Mariko Yoshida
Institute for Liberal Arts and Sciences, Kyoto University
Japan has now the highest life expectancy at birth in the world. This is a realization of what many dreamed of in the past. However, such longevity is perceived rather as a curse today because grave political issues posed by this demographic shift are constantly conveyed in the media. This includes financing the pension system and rising medical care costs, as well as securing enough labor to maintain the economy. A one-sided view of the elderly, akin to “they’ve accomplished their roles and are merely objects of societal burden”, could come to stay as a bias. While elderly people in good health have been increasing in number, many are actively contributing to their communities. The social awareness campaigns should help people recognize life after retirement appropriately and re-design their lives with a positive outlook on the future.
OECD Statistics Working Paper 2017 shows the inequalities in longevity by education. Furthermore, in Japan some research has explored the correlation between health and social factors, such as education, income, occupation and social status, but also with social capital that is based on networks, trust in the community and norms of reciprocity with shared values and mutual understanding.
This presentation attempts to show the summarized results of the studies in Japan and to suggest, based on these, what the roles and functions of a lifelong education in the time of longevity could be, and how they could be implemented. The presentation will also touch on what could be changed in its contents and methods, how learning programs could be developed, as well as what kind of tasks the administration could fulfil in this new context. Finally, education should be deployed exactly where it effectively supports keeping people’s long life healthy, joyful and valued.
(Presented in the 2018 Chulalongkorn Asian Heritage Forum : Culture of Longevity, 15-16 August 2018, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Bangkok, organized by Institute of Thai Studies, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Population Studies, Chulalongkorn University)