Paper short abstract:

"Kodomo Shokudo" is a children's cafeteria offering free food to the children of poor families.Their various activities are not only to alleviate poverty but also to develop communal child-rearing. This study aims to clarify how "Kodomo Shokudo" contribute to community-based revitalization in Tokyo.

Paper long abstract:

One in six children in Japan lives below the poverty line as of 2017, which is the highest rates among the developed countries. The cause behind this is poverty in families raising children, especially in single-parent families dominated by mother-child households, and a poverty rate that remains high in Japan at 54%. In addition, the number of elementary and junior high school students receiving educational assistance has increased slightly since the late 1990s.

"Kodomo Shokudo" is a children's cafeteria or children's dining room offering free food to the children of poor families. "Kodomo Shokudo," which provides hot meals to children who cannot eat a satisfactory meal at home for economic reasons, is said to have started around 2012, and its numbers have increased rapidly to 3718 as of 2019. "Kodomo Shokudo" is a private-sector initiative in which local volunteers and others participate in the operation and provide free and cheap meals to poor families and children eating alone. "Kodomo Shokudo" have various approaches. For example, some "Kodomo Shokudo" were opened in vacant stores in the shopping district and are expected to help in the revitalization of that district. People who run the children's cafeteria in the area interact with each other, reduce the number of children who eat alone, and hope it to be a place for exchanges among generations of local residents. The various activities of the "Kodomo Shokudo" are not only to alleviate poverty but also to develop communal child-rearing, and through that achieve the revitalization of the local community in urban area. This study aims to clarify how "Kodomo Shokudo" contribute to community-based revitalization in Tokyo, where the number of "Kodomo Shokudo" is the largest in Japan.

Paper short abstract:

This study inquiries the support system of women entrepreneurship in Hiroshima City by looking into the measures of each support organization. And by interview investigation of 18 female entrepreneurs in Hiroshima City, this study clarifies their entrepreneurial behavior and the factors behind it.

Paper long abstract:

In recent years, with the deepening of various social problems, such as the economic slump and the decrease in the labor force due to the declining birthrate and aging, the creation of female entrepreneurs has contributed greatly to the solution of these problems. However, in Japan, where the gender role division of labor is notable, in the level of entrepreneurial activities, the difference between men and women is also large. In order to maintain the activeness of female entrepreneurship, it is essential to develop the supportive environment that makes easy for women to start a business. As the economic, political, social and cultural contexts are different in each region, the attitude and behaviors of entrepreneurs with their own backgrounds will be different. It is difficult for uniform support measures to achieve the same results. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the overview of the entrepreneurial support environment in a specific region and identify the characteristics of female entrepreneurial activities. The purpose of this study is to inquiry the support system of women entrepreneurship in Hiroshima City, and to clarify the entrepreneurial behavior of female entrepreneurs in the supportive environment and the factors behind it. According to the information on the website of each support organization in Hiroshima City and requested materials of them, there are only a limited number of organizations that play a core role. Support for women by public institutions is deficiency, especially after starting a business. To make up for that, the private enterprise plays an important role in the connection making of female entrepreneurs. As a result of interview investigation of 18 female entrepreneurs in Hiroshima City, most of them work as individuals or family business; the role of job creation is not fulfilled enough. The richness of these entrepreneurs' career and study abroad experience makes them seek mental satisfaction rather than financial satisfaction, and often commercialize things of interest by utilizing their experiences and qualifications when they start a business. When looking at the type of business and the location of the business, a tendency to avoid risk has been found.

Paper short abstract:

This paper examines share house (shea-hausu), an increasingly popular form of shared private rental housing in Tokyo. We consider shifting socioeconomic and demographic conditions affecting single, young Japanese adults, their aspirations and life-courses, as well as housing practices.

Paper long abstract:

In context of increasing housing market pressures and an international swell in the formation of non-family households, especially among younger-adults, this paper examines share house (shea-hausu), an increasingly popular form of shared private rental housing in Tokyo. We frame our study in relation to shifting socioeconomic and demographic conditions affecting single, young Japanese adults, their aspirations and life-courses, as well as forms and practices in Japanese housing. We elaborate on the way shea-hausu are provided, and discuss three sets of techniques that together configure shea-hausu as a product distinct from other forms of renting, but also re-script sharing as a particular kind of 'desirable living' among single young adults. Furthermore, we show how shea-hausu both enables the pursuit of new experiences of 'home' and further entrenches traditionalist views of the needs and wants of solo dwellers.