What young people seek in a town is "that unpredictable thrill you can't get online" ~ What is the shape of the next generation's town?

Dentsu Inc.'s 'Urban Future Design Unit' is a specialized team that envisions the future of cities and lifestyles, providing support across various fields from conception to realization ( details here ). This series has explored, from various angles, what is required for future cities and town development, as well as what makes cities with high levels of happiness.

This installment focuses on the "Next-Generation City" envisioned by young people.

Cities are places that extend into the future, and the protagonists who will live there for many years to come are the young people of the next generation. However, within the current structure of city planning—driven by the demographic balance of voters and experienced planners—there is a tendency for "young people's opinions" to be underrepresented. Therefore, when envisioning a future with higher levels of happiness, we believe there is value in reconsidering "the desired future of the city" from the perspective of young people.

Consequently, we collaborated with Dentsu Inc. Wakamon (Dentsu Inc. Youth Research Department ), an internal team exploring diverse futures through youth insights, to conduct a workshop on "creating a comfortable city for young people."

In this article, Takashi Igami from the Future Design Unit for Cities and Yoshika Oshima from Dentsu Inc. Wakamon discuss the "hints for city development" that emerged from the workshop.

Read the Dentsu Inc. Wakamon series here
・The Future Seen by Young People: Half a Step Ahead
・ "Flat Management" ~ What Management Thinking Do Future Leaders Need?

 

<Table of Contents>
▼What is the "Next-Generation Town Model" conceived by university students?

▼People seek the excitement towns offer that can't be found online

▼It provides both reassurance against failure and a sense of discovery

▼Becoming the protagonist in your own way, finding your own answers

▼From "Towns with Answers" to "Towns without Answers"

What is the "Next-Generation City Model" conceived by university students?

Oshima: At Dentsu Inc. Wakamon, we run the co-creation project "βutterfly" with students, building daily relationships with about 80 current university students. This time, 12 students from that group participated in the workshop. Structurally, we designed this workshop by applying the framework "Tsugikuru: Insight into Future Signs with Students," which is part of the βutterfly activities.

Ikami: During the workshop, the university students were divided into three groups and asked to consider the following themes.

• Team A: A town where you want to learn comfortably, a town where you want to work
• Team B: A comfortable city for shopping and dining
• Team C: A comfortable town for play and leisure enjoyment

Ikami: Team A focused on "learning and working," and the keyword "curiosity circulating across generations" emerged. They seemed to desire a town where people could absorb diverse knowledge regardless of age, such as meeting and learning from seniors they wouldn't normally connect with.

Oshima: Regarding learning from seniors, one response stood out: "I don't want to hear older people bragging, but I do want to hear about their failures." They want to reflect on how they should work based on seniors' mistakes. And they want to experience passing on their own failures to juniors. By creating a system that passes down failure stories to avoid risks, they aim to prevent unnecessary mistakes and improve society efficiently—a sustainable mindset.

Igami: Team B's theme was "shopping and dining," and the keyword "failure-free grand adventures" emerged.

Oshima: It's interesting that the students' outputs reveal a desire for a town with seemingly contradictory elements: "failure-free" versus "grand adventure," "success experiences" versus "untried experiences," and "reproducibility" versus "gacha-like unpredictability."

Ikami: It's about a town where you can take on challenges and adventures with a minimum guarantee against failure, right? Ultimately, I felt they need some kind of authority figure to make the crucial decisions because they want that sense of security.

Oshima: Team C focused on "enjoying play and leisure," with the keyword "branching out of fun." Many in this group expressed a desire for chance encounters.

Even when going out with friends, there's no need to enjoy the exact same experience. One person might find joy in discovering stylish cafes or favorite shops, while another might enjoy observing the town's atmosphere or the lives of people spending time there. It's about finding your own way to enjoy things. And many voices expressed a desire for "not fixed, predetermined things, but rather chance encounters with various things and people."

Igami: I feel that sentiment is reflected in the phrase "parks and back alleys where you can enjoy things in many different ways."

