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Everybody has a reason to be born. Yet the world does not allow everyone to fully realize their potential. Some are given the opportunity to attend good universities. Some find professions they can be proud of. But there are others who never have the chance to test or explore their potential. Unfortunately, people in this world do not start from the same starting line. We cannot expect everyone to return to a home where someone is waiting for them.

Humans are the only species that cannot give birth alone. This may be seen as a biological weakness, yet this very weakness has made us stronger. We learned to help one another. There is a theory that interdependence enabled humans to build societies, and that these societies allowed our species to survive while other humanoids vanished from history. Unlike dogs, all humans share almost the same chromosomal sequencing. The difference in deoxyribonucleic acid is less than 0.1 percent.

Humans passed through a very narrow evolutionary bottleneck between 930,000 and 830,000 years ago, when the human population declined to only about 1,280 individuals. All of us are descendants of this small group. Our species lacks genetic diversity. Our survival depends on interdependence.

There have been attempts to transform prisons from places of punishment into places of rehabilitation. It is well known that societies become safer when former prisoners are able to return as valued members of the community. Punishment alone does not create a secure society?unless people are locked away forever.

Many social problems begin in childhood. There are children who have no one waiting for them after school. Naturally, they seek alternative families, but positive alternatives are not easily found. Many eventually form connections on the streets, which may lead them to the darker side of society.

There is an attempt to build such an alternative family in what was once the most violent city in Japan: Kitakyushu. The city was formerly dominated by the Yakuza organization Kudo-kai, which had more than 13,000 members and controlled many aspects of the city, including the construction industry. Many innocent people were killed or threatened. Eventually, the Japanese government and police enacted new laws, dismantled the organization’s headquarters, and sentenced its leader to death.

Although violence has decreased, the underlying problems remain. There was a reason why Kudo-kai became so dominant. Many members had very limited choices from a young age. There are children who cannot attend high school. Many never experienced peace at home. There are also former prisoners who struggle to find employment. Once registered as Yakuza members, they are prohibited from opening bank accounts for five years, making it nearly impossible to survive in a society dependent on mobile phones and digital payments. This situation risks recreating the conditions for another Kudo-kai to emerge.

The Kibō no Machi project has begun. Kibō no Machi means “Town of Hope.” It is located in the city center, on the former site of the Kudo-kai headquarters. What was once a symbol of violence is being transformed into a place of care.

We found that education lies at the core of the problem. Education depends heavily on having a place to return to?a home. Many people became homeless after losing family connections. This project functions as a large shared living room with bedrooms, providing a family-like environment. Children can play, teenagers can study safely and form friendships, and fifty-year-old former Yakuza members can return to education and begin new lives. The project includes fifty rooms to provide shelter for people experiencing homelessness.

The NPO Hōboku provides comprehensive support. A restaurant run by a Michelin-starred chef serves the best food in the city, while also offering daily meals subsidized by the local government. The restaurant gives people a reason to come every day. The ground level hosts music, theater, food markets, and public symposiums.

奥田 知志