Demography as Destiny: Falling Birthrates and the Allure of a Blended Society
Demography as Destiny: Falling Birthrates and the Allure of a Blended Society
Today Japan is undergoing a major demographic transformation marked by a decline in fertility and a rapidly aging population. What is a widening gap between the productive and postproductive generation is exacerbated by strains in the labor market and a welfare system premised on a familial structure that is also undergoing transformation. Looking at the rise of inequality and various consequences of the declining birthrate (and policies taken to counter this that, so far, have failed), the essay also considers implications of, and trends following, the rise of Japan’s aging population. As the population declines and immigration is not robustly considered, Japan faces “demography as destiny.” To avoid this, the country needs to adopt difference more radically as a cultural value, the author argues, allowing Japan to become more of a “blended society.”
Keywords: demography, fertility, old age, inequality, immigration, blended society, welfare
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