NPR’s Anthony Kuhn visited Japan’s most aged village, where most residents are over age 65. Why rural villages in Japan are shrinking Villages across Japan’s countryside are facing extinction as the ...

Across parts of rural Japan, a shift is underway that has little to do with dams or new pipelines. Instead, it is happening inside individual homes. In villages facing population decline and rising ...

The once-thriving Japanese hamlet of Nanmoku was known for its silk and timber industries. Today, it is the country's most aged village, with... How Japan is trying to solve the problem of shrinking ...

This village sits along a river running through the mountains, surrounded by forests of cedar and bamboo. The once-thriving hamlet was known for its silk, timber and a starchy root called konjac.

In the tiny village of Tsuchikure, the average age of the residents is 77. Akiko Fujita reports on why this and thousands of rural Japanese communities like it are literally dying out.

Villages across Japan’s countryside are facing extinction as the population ages and shrinks. NPR’s Anthony Kuhn visited Japan’s most aged village, where most residents are older than 65.

NANMOKU, Japan — This village sits along a river running through the mountains, surrounded by forests of cedar and bamboo. The once-thriving hamlet was known for its silk, timber and a starchy root ...