IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i16p8822-d609994.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Tourism and Counterurbanization in a Low-Amenity Peripheral Island: A Longitudinal Study at Yakushima Island in Kagoshima, Japan

Author

Listed:
  • Rie Usui

    (Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Hiroshima University, Higashihiroshima 7398522, Japan)

  • Carolin Funck

    (Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Hiroshima University, Higashihiroshima 7398522, Japan)

  • Ifeoluwa B. Adewumi

    (Graduate School of Integrated Arts and Sciences, Hiroshima University, Higashihiroshima 7398521, Japan)

Abstract

This research explored the long-term relation between tourism development and counterurbanization in a remote island in Japan, as the longevity of in-migrants’ role in low-amenity tourism destinations has been questioned. Using data collected over 10 years at Yakushima Island, the study investigated the island’s population trend, in-migrants’ motivation for relocation, their contributions to tourism, and the lives on the island. The results showed that the trend of population growth differed among Yakushima’s 24 villages likely because of accessibility, proximity to tourism attractions, the weather, and housing availability. Yakushima’s natural environment was the key factor in in-migrants’ migration choice. Encounters and connections with people on the island were found to be another important factor. In-migrants introduced ecotours as an innovation in the 1990s, and thereafter, many in-migrants moved to Yakushima with high aspirations of becoming tour guides. Tourism stagnated starting in 2008, and some in-migrants began moving out of the island. Despite the overall downward trend of tourism, an increase in international tourists created a niche market before the COVID-19 pandemic, attracting foreign in-migrants as tourism entrepreneurs in recent years. Similar to the main driver for Japanese in-migrants’ relocation, nature was also the main motivation for international tourists’ relocation.