Oshima: The word "park" came up quite a bit. While you don't go to a park with a specific purpose, there's an underlying assumption that it's a place where something unexpected can happen. You might spot a cute dog being walked, see children playing, or encounter scenery that makes you feel the changing seasons. These chance encounters become topics that liven up conversations.

Igami: Still, it's not like they're searching for something specific. It feels a bit mysterious, like seeking answers where there are none.

People seek that thrill in town that you can't get online.

Igami: Regarding what makes a town comfortable, I expected more concrete answers like "it has XX" or "you can do XX." The vague nature of the responses was a bit surprising. I feel every team tends to seek experiences you can't get online.

Oshima: I was also surprised the word "Instagrammable" didn't appear at all in the students' proposals. While "Instagrammable spots" seem like a key theme in current town planning, observing this workshop, I felt young people aren't seeking those spots themselves. Rather, they're seeking what kind of unknown experiences they can have using "Instagrammability" as a stage.

Igami: "Instagrammability" is fleeting; often, people visit a spot, take a photo, and never return. Plus, they don't seem particularly drawn to things where they know the "answer" upfront. Social media is flooded with videos and images of famous tourist spots, letting people feel like they've been there just by seeing them. Precisely because we live in such an era, I sensed a desire for the real thing—a thrill you can't get online or through social media.

Oshima: While time efficiency is valued today, I feel people also seek that in cities. They question what meaningful experiences they can have within the time spent.

Igami: While people might have a specific goal, like "I want to go to this shop," without that extra something, the overall experience doesn't feel complete. I think the key point is how many of those "things you can only discover by going there" a town actually has.

Oshima: In business, customer experience value is often emphasized. Similarly, in town planning, we need to consider what experiences people can have before and after achieving their main purpose. Designing towns with this in mind seems essential. For example, even with recent so-called immersive museums, it's not just about the experience at the venue itself. Young people seem to choose based on whether they can enjoy the space around their main purpose – like collectively deciding on a clothing theme to match the worldview, or enjoying posting photos taken there on social media.

Ikami: In today's highly information-driven society, it's often easy to find out what a town has to offer just by looking online. So, isn't the greatest joy when you encounter something not found online—something probably only you and your group know about?

A sense of security against failure and a gacha-like thrill

Ikami: In the workshop, there were also voices seeking a "gacha-like thrill" from the town. I think this is a way of describing that excitement you can't get online. It seems people are looking for a sense of serendipity in the town.

Oshima: Nowadays, whether on social media or in ads, it's commonplace for algorithms and AI to present things tailored to your preferences. That also means it's harder to encounter new interests or discoveries outside your usual tastes, right? That's precisely why people want to encounter things that are within a certain acceptable range but still exceed their expectations. I think that's what seeking that gacha-like feeling is all about.

Igami: During the workshop, some participants mentioned "deliberately going out into the city without researching beforehand." They said researching spoils the fun because you already know the answers.

Oshima: This is a slight digression, but before this workshop, we asked the students to think about "a town that feels right for them." I was a bit surprised that answers like Oshiage, Asakusa, and Nippori came up, rather than places like Shin-Okubo or Shibuya.

Igami: Surprising, right? Maybe the image of a downtown area with lots of alleys and a slower pace of life just feels right to them.

Oshima: It's like... these towns have a sense of "white space," you know?

Igami: That sense of serendipity, that element of chance, might just spring from these "spaces with breathing room."

Oshima: When you're walking down an alley, you might strike up a conversation with someone at a shopfront, discover a little-known store, or stumble upon a beautiful view. That's not about seeking out Instagrammable moments; it's serendipity. These chance encounters just naturally keep happening. I feel like that's what people are looking for.

Igami: But it was also striking how people expressed wanting that sense of serendipity while still desiring a minimum level of assurance.

Oshima: True. It's fascinating how people seek adventure in a town while also wanting that minimum guarantee against failure.

Igami: They probably want to avoid the risk of wasting money or time, thinking "Going to this town was a waste." You can see them seeking value for money and time. It's like "This much is guaranteed, and beyond that is adventure." For example, having favorite shops, well-known chain stores, or trendy spots, while venturing into back alleys reveals a slightly deeper world. Wanting security and adventure to be integrated is very modern.

