Discussion
On May 21, 2024, the 3rd "Future of Japan in the Era of Post-Regional Studies, Future of Japan's Studies" X Japan Specialist Seminar was held in an online format. Yoshimi Shunya, a Professor of Tourism and Urban Creation at Kokugakuin University / Professor Emeritus at Tokyo University, gave a presentation under the theme of "After the Expansion: Memory Landscape of Tokyo." The presentation is as follows.
The presenter first explained Tokyo as one of the world's most densely populated cities and presented it as a crisis. Despite the situation in Japan, where the total population is decreasing, he mentioned that the density of Tokyo is only increasing. By comparing the before and post-war pictures of Seoul and Tokyo, the professor mentioned the similarities of the two cities. Next, Tokyo's history from ancient city to Olympic city was explained, and various layers of the city were announced. In addition, the explanation of major places in Tokyo was conducted in a chronological order as a kind of 'tour'. As a solution to overcome the problem of density, the road map for 'post-growth Tokyo' was suggested as 'slow city Tokyo' by the presenter. It was argued that Tokyo, which was a city of water in the past, should be reorganized and the fundamental values related to growth should change.
After the presentation, questions and answers were followed. There were questions about the memories of the Feb. 26 incident, the principles that should be observed in reconstructing urban space, the construction of an archive to commemorate urban space, and special memories of railway and railway stations of the citizens of Tokyo. The session was concluded after the speaker's detailed answers.