Suggested Citation

  • Rie Usui & Carolin Funck & Ifeoluwa B. Adewumi, 2021. "Tourism and Counterurbanization in a Low-Amenity Peripheral Island: A Longitudinal Study at Yakushima Island in Kagoshima, Japan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-21, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:16:p:8822-:d:609994
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/16/8822/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/16/8822/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Bogdan-Constantin Ibănescu & Oana Mihaela Stoleriu & Alina Munteanu & Corneliu Iațu, 2018. "The Impact of Tourism on Sustainable Development of Rural Areas: Evidence from Romania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-19, October.
    2. Démurger, Sylvie & Xu, Hui, 2011. "Return Migrants: The Rise of New Entrepreneurs in Rural China," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(10), pages 1847-1861.
    3. Hyunjung Kim & Eun Jung Kim, 2021. "Tourism as a Key for Regional Revitalization?: A Quantitative Evaluation of Tourism Zone Development in Japan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(13), pages 1-24, July.
    4. L. Adrianto & Y. Matsuda, 2004. "Study on Assessing Economic Vulnerability of Small Island Regions," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 6(3), pages 317-336, September.
    5. Liudmyla ANDROSHCHUK & Natalya CHERNENKO, 2016. "The economic and mathematical analysis of migration of employable population as a factor of national modernization in crisis," Eastern Journal of European Studies, Centre for European Studies, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, vol. 7, pages 35-47, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Gangmin Weng & Hongyan Li & Yan Li, 2023. "The temporal and spatial distribution characteristics and influencing factors of tourist attractions in Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 25(8), pages 8677-8698, August.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Cătălina Ancuța & Ioan Sebastian Jucu, 2023. "Sustainable Rural Development through Local Cultural Heritage Capitalization—Analyzing the Cultural Tourism Potential in Rural Romanian Areas: A Case Study of Hărman Commune of Brașov Region in Romani," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-31, June.
    2. Bogdan-Constantin Ibanescu & Mihail Eva & Alexandra Gheorghiu, 2020. "Questioning the Role of Tourism as an Engine for Resilience: The Role of Accessibility and Economic Performance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(14), pages 1-13, July.
    3. Mara Cerquetti & Concetta Ferrara & Annamaria Romagnoli & Gianluca Vagnarelli, 2022. "Enhancing Intangible Cultural Heritage for Sustainable Tourism Development in Rural Areas: The Case of the “Marche Food and Wine Memories” Project (Italy)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-21, December.
    4. Zouhair Aït Benhamou & Lesly Cassin, 2018. "The effects of migration and remittances on development and capital in Caribbean Small Island Developing States," EconomiX Working Papers 2018-41, University of Paris Nanterre, EconomiX.
    5. Mahé, Clothilde, 2016. "Skills and entrepreneurship: Are return migrants 'Jacks-of-all-trades'?," MERIT Working Papers 2016-071, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    6. Bertoli, Simone & Marchetta, Francesca, 2015. "Bringing It All Back Home – Return Migration and Fertility Choices," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 27-40.
    7. Ajzenman, Nicolás & Aksoy, Cevat Giray & Guriev, Sergei, 2022. "Exposure to transit migration: Public attitudes and entrepreneurship," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    8. Zhen, Wei & Qin, Quande & Miao, Lu, 2023. "The greenhouse gas rebound effect from increased energy efficiency across China's staple crops," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    9. Tiwari, Smriti, 2021. "Do macroeconomic fluctuations at destination matter in determining migrants’ return decisions?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).
    10. Bogdan-Constantin Ibănescu & Oana Mihaela Stoleriu & Alina Munteanu & Corneliu Iațu, 2018. "The Impact of Tourism on Sustainable Development of Rural Areas: Evidence from Romania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-19, October.
    11. Claire Goavec & Jean-François Hoarau, 2015. "Structural economic vulnerability and tourism dependence: new assessment for small island developing economies [Vulnérabilité économique structurelle et dépendance touristique : quels enseignements," Post-Print hal-01454720, HAL.
    12. El-Mallakh, Nelly & Wahba, Jackline, 2021. "Upward or downward: Occupational mobility and return migration," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    13. Akay, Alpaslan & Brausmann, Alexandra & Djajic, Slobodan & Kirdar, Murat Güray, 2018. "Purchasing-Power-Parity and the Saving Behavior of Temporary Migrants," IZA Discussion Papers 11679, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Naudé, Wim & Siegel, Melissa & Marchand, Katrin, 2015. "Migration, Entrepreneurship and Development: A Critical Review," IZA Discussion Papers 9284, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    15. Liu, Xueyue & Zuo, Sharon Xuejing, 2023. "From equality to polarization: Changes in urban China’s gender earnings gap from 1988 to 2016," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 205(C), pages 303-337.
    16. Tiberiu Iancu & Ionuț Laurențiu Petre & Valentina Constanta Tudor & Marius Mihai Micu & Ana Ursu & Florina-Ruxandra Teodorescu & Eduard Alexandru Dumitru, 2022. "A Difficult Pattern to Change in Romania, the Perspective of Socio-Economic Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-29, February.
    17. Marchetta, Francesca, 2012. "Return Migration and the Survival of Entrepreneurial Activities in Egypt," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(10), pages 1999-2013.
    18. Mezger Kveder, Cora Leonie & Flahaux, Marie-Laurence, 2013. "Returning to Dakar: A Mixed Methods Analysis of the Role of Migration Experience for Occupational Status," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 223-238.
    19. Rebeca Guillén-Peñafiel & Ana María Hernández-Carretero & José-Manuel Sánchez-Martín, 2022. "Heritage Education as a Basis for Sustainable Development. The Case of Trujillo, Monfragüe National Park and Villuercas-Ibores-Jara Geopark (Extremadura, Spain)," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-25, July.
    20. Jian Liu & Chao Zhang & Ruifa Hu & Xiaoke Zhu & Jinyang Cai, 2019. "Aging of Agricultural Labor Force and Technical Efficiency in Tea Production: Evidence from Meitan County, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(22), pages 1-16, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:16:p:8822-:d:609994. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.