get a response. Many Japanese people check their work email at evenings and weekends, and this spirit of hard work can also extend to holidays. Moreover, since it’s understood that people at foreign companies probably aren’t familiar with Japan’s public holidays, and they might be working in a different time zone, many people will put in the extra effort to make themselves available. It’s good to be courteous, however, and by being mindful of Japanese holidays and working hours you’re likely to make a good impression.

DO Plan ahead for Christmas

The Japanese love celebrating Christmas, and the festive season in Japan comes with its own idiosyncratic customs – family-sized buckets of KFC on Christmas Day, slices of strawberry shortbread cake, and romantic meals on Christmas Eve. But if you’re visiting Japan for business in December, it’s worth remembering that Christmas Day isn’t a public holiday and you might find yourself at a desk when you’d rather be somewhere a little more fun.