I know I am venturing into the world shared by sociologists, cultural anthropologists, cultural historians, and economists in the current research that I am pursuing. The question is whether traditional Japanese values are compatible with a mainstream ideology that pursues ever increasing GDP growth as a goal, if not a reality. The current Japanese government is pursuing what they previously referred to as a ‘high pressure’ growth strategy and aim to end the decades of low GDP growth deflation which has become embedded in the psyche of the corporate and household sector. This strategy is running into severe constraints, not the least coming from the demographic shifts that will see the population shrink to around 105 million by 20250 (from 123 million currently). In past posts I have suggested that Japan represents an ideal model to demonstrate how a degrowth strategy would work to maintain essential material prosperity yet reduce the nation’s ecological footprint. I am now looking into whether the degrowth notion has roots in the traditional cultural values of the nation. This is my first report (Part 1) on that theme.