The Future of the CiP Digital Special Zone

The CiP (Contents Innovation Program) will construct a digital and content zone in Takeshiba, Minato Ward, Tokyo. I had an interview as the representative. The first question was,  "How does Tokyo and Japan's future look?"

　 Adobe Inc.’s survey of major powers assessed Japan as the most creative country in the world. And it said that the world's most creative city is Tokyo. I live in Tokyo, my original hometown is Kyoto, the second is Paris, and the third is Boston. All are highly advanced cities, but Tokyo towers over them all.

We live in an urban era. According to Richard Florida’s “Cities and the Creative Class,” the broader Tokyo area is a leading economic production mega-region (2.5 trillion dollars). This rivals the scope of Germany. When he measured innovation by patents per capita, the greatest standouts were NYC alongside San Francisco, followed by Tokyo. Thereafter followed Boston, Paris, and Osaka and Kyoto. High-tech business is massing in Tokyo.

And young people yearn for Tokyo as a pop culture mecca. It is drawing global attention as a soft power of comics, animation, games, J-pop, fashion, Japanese food, design, architecture, and the blending of various cultures.

The top three stations in the world with the greatest arrival and departure of passengers are Shinjuku, Shibuya, and Ikebukuro. The train network is packed. If a train is late, you can expect an apology. The stations also have top-ranking optical fiber networks and wireless connections. The infrastructure is solid.

Tokyo has 266 Michelin star restaurants, which puts it well ahead of Paris, which has 64. There are restaurants from 17 different countries within 100 meters of my office. All are delicious. No other such place exists.

At convenience stores you can make copies, pay your utility bills, send packages, do laundry, or use the bathroom. The public toilets have bidet functions. On any street, the vending machines are not broken, and you can buy from them anything from beer and sake to cup noodles and oden soup to bananas to underwear.

If someone gets drunk and passes out in the street, nobody will steal their possessions. If you forget your cell phone in a taxi, the driver will return it to you.

Is this a great city or what!

                There are three issues.

First, can we produce happiness for the world’s first society of an aging population? Can Tokyo also be a safe, convenient, exciting city for seniors? If it can clear this hurdle, Tokyo will be the world leader in the 21st century.

Second, internationalization and diversification. The Japanese community has come to covet the wonder of Tokyo. Can we share its wealth, be hospitable, and coexist with people of other countries?

Third, summer is too hot. It is August; I have fled the oppressive heat of Tokyo and am writing this in Paris. I got heatstroke in my office, but this is not the fault of my office; rather it is the fault of Tokyo. Should 2020 Olympic marathoners be made to run in such blazing heat?

It’s 70 years after the war. Japan discarded its military state and made to live economically. However, the principle of GNP has also reached its limits. What's next? GNPP (Gross National Pop Power) or GNSP (Gross National Soft Power)? In short, can we aim to be a country with high culture?

The year 2020 will likely make this clear.