Don't let 'I can't go to the city' be your excuse. A 'gentle economic zone' connected from a single smartphone
Nice to meet you, I'm Hiro, representative of Soyogi, a consultation service for welfare and support.
As a survivor of childhood abuse, a support worker who has walked the path of welfare since my 20s, and an individual who suffered from depression due to power harassment in my 30s and was long removed from society, I speak from experience.
In my previous article, I talked about the disparity between cities with well-developed infrastructure and rural areas where physical and psychological barriers stand in the way. However, if we end the conversation there, those who 'cannot go to the city' due to illness or financial reasons are left with no choice but to give up amidst the inconveniences of rural life.
What I feel about the 'invisible walls' of welfare between rural and urban areas
What I want to convey through this 'Soyogi' activity is the fact that the constraint of 'location' can be overcome using today's technology.
Many people in rural areas might think, 'IT and the metaverse are too difficult for me and have nothing to do with me.' You might imagine a world of games that requires special computers or large goggles that cover your eyes.
But in reality, it is much more accessible than that.
The metaverse space I use as a 'digital shelter' called 'Spatial' is an 'online consultation room' that you can enter just by tapping a URL on the smartphone or regular computer you already have.
You don't need to show your face or your messy room on camera. You can take on the appearance of a substitute character (avatar), so it's fine to be bare-faced, in your pajamas, or even lying in bed.
For someone like me who has social anxiety and claustrophobia, and finds it painful even to breathe the outside air, this is not just a place to escape reality. It has become a proper 'workplace' where I can listen to someone's concerns and provide support while maintaining a moderate level of tension. 'Not being able to move' no longer means 'not being able to do anything.'
And it's not just about talking online; circulating a 'living economy' there leads to true independence.
This is where the mechanisms called 'JPYC' and 'Gifterra' come in. These might sound difficult because they are new foreign terms, but they are very simple.
First, 'JPYC' is completely different from the cryptocurrencies (virtual currencies) you often hear about in the news that fluctuate wildly in price, or store points, or prepaid cards. It is a 'digital payment instrument' recognized by Japanese law, and it is safe digital money that can always be accounted for as '1 JPYC = 1 yen'.
And to make it easy to exchange this JPYC, my friend Akky (a DJ by profession) developed a tool called 'Gifterra'.
There is no hassle of writing down and managing difficult passwords on paper. Just by logging in with the Google or X (formerly Twitter) account you already use, your own digital wallet is automatically created.
Even without relying on government subsidies that may end at any time, this mechanism allows someone who cannot take a single step out of their room in a rural area to listen to someone's worries in a digital room and receive JPYC with a value of '1 yen' directly as a token of appreciation without any fees, all possible with just a smartphone.
This is the autonomous 'gentle economic zone' I am aiming for.
Welfare is originally a word that refers to a state where everyone is happy. Because that is nearly impossible in reality, I feel uncomfortable with welfare that superficially 'only saves those who are easy to save'.
I want to spread this mechanism with a strong resolve to change the 'logic' of the world. My ultimate wish is to leave behind a world where this 'gentle welfare mechanism' continues to operate autonomously without bothering anyone, even after I am gone.
Before you despair because 'you can't go to the city,' why not try opening a digital door from the smartphone in your hand?