Benchmarking quality of life and urban growth: Fukuoka among globally competitive regional cities

Abstract

World-city theories leave significant gaps in explaining how regional, moderate-sized cities fit into the global urban system and how they balance quality of life (QoL) with urban growth (UG). This study simultaneously evaluates QoL and UG in Fukuoka City, Japan, using a dual-axis benchmarking framework. Building on a model first developed in 2014, the study compares Fukuoka with five peer cities—Barcelona, Munich, Melbourne, Vancouver, and Seattle—using 64 indicators grouped into four categories: (1) Livability and Community, (2) Security and Sustainability, (3) Resources and Productivity, and (4) Innovation and Interaction. Findings show that Fukuoka has sustained a relatively high QoL while making gradual gains in UG, although challenges remain in global connectivity and innovation. These findings provide context for recent urban policy initiatives, including the “Tenjin Big Bang,” “Hakata Connected,” and universal design policies. These policy initiatives have supported improvements in livability and business functions, although they have not yet fully closed the gap with peer cities. Methodologically, the study offers a transparent, policy-relevant benchmarking framework, while also acknowledging limitations arising from heterogeneous data boundaries and partial inconsistency between the 2014 and 2024 indicator sets. Conceptually and empirically, the findings position Fukuoka within emerging post-growth urban debates, illustrating how moderate-sized cities can pursue co-prosperity between QoL and UG under demographic and environmental constraints.