Abstract from the VSJF Annual Conference in Königswinter, Germany: November 18-20, 2005

Urban Spaces in Japan: The Social Scientific Study of Japan and the “Spatial turn”

This year Evelyn Schulz (University Munich) and Christoph Brumann (University Cologne) organized a conference on Japanese urban spaces creating an opportunity to display the state of research in this field. Economic, social, political and cultural as well as historical dimensions were taken into account to gain a better understanding of current Japan. The focus was not on urbanization but on already urbanized spaces and their changes caused by demographic processes and globalization. Instead of arising problems, achievements and potential developments were examined and solutions for questions such as “Are there any similarities to urban patterns of other industrialized societies? Is it still appropriate to differentiate between urban and rural spaces in an age of globalization and border-free spaces?” were sought.

Section 1: Planning, Citizen Participation and Structural Complaints
dealt with urban planning in the course of time and its development such as neighbourhood cooperatives in the twenties of the past century, architecture in the former colonies Taibei, Seoul and Xinjing, the actual power and influence of citizen’s groups and the decentralization process giving the local governments of the provinces more independence from central authorities. Comparisons were also made with respective German developments.

Section 2: Tôkyô in Transformation
focused on the process of change transforming the Japanese capital and metropolis. The historical development was represented by a lecture covering the days of the neighbourhood cooperatives at the turn of the 19th century and modern living in the Roppongi Hills complex. It also attempted to answer whether Tôkyô’s transformation leads to a polarization of urban spaces e.g. looking at the segregation of immigrants and unemployed persons. It was concluded that the comparatively small income gap in Japan is rather caused by low immigration figures than by social homogeneity of the Japanese people. A connection was also made to urban research of other geographical areas outside of Japan.

Section 3: Kyôto in Transformation
delved into the development of the ancient imperial city looking into the history of the protection of historical monuments, whether institutionalized or as a result of public initiative. Another issue was the advancement of high-rise apartment blocks into the ancient city and the general belief that properties and buildings erected thereon are of no public concern.

Section 4: Urban Life and Cultural Innovation in Public Space
examined the effect of cinemas on local subcultures, for example the Asakusa-silent movie theatre and the Shinjuku bunka, which was the origin of an alternative culture in the sixties and seventies. It also dealt with gendered ways of claiming public space, particularly by analyzing gendered postures and modes of walking.

Section 5: Japanese Urban Space – Broadening the View
aimed at achieving a broader picture by incorporating social theories through topics e.g. the creation of organized urban structures in a historical context but particularly their future. At the turn of the century it was seen as crucial that cities be well-planned, efficient and attractive, but most of all economic. A decreasing and overaging population shift the focus to a more attractive living environment. It was called for a return of nature into the cities which is represented by a renaissance of city-walks and back-alley accounts.

The highly informative and interlacing speeches were followed by lively discussions among the almost 100 participants. A detailed account of the speeches will be given in a book publication. The conference was kindly sponsored by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) and Münchner Universitätsgesellschaft (MUG).

Evelyn Schulz (University Munich) and Christoph Brumann (University Cologne),
Summary and translation by Gudrun Koppauer (VSJF-editorial staff)

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