Society | Aug 09

Coping with a super-ageing nation

Japan famously has one of the highest life expectancies in the world but its birth rate is also at an all time low, leaving the future of the country uncertain.

Washington-based journalist Yumi Araki returns to the country of her birth to explore how Japan is planning to cope with the consequences of its fast-greying population. She discovers the unexpected impacts of an ageing nation: from dying towns to the popularity of coffin experiences. And meets the people working to find solutions: from an engineer working to give us superhuman strength to a granny who is using hiphop to keep loneliness at bay.


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