Mayor Ryosuke Takashima includes “Time100 Next 2025” list

Tuesday, time The magazine released a list of “Time100 Next 2025” respecting people from all over the world who are shaping the future and defining the next generation of leadership. Among them is Ryosuke Takashima, who was elected as the city of Ashiya in Hyogo prefecture, 26 years ago, and 2 months ago, making him the youngest mayor of Japan ever.

A year ago, Takashima graduated from Harvard University with a degree in environmental engineering. He also leads a nonprofit organization called Ryugaku Scholarship, which provides information and advice to Japanese high school students on going to college overseas.

ryosuke takashima is “breaking mold”

Takayama was selected in the magazine’s leadership section. “In Japan, a country shaped by its old-fashioned politics, Ryosuke takashima broke the mold,” it said. “He founded in 2023 at 26, when he was elected as more than 90,000 residents of Ashiya at the age of 26.

The magazine continues: “Since then, Takashima has prioritized reforms that benefit younger generations, such as redesigning classroom instruction to enable more institutions and students to learn more individually, shift cash benefits per capita to older people’s investment in shared public services and advance cost-effective climate action.”

Record election victory

After the election victory in April 2023, Takashima said: “What matters is what I want to achieve, not my age. But my youth means I have more energy than anyone else.” He broke Kotaro Shishida, who was elected mayor of Musashimurayama in western Tokyo at the age of 27 in 1994.

During the campaign, Takashima vowed to provide more support for young families, provide free medical care for those aged 18 and under, and improve the English education program. He won by more than 46% of the vote, ahead of his current position and two other competitors.

Rina Gonoi honors at the White House

Time100Next

The “Time100 Next” list was launched in 2019, “to recognize people who are still rising.” Other Japanese who have participated in the past include Shinjiro Koizumi, one of the main contenders in the upcoming Nature Party leadership elections, and former member of the Self-Defense Force (SDF), Rina Gonoi, who expressed things about sexual abuse while serving her country.

The youngest person on the 2025 list is Elliston Berry, 16. She was only 14 years old when a classmate used AI to create her clear and deep image. Earlier this year, her work advocated for new protections for digital harassment, and she gained recognition in the Alliance State.

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