From Ecotowns to Supercities: Low-Carbon Cities in Japan

Abstract

One of the most important issues of urban planning is to achieve comfort and realize the benefits of urban life without increasing the burden on the environment. In Japan, where almost 30% of the citizens are already over 65 years old, more than 93% of the population is concentrated in cities, which means challenges for urban planners. This paper analyzes the evolution of the concept of eco-cities, from the Eco Town (1997) and Eco Model City (2008) projects to the governmental FutureCity program (in Japanese 環境未来都市 – Green Future Cities) and Smart Cities (both 2011), and Supercities (2020). The author shows that with all the distinctive features of the cities of the different projects and inside them, they all present clear examples of model eco-cities relying on local resources to achieve low-carbon development and create sustainable economic and social systems to comfortably accommodate a rapidly aging population that is often hit by natural disasters.