Fukui as a Living Laboratory: Applying V=N/D Value Density Theory to Regional Civilizational Design
Abstract
This paper proposes Fukui Prefecture, Japan, as an optimal living laboratory for the first regional-scale application of V=N/D theory (Value = Service Density / Friction). Rather than beginning at national scale — which Limit Simulation Method analysis has shown to generate seven structural failure points — Fukui offers a bounded, coherent, data-rich regional environment where V=N/D principles can be tested and refined. Fukui's specific characteristics (demographic structure, traditional industries including eyeglass frames at 96% of Japan's domestic production, lacquerware, textiles; civic density; post-Shinkansen development pressure) make it structurally representative of challenges facing mid-size regional societies globally. The paper defines a three-phase implementation pathway (measurement infrastructure, parallel operation, supplementary allocation), applies LSM to identify how national-scale failure points are transformed at regional scale, and proposes a Fukui V=N/D Living Laboratory Declaration as a formal regional initiative. A successful implementation would constitute the first empirical demonstration of value-density-based regional governance. 福井から始める。From Fukui, it begins.