Research Projects

Redefinition of Asian Urban Theory through Practices of Policy Science

Clarifying the conditions in the diverse cities of Asia, and seeking effective measures to resolve urban problems

Due to remarkable economic development, cities in Asian countries have undergone a great change, and it has already become difficult to encapsulate the situation within a uniform framework such as "developed and developing countries," as in the past. The aim of this project, in addition to clarifying the conditions in the diverse cities of Asia, is to accumulate knowledge of urban policy research useful for resolving the issues of different cities. While this research is being undertaken, the focus will not be on regions of Asia, and the project will attempt to avoid the tendency to narrate according to the conventional, polarized argument of "Japan and Asia" by venturing to include European and American perspectives.

In this project, three themes relating to current issues in Asian cities have been established, and are being explored from socioeconomic and public policy viewpoints. First, the focus is on the metropolitan areas of Indonesia. This project is researching those large cities that have been moving away from the strongly development-orientated policy of expansion in recent years, and beginning new processes of city reorganization, such preserving their historical cityscapes. These new developments in spatial planning are being considered. Secondly, attention is being paid to China, where there is an aging society with a declining birthrate, and research concerning the reality of increased demand for welfare policies, and future directions, is being advanced. Third, actual conditions and effective policies are being verified from an economic perspective, in order to contribute to a remedy for the income divide that is an issue throughout Southeast Asia.

Further, this project is creating an international research center based on the ties cultivated with researchers in Japan, Thailand and South Korea to date, with the important objectives of continuing to strengthen networking capabilities, and fostering young people of talent in each country. Joint workshops are held regularly by the project members, in Japan and overseas. In February 2017, Ritsumeikan University staged an international conference, "The Challenges and Prospects for Urban and Regional Studies on Asia," with Cornell University and the Australian National University (ANU), and held the "International Symposium between Japan and Indonesia on Significance and Prospects of Policy Think-tank" in July 2017. Young researchers and international students from Indonesia, Europe and America enrolled in the Graduate School of Policy Science in Ritsumeikan University gave presentations and mingled.

In the future, multifaceted research concerning cities in Japan and Asian countries, including Indonesia and China, will be accumulated. Eventually, as well as the publication of books that summarize research outcomes by city, it is hoped that this will be linked to the establishment of an academic "Asian Urban city Ttheory" as an ideal for the unique cities in the Asian regions.

Research Projects