Oshima: People want to avoid going out only to end up exhausted with nothing to show for it. When I asked students about "a town that feels right for them," one said, "Shibuya and Shinjuku are a backward choice." "Shibuya and Shinjuku have lots of shops and great access, so they're good for large groups, but I wouldn't choose them for small groups or going out alone." Why? Because "getting to your destination is exhausting due to the crowds, and popular shops often have long waits, so you end up using mental energy before even achieving your goal." For young people, the fatigue outweighing the joy gained from the city might be one of the risks.

Being the protagonist of your own story, finding your own answers

Igami: In the workshops, many voices expressed a desire for "authenticity" in the city. Students were drawn to a city where they could be the protagonist, where they could create their own answers, rather than just passively experiencing pre-made experiences.

Oshima: Yes. The phrase "a town where you can find your own way to enjoy it" came up quite a bit too. It's not just about enjoying it the way it's presented online; what matters is how you personally find enjoyment. I think it's important that there isn't just one fixed way to have fun.

Igami: In town planning, when creating facilities or spaces, it seems what's needed is to say, "How you enjoy it is up to you, everyone, please think for yourselves." I feel it gets accepted when people can sense things like, "I was able to do this," "There was this way to enjoy it," or "I learned something."

Oshima: You often see that embodied in the trendy parks where young people gather these days. Some are filming TikTok videos, others are relaxing with takeout coffee, and some are playing sports. It feels like a space where you can enjoy yourself in many different ways, not confined to just one thing. This is very similar to how memes play out on social media. Memes like dances or internet phrases give you a specific format, but everyone arranges it differently to enjoy it in their own way. Maybe what we're seeking in our cities is that kind of format or stage – one with room for arrangement, where everyone can express their individuality .

From "Cities with Answers" to "Cities without Answers"

Igami: In the workshop, we asked young people to think about "comfortable cities," and while many opinions emerged, I believe three points stand out.

• The excitement you can't get online is precisely what boosts performance
• A sense of security against failure and an element of surprise
• The ability to find your own answers and become the protagonist in your own story

Oshima: In the discussions, every team frequently mentioned keywords like chance, adventure, and curiosity. I got the strong impression they really want to enjoy uncertainty. While Gen Z has often been described as risk-averse, I sensed a shift in their values regarding risk. Failure and risk aren't just things to avoid; they're realities that exist even if we don't confront them head-on. Perhaps the mindset is shifting towards embracing them as part of the experience. Using the Tsugikuru summary format, risk might be evolving from an "obstacle" to a "stage prop." It feels like the idea is emerging that risk can be transformed into something enjoyable, depending on your approach.

Igami: I've come to realize that avoiding everything you don't understand isn't very interesting. Taking on a little risk probably contributes to your own growth.

Oshima: And that's why cities need that kind of space where young people can add their own originality.

Ikami: In town planning, it's difficult to make investments or decisions without some clear answers, so we tend to base our thinking on standard models like successful examples from other towns. At the same time, I felt the challenge of young people seeking things without clear answers. Creating spaces with room for them to seek answers themselves, or places where they can be the protagonists, is crucial. I felt we need to focus more on "creating spaces" rather than just translating a town's character into specific facilities. It also seems necessary to shift our core approach to thinking.

Oshima: I feel the key to town development isn't designing things with prescribed ways to enjoy them, but designing spaces with room to generate diverse ways of enjoyment.

Igami: Through this workshop, I realized we need to dig deeper into the psychology and behavior behind "why young people go out into the town," rather than just creating facilities and shops based on what interests young people or trendy content.

The "Urban Future Design Unit," which considers "towns" from the perspective of human happiness, will continue exploring "towns" with Wakamon members, incorporating the "future perspective" held by young people.

[Contact for Inquiries Regarding This Matter]
Urban Future Design Unit
Website: https://www.dentsu.co.jp/labo/futuredesign_unit/index.html
Email: futuredesign-unit@dentsu.co.jp

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