Soft power. For a long time, the concept was used to refer to when a country used its pop culture exports as a way to improve its image on the global stage. Japan is proficient in the art of soft power — sushi, anime, the money gulch that was "Cool Japan" — but this past decade saw the idea manifest itself on a local level.
The flight of young people to Tokyo has left their rural hometowns in the lurch when it comes to a robust citizenry, and that's even before we factor in the aging population in general. Towns and cities across the archipelago have found themselves looking for ways to bring in tourists and make money. Enter the yuru-kyara, which is a portmanteau of the words "yurui" (loose, laid-back) and "kyarakutā" (character), meaning mascot.
"The idea of every prefecture, city and town having a mascot has only been popular for around a decade," says Chris Carlier, founder of the mascot-focused Twitter account Mondo Mascots and an authority on Japan's cuddly creations. "Kumamon first appeared in 2010, and although it wasn't the first local mascot, the character's success inspired a lot of municipalities to create their own."
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